Kevin Pozzi, Managing Partner of five MVPT clinics, has a simple formula for running a successful physical therapy practice: Focus on your patients, and support the growth of your team. “If you do those two things well, your physical therapists will be able to deliver quality care, and your practice will grow because your patients are going to come back, and they’re going to send their family and friends.” Guided by this approach, Kevin has led the growth of one of New Hampshire’s leading providers of physical therapy.
Two ago, the future of Kevin’s clinics was not as certain. At the time, the founder and majority owner of MVPT was looking to transition and secure his retirement by selling the practice. “I was worried that a new business partner would be so singularly focused on the bottom line,” Kevin says, “that MVPT would have to change the way we treated our patients and built our reputation.”
Then he met Cypress Health Partners.
“As I spent more time with them, it was clear that they stood out from other groups that we had met,” Kevin recalls. “Cypress Health Partners functions very much like we do, putting patients and providers first. It could not have been a more congruent fit.”
More than a year into the partnership, MVPT has not just benefitted from Cypress Health Partners’ approach to delivering care but has been able to grow with the new resources available to them. In addition to operational support like accounting and billing, Kevin now has access to specialized expertise like talent acquisition, continuing education, and leadership development for staff. He especially likes the operational support provided by the company’s Operational Excellence team and the sharing of best practices throughout the network. “It’s kind of like a think tank,” he says, “because they know what works.” Recently, using established best practices from their network, Cypress Health Partners helped him better monitor care frequency, plan of care adherence, and patient access constraints. “That’s what we’re all about, helping patients get the care they need when they need it.”
“It’s a wonderful partnership. I have less on my plate so I can focus on leading my staff and giving them new opportunities to grow. With Cypress Health Partners, the sky’s the limit. And, I get to go home to my family at the end of the day, knowing that I have a partner that I can trust.”
Kevin Pozzi, Merrimack Valley Physical Therapy
Pamela Powell, the Managing Partner of All-Access Physical Therapy, prides herself on how her organization delivers care. “Our vision,” she says, “is to go above and beyond for our patients and really spend the time to get to know them as a whole person and not just a body part. We’re going to get to know things in their personal life and in their job, stress levels, exercise habits, aspirations—all the things that make them who they are and allow us to intervene successfully. We are really thorough and that resonates with referring providers, patients and the community.”
While All-Access Physical Therapy was clear about its vision for treating patients, it struggled with its vision for growth. “We knew the patient treatment model was working, but we were so caught up in the day-to-day management of the business, we weren’t able to set aside enough time to really work on a growth plan for the company and for the staff. We were stuck and spinning our wheels, quite honestly.”
As some of the owners were looking to retire from physical therapy and the challenges of growing a practice during COVID-19 became apparent, it was clear that it was time to find a partner.
“Our first priority in choosing a partner was preserving our patient care model,” says Pamela. “We didn’t want to turn into a factory. When we met Cypress Health Partners, the fact that the leadership team is so heavily made up of PTs and practitioners reassured us. Their patient-focused care model and philosophy are very similar to ours.”
Once they made the decision to join Cypress Health Partners, the leadership team helped develop a long-term growth plan and provided the support to execute it. “They have the most supportive executive leaders I’ve ever come across,” says Pamela. “They’re completely invested in our success.” Powell not only appreciates the strategic guidance she’s received, but the wide range of operational support to help her organization run smoothly and efficiently. “I know how to deliver care, but I’m not an HR specialist, or a payroll specialist, or a compliance specialist, or an operations expert. Cypress Health Partners takes care of all those things for me. It’s a huge relief.”
Cypress Health Partners has also helped Pamela develop growth plans for her staff which she wasn’t able to do before. “I’ve been able to identify the therapists who want to move towards leadership roles and I now have a framework for their responsibilities, how to train them, and what the steps are in that growth progression. Just as importantly, we now have the financial cushion and resources to reward them for their success.”
“Before Cypress Health Partners, I felt like I was in a revolving cycle of managing stress and putting out fires,” she says. “Now I can step back and focus on the quality of our care and the growth of our clinics and team!”
Pamela Powell, All-Access Physical Therapy
“I always tell my staff that we want our patients to be our patients for life. That vision has helped us become one of most respected physical therapy practices in New Hampshire’s Seacoast,” says Sue Dumore, Managing Partner of MVPT—formerly Abilities Physical Therapy and Wellness Center.
Sue recognizes that every patient is different, with a different history, different lifestyle, and different ways an injury may present itself. With a focus on hands-on diagnosis and treatment, Sue and her staff are able to deliver personalized care tailored to the specific needs of each patient.
A few years ago, Sue knew she had to consider the long-term health of her practice, as well as the long-term health of her patients. With industry demands changing rapidly and large health systems frequently trying to keep patients in-house, Sue realized that she needed a partner to help her navigate the challenges of the market. As she started to develop a plan, she not only focused on finding a partner to help solve current challenges but also wanted a partner to ensure that her team could continue to deliver high-quality hands-on care when she was ready to retire.
In Cypress Health Partners, she found what she was looking for. The team at Cypress Health Partners not only provided the resources and support to help her clinic continue to thrive but shared her passion for high-quality care.
The alignment between Cypress Health Partners and Sue’s clinic was clear from the start. “Their vision for treating patients and staff and their overall positive vibe, it all matches perfectly with us.” In addition to the “positive vibe,” Sue appreciates that she now has the resources of Cypress Health Partners’ network to more fully engage with patients and share best practices with peers, while no longer being burdened by the headaches of billing and collecting. Sue can now focus again on the long-term health of her patients. After all, that is why she got into physical therapy in the first place.