We are well under way on our journey and thought many of our readers would enjoy hearing the origin of Origin Rehab. We believe that we are adding something special to our Mint-Hill, Matthews and Charlotte community and are grateful for the opportunity to serve our neighbors and improve the health of our community along with our many friends and partners.
Join me as I interview our founder and owner, Dave Reed, PT:
Katrina: Dave tell us a little about your experience once you graduated from PT School.
Dave: I graduated from Wayne State University in 2005, eager to make a difference in people’s lives. I was quickly met with the disjointed healthcare system, one that, as I experienced it, focused more on checking boxes for insurance companies versus fulfilling what would be best for my patients. I loved the people I worked with in my first outpatient clinic, but it was a busy clinic, seeing 24-27 patients per day, 3-4 patients at one time. It felt more like a factory working at maximum capacity than a place for people to come to get the care they needed. It was not the way I wanted to practice and it created a tension that stirred up a desire in me to find a better way to give my patients what they need.
Katrina: Where did you go from this role?
Dave: I wanted to make a bigger impact so I accepted a role as a clinic director for a struggling clinic, a job that had been open for a year. I was motivated and began consuming books and resources to learn about the business side of a clinic and how to navigate health insurance and was able to see the clinic turn around, but felt like I was still missing the information I needed to make the changes I wanted to see on a larger scale. This drove me to complete my MBA in 2012 with Michigan State University.
Katrina: Now that you have your MBA, what was next on your agenda?
Dave: I accepted a position as a rehab director for a small regional hospital in the mountains of NC and my wife and I made the big move from the Detroit area. I was in this position for a few years and learned a lot about the back-end of business operations, but was still bound by “coloring inside the health system’s lines” focused on insurance needs rather than being able to prioritize healthcare needs. Through a series of changes in the healthcare system, I stepped out of my role as a rehab director and started working in the Charlotte area overseeing rehabilitation operations at more than 80 assisted living communities.
Katrina: What what Physical Therapy like during the start of the Covid Pandemic?
Dave: During Covid jobs reduced employees and treatments provided to patients. I found myself in an unsustainable position and had more time to think about my passion of providing better care to patients and bridging the gap from home health physical therapy to outpatient physical therapy. I began seeing some patients on my own in their homes, which is where idea for Origin Rehab was borne. I found I really enjoyed building something that was best for my patients’ care and being able to deliver it in a way that was practical and conducive to my clients’ needs. I feel like my prior experiences were building to prepare me to create Origin to do rehab better and spurs me on to make a difference in my community.
