Staff at Carlson Therapy Network’s Ridgefield clinic, which has operated in town for 30 years, include, from left: Caitlin Casti, doctor of physical therapy; Crystal Madyda, physical therapist and assistant clinic manager; Kay Ullman, office coordinator; Anastasia Thomson, personal trainer; Joanne Sullivan, physical therapist and clinic manager; and Melissa Hackett, message therapist and business manager. Gail Fennell, senior therapist, and Stroth Scoliosis, therapist, are not in the photo.
After 30 years in physical therapy, Rick Carlson’s original philosophy — ‘Take the very best care of each patient that walks through the door’ — still guides what is now the 15-clinic Carlson Physical Therapy Network.
The office in Ridgefield, where it all started, is still helping patients with all kinds of problems..
“Orthopedic problems — arms, shoulders, elbows, wrists, backs, hips, knees, ankles, pretty much everything,” said Joanne Sullivan, physical therapist and Ridgefield clinic manager. “We see the whole gamut — post operative, over-use, chronic conditions.”
The Ridgefield clinic — now at 10 South Street, Carlson Physical Therapy’s third location in town — gets about 600 patient visits a month, according to business manager and massage therapist Melissa Hackett.
The staff of 10 there treats “a variety of orthopedic and neurological conditions as well as balance/vertigo, motor vehicle and workers comp related injuries, sports injuries, spinal injuries and conditions, post surgery rehab,” Ms. Hackett said.
The clinic also has wellness programs such as massage therapy, personal training, gym memberships, and custom foot orthotics.
A BioSway machine at the office is used to test and treat balance disorders and concussions. Three of staff are certified Kinesio® taping practitioners, and one is a certified Schroth Scoliosis Method Therapist.
“I’ve been very lucky to be able to be in the field of physical therapy,” Mr. Carlson said. “I’ve always worked with really great people. The group in Ridgefield is wonderful. They should get a lot of credit for what they do.
“And patients have been great.”
Mr. Carlson fell from a tree in 2005 and has been unable to work physically with patients since then, though he remains involved in oversight.
“When I had my injury, I got a lot of support from people I work with and patients, and that was all very wonderful,” he said.
Mr. Carlson first opened a physical therapy and sports medicine center within the office of Ridgefield orthopedist Dr. Chris Cassels in 1983. It was part time, while he still worked at Danbury Hospital. His wife, Sharon, was the receptionist and did the billing with baby, Nicole, at her side.
It developed into a full-time practice, and Mark Dufresne joined in 1985.
Dr. Cassels and Mr. Carlson opened offices beside each other in a new building in town in 1986. The practice grew, and more space and staff were added.
In 1991 Mr. Dufresne opened an office in Bethel, and in the late ‘90s as the business continued to grow its name was changed to Carlson Therapy Network.
Currently, there are 15 locations in Connecticut including Danbury, Bethel, Brookfield, New Milford, New Fairfield, Newtown and Monroe and one office in Rhode Island in addition to the headquarters office in Danbury and the central billing office in Cheshire.
Over three decades, changes in medical insurance and have affected physical therapy as a field.
“Now we’re in a situation where you have to go to the insurance company to get treated six visits, and if you want to see them more you have to go back,” Mr. Carlson said.
“There’s a lot more paperwork involved, and the co-pays are dramatically higher.”
The number of Carlson offices peaked some years ago.
“We had 28,” Mr. Carlson said. “But because of the changes in health care we have been slowly paring down the operation to make it more manageable.
“Our philosophy hasn’t changed,” said Ms. Hackett, the business manager of the Ridgefield clinic.
“The insurance pieces have changed and we’re being reimbursed less. But we’re very proud that we’re still doing the same treatments we’ve always done.”
The Ridgefield clinic’s staff includes: Joanne Sullivan, PT, CKTP clinic manager; Crystal Benson Madyda, MSPT, CKTP, assistant clinic manager; Gail Fennell, PT, CSS, senior therapist; Caitlin Casti, DPT, senior therapist; Melissa Hackett, LMT,CKTP business manager and massage therapist; Kay Ullman, office coordinator, Anastasia Thomson, personal trainer; and Lucy Peralta Hayes, LMT massage therapist. Ridgefield residents Patty O’Shea and Kate Billett are support staff.
Carlson Physical Therapy is at 10 South Street in Ridgefield. Hours are Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
For more information, call 203-431-7632, visit www.carlsontherapy.com on the web or check Facebook at www.facebook.com/CarlsonPT.