We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Karen Henery. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Karen below.
Alright, Karen thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When you’ve been a professional in an industry for long enough, you’ll experience moments when the entire field takes a U-Turn, an instance where the consensus completely flips upside down or where the “best practices” completely change. If you’ve experienced such a U-Turn over the course of your professional career, we’d love to hear about it.
As many others in the wellness industry would likely agree, the biggest industry-wide U-turn was in 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. It wasn’t just a U-turn – the world stopped for many people in all industries. State-by-state, regulatory boards and national organizations scrambled to respond to the bewilderment and frenzy of the professionals they represent or support.
Here in Pennsylvania, acupuncturists were granted ability to continue working during initial lockdown when they were classified as medical professionals. Massage therapists were not granted this same classification. Our state board issued a notice recommending we seek private legal consultation if we needed advice. Regardless of individual opinion on the matter, during lockdown we were not permitted to work – which made our personal liability insurance void during that time period. It was a shock to each of us on varying levels that we were not considered medical professionals despite holding a professional license managed by a state board similar to nursing, acupuncture, or chiropractic.
Each of us made our own decisions on how and when to return to work. Some wellness practitioners altogether quit their profession and changed careers. Others defiantly continued to see clients during lockdown. The industry experienced much in-fighting and peer judgement. We were left to our own means in determining how to move forward in safely practicing, cleaning treatment spaces, documenting these changes, and communicating with clients. Some continued on as if nothing happened while others developed distinct policies and protocols that have evolved or been eliminated over time as more information became available.
At WAY Wellness Center, we work with a wide range of clients that include those with severe chronic pain and complex conditions such as autoimmune diagnoses and compromised immunity. Both acupuncturists and massage therapists alike see these clients. With the help of another massage therapist at the office, I developed a set of policies, procedures, and forms based on the evolving data and evidence-based research over the course of 2020 to ensure the best possible care was still in place for clients and practitioners alike. These policies, procedures, and forms have been updated, modified, or eliminated over time as the pandemic waned and our understanding of COVID-19 grew. Due to this careful planning and consistency in documentation, since March of 2020, we have only one confirmed case transmitted in our office from a patient to one acupuncturist.
We are still feeling the effects of this industry shift at the start of 2025. Despite “business-as-usual” resuming for many by the start of 2021, clients for all types of wellness practitioners had varying personal responses to their own concerns of returning to the close confinements of treatment rooms and lobbies. We did see a reduction in what we consider “relaxation” appointments over the early days in 2020 and 2021, but an increase in the number of therapeutic pain management and stress reduction appointments at the same time. Flexibility in cancellation policies was a trend at the beginning locally for many wellness businesses that has since seen an almost complete turn around to more stringent cancellation policies with higher fees to prevent clients from taking advantage of the practitioners.
The popular catch phrase of a “new normal” is not as cliche as it sounds. It is definitely not the same as it was prior to the initial lockdowns in 2020, and nearly 5 years later it can be difficult to remember clearly what it used to be like. I was recently at a community wellness event and still observed a mixture of those wearing masks and those who do not. We still have HEPA air filters in our treatment rooms. Our documentation still indicates the need to confirm appropriate cleaning procedures were followed between clients. Prior to 2020, any of this in the Pittsburgh area would have raised an eyebrow. Cleaning properly was always just done and not documented. The presence of a HEPA filter would have caused concern instead of comfort. A client wearing a mask would have made a practitioner wary of the person’s health rather than seeing it as a preventative measure.
In some ways it brought on some positive changes along with changes we all had to learn or adjust to.
Karen, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Currently, I am mom to my amazing 17-month old daughter, along with co-owning and managing a large wellness center with 8 independent contractors on staff. We also have a remote Operations Manager that supports our overall business operations and client retention. We recently underwent a major renovation and rebrand along with a web site redesign, all of which I have coordinated while maintaining daily operations and taking care of my daughter. The week before she was born, I completed my culinary arts degree and hope to add focus on my culinary arts and pastry career in the near future.
Our wellness center is one of the largest acupuncture offices in the region, along with providing herbal medicine, massage therapy, manual therapy, chiropractic, holistic allergy elimination, fertility support, and functional nutrition. We also have the capacity to provide workshops and instruction on meal planning, nutritional support, Qi Gong, Tai Chi, Yoga, and other movement based activities. Each of our practitioners is an expert in their field and most of them have a minimum of 15 years in their practice. The practitioners’ extensive training and experience provide clients with treatment options and results unlike any other clinic in the area. We are also unique in that we have 6 approved practitioners on staff for the VA Health Care System Community Care program to provide acupuncture, massage therapy, and chiropractic to local veterans.
Coming from a background in corporate PR, advertising, and hospital-based health care project management – the holistic medicine world is a very different place! The open-mindedness and wide range of practitioners and clients lends a different feel to daily life. Being able to support our practitioners in their ability to help clients find their healing journeys is rewarding. It keeps me on my toes and requires constant use of my entire brain – logic and creativity! I value this aspect of our business. I started out as a Licensed Massage Therapist and joined my husband – an acupuncturist – in ownership of the business in 2018. My background versus the transition into the wellness industry may seem bizarre to some, but having the corporate skill set to manage a growing small business like ours has been detrimental in the past year. I’m excited to see what we do next!
Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?
Being a small business owner with a thriving clinic of 8 practitioners is vastly different from being a self-employed independent contractor or an employee of another business. It’s certainly not for everyone! Success as a massage therapist is different for every individual. Succeeding as a clinic owner requires a lot of flexibility while maintaining an open-mind yet also staying consistent in direction towards overall goals. For anyone hoping to own or manage a clinic overseeing multiple practitioners, I highly recommend seeking out workshops, training, or current literature on communication, effective leadership, knowing when to make the decision or knowing when to get out of the way and let your staff guide you, goal-setting, and organization skills or methods. It is very important to be organized and set the right goals for the overall business as well as with the individual practitioners. Being able to identify the right practitioners for your goals and the best fit for the entire team is also critical – even if a practitioner seems great, are they going to fit into the current team, and will they be able to follow the processes in place that keep the clinic operation smoothly? I feel these are all general best practices for any type of business, but scaled down or modified for the wellness industry.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Authenticity in behavior and intention along with the experience and skillset of our team. Each practitioner who is currently with us is authentically themselves, truly passionate about their practice, and follows through in all aspects with consistency in communication. Many of our clients refer their friends, family, and colleagues to the practice based on their experiences.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://waywellnesscenter.com
- Instagram: @waywellnesscenter
- Facebook: /waywellnesscenterpgh
Image Credits
Julie Kahlbaugh