We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dr. Rachel Collins a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Dr. Rachel , appreciate you joining us today. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.
I graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 2015 with a Doctorate of Physical Therapy. One month after graduation, I moved to Kentucky for my first job in an outpatient orthopedic setting. The hustle and bustle of a busy clinic and seeing between 18-22 patients in an 8 hour work day was exciting at first. As a new clinician, being exposed to a variety of injuries helps build confidence with your skills and creating recovery plans. After working in this type of setting for over 6 years, I decided to advance my career by delving into the world of cash based Physical Therapy.
I had a desire to create my own cash based practice with a focus on women’s health. After having a baby, I noticed the lack of support for pregnant and postpartum moms. I even felt lost during my own rehab because we got very little training in pelvic floor therapy in school. I knew if I felt that way, there had to be so many other women out there that were struggling and feeling alone during these hard times.
It’s crazy to me how little support there is out there for women after giving birth. Our bodies go through major changes and we are expected to be healed in 8 weeks and return to normal with no complaints. We need to do better by this population and help empower them.
I have a passion for helping women be heard and let them know that there is help out there available to them. I want women to know they don’t have to live their lives in pain, experience leaking, or refrain from activities that they love.
I have been able to make a significant impact in my patients’ lives after a few sessions and I will continue to spread the word that help is out there and help women feel confident in whatever they want to do!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 2015 with a Doctorate of Physical Therapy. One month after graduation, I moved to Kentucky for my first job in an outpatient orthopedic setting. The hustle and bustle of a busy clinic and seeing between 18-22 patients in an 8 hour work day was exciting at first. As a new clinician, being exposed to a variety of injuries helps build confidence with your skills and creating recovery plans. After working in this type of setting for over 6 years, I decided to advance my career by delving into the world of cash based Physical Therapy.
I had a desire to create my own cash based practice with a focus on women’s health. After having a baby, I noticed the lack of support for pregnant and postpartum moms. I even felt lost during my own rehab because we got very little training in pelvic floor therapy in school. I knew if I felt that way, there had to be so many other women out there that were struggling and feeling alone during these hard times.
It’s crazy to me how little support there is out there for women after giving birth. Our bodies go through major changes and we are expected to be healed in 8 weeks and return to normal with no complaints. We need to do better by this population and help empower them.
I have a passion for helping women be heard and let them know that there is help out there available to them. I want women to know they don’t have to live their lives in pain, experience leaking, or refrain from activities that they love.
I have been able to make a significant impact in my patients’ lives after a few sessions and I will continue to spread the word that help is out there and help women feel confident in whatever they want to do!
Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?
Being a presence in your community, making sure you let people know you are there to help. Of course also making connections with out professionals to help build a solid community.
Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?
Networking and being a presence in the community but doing free workshops and community events to get the word on your services. I truly believe that if you put good into the world you will get good back.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.drrachelcollins.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rachelcollinsrcpt/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rachel.hollenbach