Meet Dr. Naveed Shan PT, DPT, OCS (Hopefully soon to be SCS) – Strong Man, MMA Trainer, & Sole ED PT in his Facility
Dr. Naveed Shan is a physical therapist in the Emergency Department at Banner Health in Phoenix, Arizona. In his free time he competes in Strong Man competitions, and provides strength/conditioning training to MMA fighters. Dr. Shan also advocates for ED PTs as part of the EPT Steering Committee.
Describe how you became involved in Emergency Department Physical Therapist Practice.
My last semester in PT school Mike Lebec came in and lectured about EDPT. I came from a sports background and thought I was going to go into orthopedics/sports but I had a really bad experience in my clinical rotations and didn’t feel it was for me. Once I heard Dr. Lebec speak to my class and also at CSM I felt it was where I needed to be. On my last clinical rotation, I saw there was an opening in the emergency department and I had to apply.
Describe your practice setting and ED PT model.
I work in a 60 room level 1 trauma emergency department in downtown Phoenix. We see everything from LVAD patients and strokes to minor strains and sprains. The providers primarily consult me on orthopedic/MSK injuries but I also evaluate vestibular conditions, mobility/disposition evaluations, and concussion/mild TBI patients. I try to be there for whatever the providers need within my scope of practice.
Why do you think this is a valuable practice area?
There’s definitely a need for physical therapy in the emergency department. I think minor conditions like back pain often get overlooked by providers and this can lead to medical mismanagement and chronic issues. I also believe it’s a great way to advocate for the profession as many providers have no idea what we can do.
What was the biggest adjustment for you in practicing in the ED?
Advocating for the profession and educating the providers on what we can do for patients. It took close to a year before providers were consulting me regularly.
Do you have an area of specialty?
Orthopedics & Sports Medicine.
What barriers did you have to overcome personally and within your facility to practice successfully in this environment
Educating providers on what physical therapists can do for patients. Educating the nurses on what an appropriate consult would be. Finding my place in an emergency department that had never had a PT before.
Here more about a great catch by Dr. Shan as a new PT in this ED in this podcast with PT Pintcast.
What is your philosophy about what makes an ideal ED PT?
Meet people where they are and do what you can for them. You can’t save or help everyone but you can always listen and provide comfort.
What was your biggest win in the ED?
One day a bariatric patient came into the ED with acute back pain. The provider had given the patient morphine, oxycodone, toradol, and muscle relaxers with no relief and he was stuck in his bed being unable to move without going into severe spasm. The provider asked me to see what I can do for the patient; he was considering sending the patient to the local zoo for imaging (since he unfortunately couldn’t fit into the CT scan or MRI) and admission afterwards. When I walked in, the patient was stuck in supine and unable to move for a more thorough evaluation. The only thing we could try was repeated flexion in supine. Slowly the patient started to improve, feeling more confident in himself and thought less about the pain. It took us 30 minutes of repeated movements and we were both drenched in sweat but he was able to get out of bed on his own and walk out of the hospital. I saved him a hospital admission and a trip to the zoo.
To learn more about Dr. Shan or connect, you can find him on IG @nshan87, or Twitter @naveedshanspt. Dr. Shan’s training services are available here.
