HEALTH CARE
Moving closer to patients boosts business for clinic
June 5, 2008
Eric Browning of Keith Physical Therapy in Oklahoma City
displays Wednesday a strength measurement device and a skull
that helps demonstrate to patients the workings of the human
jaw. (Photo by Jennifer Pitts)
OKLAHOMA CITY – Sore people don’t want to travel any farther
than they absolutely have to for physical therapy.
That led one Oklahoma City physical therapy clinic to move its
offices from NW 63rd Street and Northwest Expressway to an
office park near Mercy Health Center. Plans call for an
expansion to offer additional services in an adjoining space.
Tom Keith and Eric Browning moved Keith Physical Therapy last
year to Physicians Medical Park, at 13301 N. Meridian Ave. The
new space brought them closer to their clients and across the
street from Mercy.
Browning said 85 to 90 percent of the clinic’s clients lived in
far northwest Oklahoma City and Edmond, some of whom they see
once, and others who require treatment for years.
“We have a lot of success with repeat business,” Browning said.
“Not that we want people to get hurt again, but if they do have
an issue, they come back and see us.”
But the move also required that the clinic start from scratch
building relationships with physicians and fitness centers in
the area to grow the business.
“When you move you almost have to build a new foundation,”
Browning said. “Being in this space is still a relatively new
experience.”
But Browning has been hitting the streets to make connections
with physicians and fitness centers to refer business back and
forth. He has made a connection with Brian Attebery, owner of
Results Fitness and Nutrition Center in Edmond. The two met
about six months ago and found they could help each other, and
already had some mutual clients.
Attebery said the advantages of the relationship with Keith
Physical Therapy are that the two can work together to help
people get the best physical treatment for their ailments and
refer clients back-and-forth depending on their specific therapy
and fitness needs.
“It’s nice to have something that really pinpoints and shows
clients what they need to work on,” Attebery said, referring to
a computer system that Browning using to assess clients’
specific physical strengths and weaknesses. “And if they have
more acute conditions I can send them to a physical therapist to
approve what I’m doing.”
Though Browning stressed that he is not a physician, he is able
to help clients through physical therapy and perform
musculoskeletal examinations.
“We’re not trying to take over in any way a doctor’s work,” he
said. “We really want to work with them.”
The physical therapy clinic is in about 2,500 square feet, and
Browning has his sights on an adjoining space to further grow
the business.
Keith, who has been a physical therapist for more than 20 years,
is slowly fazing out. Browning plans to take over the practice
when Keith retires.
Browning said the expanded space would allow growth of his
Predictive Risk Analysis, a program of 140-160 tests that gives
clients charts of their strengths and weaknesses.
“One of my goals is to take over that space to provide more
examinations,” Browning said. “I think as the general public get
into this it will be very popular.”
The clinic will also use the space for balance therapy on a
program for the Nintendo Wii game system.
