Greendale Physical Therapy will also open a second location in Worcester, Massachusetts
Greendale Physical Therapy on August 1 will open the first center in Central Massachusetts dedicated to vestibular, balance and neurological therapy and will also expand to its sixth location in the region with a new 5,000-square-foot physical therapy center on Gold Star Blvd. in Worcester.
The vestibular, balance, and neurological center will occupy the 3,000-square-foot space at 120 Gold Star Blvd. that formerly housed Greendale’s Worcester physical therapy center. The new physical therapy center, focused on orthopedic rehabilitation, is located in a 5,000-square-foot facility across the street in a newly constructed building at 137 Gold Star Blvd. The locally owned, independent physical therapy group also has locations in Shrewsbury, Clinton, Fitchburg and Marlborough, and now two in Worcester. In addition, Greendale provides aquatic therapy in the pool at the Central Community Branch YMCA in Worcester.
Vestibular and Neurological therapy
Vestibular rehabilitation therapy is an exercise-based program designed to help the nervous system compensate for inner ear deficits and balance impairments often caused by degenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and dementia as well as brain or nervous system injuries from stroke or accidents. People who experience dizziness, vertigo, or disequilibrium are good candidates for vestibular therapy. Some symptoms can be cured while others can only be controlled with a regular vestibular rehabilitation program, often including eye, neck and head coordination therapy, balance training, and targeted manual therapy. In addition to vestibular therapy the center will also focus treatment of patients with various neurological and balance disorders including Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and stroke.
“We work on somebody, for example, who needs to learn how to get up from a chair again, not because they have hip pain, but because they don’t have the program in their brain of how to actually execute that task,” said the new center’s manager, Pablo Maldonado Pinuer, PT, VRC, and a certified vestibular rehabilitation and concussion therapist.
“It’s a different type of approach. It’s a lot about patience and trying to figure it out.” The new vestibular and neurological center has been retrofitted with specialized equipment such as parallel bars, steps, video monitors and laser tracking devices.
Patient-centered approach
Greendale Physical Therapy’s tagline is “You don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to be treated like one.” That reflects the therapy practice’s commitment to personalized therapy that includes hands on manual therapy and often before and after heat and ice modalities, as well as the resources and expertise to treat a wide range of patients, from young high-performance athletes to older people with arthritis and other chronic conditions.
“Our team focuses on ‘Olympic athlete’ level care, which means we treat our patients with the utmost respect and provide the most competent and personalized care,” said Greendale’s founder and owner, Jon Dooley, PT, MSPT, who started the practice in 2002.
“For me, I know all my therapists’ names and I know their family and their kids. I am also on a first name basis with many of our patients. Our practice is more personal and family oriented. I feel that translates into better care and ultimately better outcomes.”
The new, larger physical therapy clinic at 137 Gold Star Blvd. is nearly double the size of the previous location and will enable Greendale to manage more patients while not needing to devote any of the space to balance, neurological, and vestibular therapy, which will be concentrated at the nearby center at 120 Gold Star Blvd.
“The great thing about it is right now we’re backlogged with patients and we’ll be able to accommodate people more readily,” Dooley said. “We’ll have two beautiful facilities. The therapists and our patients are going to be happy with all the new space and equipment.”
Greendale Physical Therapy employs about 25 physical therapists and 50 to 60 administrative and support team members. Its other locations are at 280 Boston Turnpike, Shrewsbury; 145 Church St., Clinton; 435 Lakeside Ave., Marlborough; and 28 Ashby State Road, Fitchburg.