Mishock Physical Therapy opens new office
New Berks facility replaces smaller, older location
It may have taken a little bit longer than originally planned, but Mishock Physical Therapy & Associates’ newest Berks County location is up and running.
The new office at 560 North Route 100 in Colebrookdale Township opened on June 15. It replaces the practice’s previous location in Barto, which it had occupied for 13 years, according to Dr. John Mishock, owner of Mishock Physical Therapy & Associates.
“We have now moved into a new building with a new interior and new equipment,” he said. “It’s a great location and easy to get to.”
The office has 3,000 square feet of space, about 600 square feet more than the previous location, according to Mishock. It also has a different layout, with adequate room for spacing things out — something that has taken on a bit more importance in the age of coronavirus.
“The layout before was almost L-shaped. This space is square and more efficient for movement for patients. It is efficient for keeping social distancing. The L-shape was such that you couldn’t optimize spacing,” he said.
It was last July when Mishock said he began planning for the new location — negotiating the lease, planning what the new facility would look like and making sure the new facility would be Medicare compliant.
Work, he said, got underway in early March — just before everything came to a screeching halt as construction across Pennsylvania was suspended due to the spread of coronavirus.
“Then we picked back up in the middle of May and were able to finish,” he said.
Mishock Physical Therapy & Associates is an outpatient physical therapy practice with six locations in Montgomery, Berks and Chester counties. The new Boyertown-area location offers a variety of services including lymphedema therapy, post-cancer and post-surgical therapy, Parkinson’s – LSVT Big, concussion care, sports injury rehabilitation and hands-on manual therapy.
The new location is also known for its fall prevention programs, Mishock said, adding that patients are assessed when they come in.
“One of our contentions as a company is — we want to prevent falls. If we can identify it early, we can suggest changes to the home environment, suggest balance training and other exercises,” he said.
The new office is managed by Monica Hallman, who has worked with Mishock for 13 years.
“We’re there to serve our patients — to do what we need to do to help that patient get well. It’s the key to our success,” Mishock said. “She embraces that and patients love her.”
Unlike other businesses, it wasn’t necessary for Mishock Physical Therapy to close its offices during the pandemic.
“We debated and talked about it. But people were in the middle of therapy — in the middle of their care. We had to stay open for those people,” he said.
The practice took necessary steps to keep staff and patients safe — including limiting the number of patients in the clinic and spacing out appointments. Mishock said patients and staff are screened, masks are used and cleaning protocols enhanced. Employees have been tested for the virus as well as for the COVID-19 antibodies.
Mishock said the practice was off to a “record start” in January and February — with growth within the clinics.
“In April it dropped to 20% of the volume,” he said.
“We want to mitigate the fear and we are doing everything we can to keep patients healthy and safe,” he said, including telemedicine or treating a patient in a room by themselves. “We are there to serve patients and have the best result possible.”
Things are improving he said, and the practice is back to about 61% of the previous volume.
“That’s still not near where we were, but we’re getting close to break even,” he said, adding that none of the 38 full-time staff was furloughed during the pandemic, although parttime employees are no longer with the practice.
“They worked through the fear and anxiety. I tried to keep everyone together because our mission is bigger than the virus,” he said.
Mishock received his bachelor’s degree from Slippery Rock University. He also holds masters and doctorate degrees in physical therapy, and a doctorate in chiropractic.
Mishock Physical Therapy & Associates has clinics in Colebrookdale, Gilbertsville, Skippack, Phoenixville,
Limerick and West Pottsgrove.
For more information about Mishock Physical Therapy & Associates visit https://mishockpt.com/.