10 years…Can it be that long? Helping Hands Rehab was always an idea. A “If I ever had a private practice” kind of idea. A youthful, “I would like to be in private practice by the time I am 45” dream. It became reality, against all odds mostly due to my husband’s frustration with the job he had at that time. He jokingly said, “You go to work full time and I’ll stay home with the kids”. My reply to that was I wasn’t going to go back full time unless it was my own place. Apparently, I never told him of my 20-year-old dream. My husband is a “let’s get it done” kind of guy. So, we did. We opened on April 1, 2011 shortly after I turned 46. It was a complete April fool’s idea. But here we are, 10 years later! (He continued to work full time; in case you are wondering.)
I had some very specific goals and ideas what my private practice would look like:
- I’d answer completely to the client/patient. No being forced to do unnecessary treatments by the doctor. No unnecessary billing. The ability to instruct clients how to discuss various topics with the MD. No insurance company telling me we can only do XYZ treatment. No worker’s comp adjuster telling me a client is faking it and I need to do XYZ to prove it, etc.
- No wasting a patient’s time and money. You will always know why you are here and what the benefit of therapy is. I never have people do the same tasks I have them do at home. A home exercise is for at home, not therapy (unless someone has questions). A patient is going to see me, not an assistant or aide. I am always going to use evidence-based treatments and best practices. I am going to bill in an ethical manner, no padding the bill to make a bonus as some companies do. I am going to see you as long as needed as able. Need a longer or shorter treatment session? No problem. Need to only come in 1 time a week due to work issues? No problem.
- Always listen to patient’s concerns and issues. Can’t open a door or lift your grandkid? —Let’s work on that. Having pain in this area instead of where it “should be”? —Let’s look at that and see if we can figure it out. Don’t think your doctor is listening to you? —Let’s discuss how you talk to the doctor to get your point across. And let me email the doctor on your behalf to get him/her thinking of it. I am going to listen and learn from my patients.
- No seeing multiple patients at once. You deserve full attention, not a therapist that is seeing 2-4 people at once. Not therapist walking away while you are exercising to go look up non-treatment things on the computer (I used to work with someone who would go look up boating/sailing techniques while his patient did their home exercises in therapy.)
- I am going to take the time to explain everything you need me to explain, anytime you need to me explain. I am a believer in the idea that if you know why you are doing something, you are more willing to do that something. So, I will explain why you are doing this exercise, why I want you to do it “this” way, and what you can expect after doing the exercise.
I think, for the most part, I have met these goals and ideas for the past 10 years. I’ve seen many people and remember many to this day. I could tell you the name of my very 1st patient. I recently saw his wife. I still have a copy of my 1st insurance payment (it was for $378.40 from Blue Cross Blue Shield). I have never been at one place for this long. I’ve always had a 5 year plan where I’d move on after 5 years. Some places I’ve left earlier than 5 years, some I’ve been longer than 5 years (longest was UW hospital at 6.5 years). The challenges of the patients and insurance companies keep me interested. I plan on continuing for a while yet. I still enjoy seeing patients and listening to their stories. Hopefully, they will keep coming back, when they need to.
Thank you to everyone who has made it possible, and who have helped us along the way!
~Nancy