physical therapist

physical therapist assistant

certified occupational therapy assistant

occupational therapist

speech language pathologist

Renewal-Rehab

My goals as a therapist are to help those in need. I am blessed to be able to do that and make a living. In the 1.5 months since Renewal Rehab has acquired my facility, work has not been about helping those in need. We have only had discussions about documentation guidelines, drastically increasing minutes on patients (despite therapy team recommendations to decrease minutes due to fatigue, illness, patient request), and frequent discussions about productivity standards and that we are all failing at meeting productivity. 

I have worked with therapists who are unproductive. It’s very obvious. They sit at their desks or play on their phones. They stand and talk with other staff around the building. It is extremely obvious if you just observe, rather than run a computer report. Sometimes there are measures that a report from a computer program can’t accuratley capture. Most therapists come to work ready to do a good job. We understand ethical productivity and we are smart individuals who will always choose to work smarter to save time. I often miss productivity expectations and yet I barely sit down during the day. I work through lunch. I answer call lights. If a patient needs help working through a task, I save my “point of care” documentation for a more appropriate time. I talk to family members in the hallway. I consult the physician. If a patient with dementia is cold, I go to the linen cart and get a blanket. Remember, MY goal is to help those in need.  Is it always billable? No. But I believe this company would rather I bill fraudulently, than ethically.

Renewal Rehab does not recognize the importance of taking the time to actually help those in need. Their goal is for everyone to document in a way that avoids audits and denials, and to maintain a productivity standard so high that it pushes ethical boundaries. 

As an example, we must tell our DOR why we did not meet productivity expectations. On top of that, a regional therapy consultant pulled each of us aside to further discuss why we are “unproductive.”  By unproductive, I mean 85%, which is ethical and reflects a very productive day. This is not a company that sets the standard and allows you to allocate unproductive minutes for travel time, meetings, documentation, answering call lights. They expect you meet the standard, or else. 

They also force registered therapists to work on weekends without paying a weekend differential pay rate. They have stayed they are working to hire additional PRN therapists but I see no job postings for PRN therapists? They are greedy and all about the bottom dollar. I’ll take the first job that comes along to save my license from this mess.

Renewal started well until the upper management showed their true colors. 
I was in the building before it was sold and transitioned into renewal rehab.  
I had a good rapport with all of the upper management departments and other intra-disciplinary teams. 

As an assistant expect multiple groups per week and a couple of concurrents per day. Productivity has to be above 100%. No Support from Regional, they do not even remember your name, conduct annual reviews, or come to visit.  

They promote "Upward Mobility/Leadership Oversight." I was the interim DOR twice and they still hired an outside person to come in and take over. My numbers were the same as the DOR's who left. There was no "mentoring" or "communication" during the Interim position or at all as a staff PTA.  

They offered me the DOR role and I said Yes. They took it away from me and said they hired someone instead. That person never showed, so they asked me if I would be interested. I said yes, and they gave me a "month trial" (this is my second trial with the company). They did not pay more during the 6 weeks of DOR after being "promised." You will just be a fill-in for a misconception to put in the role until they hire someone else from outside the company. 

As interim DOR, upper management does not remember your name, what you ask/need them to do, or the days you have off. They never had my back or best intentions to start with and I can guarantee they won't have yours either.  I was a number producing numbers.  

They throw around the word bonus but on more than one occasion, did not deliver on that promise. 

I was let go a week before Christmas. 

The company I liked-BUT-the crew of therapists I worked with-sadly were quite childish. I’ve never seen anything quite like it-therapists who sat in a circle & talked against patients, managers & therapists as if they were still in high school. I think they sat in that circle way too long-along with a manger who came to teach them to grow up only to treat them as her kids & be just as childish if not worse as if to prove she can be one of the “cool kids”(providing access to watch tv/movies, buying daily snacks/lunch, let therapists leave half the day & come back to punch out). Not  professional! Pay rates were $4 below what I made prior-but this low pay rate was being done throughout the therapy world which feels as if they somehow all agreed-upon it among themselves to lock in this oddly low/identical pay rate-prior to PDPM.  Not a coincidence-benefits were VERY expensive-$420 a month for PPO medical-nearly equivalent to what I paid independently without an employer. Best part was the company itself-made up of good people at the top-but I hope that when they recognize toxic workers (yes they knew about it after many therapists left) that they resolve it-so finer therapists who actually care for their patients, can function without the circus of oddities.

Renewal Rehab took over our SNF and the CEO came to our facility to re-assure us that the transition would be smooth and that ‘not much would change.’ He said our rates would stay the same, productivity expectations were 83-85%, our insurance and benefits would be comparable to what we had and that our PTO would roll over. After the initial meeting our therapy team felt confident about the transition. Shortly after our team morale was crushed by the following changes: therapists and rehab techs rates were cut significantly, productivy for evaluators is 87-89% and for assistants 92%, health insurance premiums skyrocketed ($400/month for single, for families it’s $1400/month), less 401k match, we were told we would be paid out for our PTO, but this has yet to happen. Renewal is also quick to tell you that you are easily replaceable and they can have your position filled tomorrow if need be. It’s very disheartening how little value they place on quality of care as they are much more concerned with productivity standards. They seek to hire only new grads to save money and experienced clinicians are not compensated at a fair rate. There is also very little room for career advancement.

What started as a great love affair devolved into a cesspool of gossip, rumors, and poor management.
Lack of communication, no reliable means of dissemination of information, and childish behavior in the work place, and management by gossip and rumor ruined it for me.
No review after working there for 2 years, and even if I had received one, no raises. Staff who had been there longer than I, were also ignored for review and raises.
Also, they rely on new grads with no clinical experience with increasingly more medically complex patients.
The most recent debacle was no pay for Christmas, multiple errors on my check when I moved to PRN status, with multiple errors in pay rate. Still no pay for hours worked...plenty of "I will get back to you, but the only thing I require is my wages on pay day.Really? 4 managers in 2 years? I was not the only one impacted by this circumstance. Very disappointing!

Truthfully, I have to admit that work-life balance was my primary consideration while looking for a position. I’ve found just that with Renewal Rehab. There is flexibility to adjust my schedule for things that come up. I also feel that I am fairly compensated for the work I do as well as the feeling that I am appreciated for my work. Ever since I started, there was professionalism with peers, supervisors and other team members. I feel that employees are valued. I will admit that the benefit package is expensive and sure do wish that upper management could negotiate a more affordable medical/dental/vision package. I take a hit every pay period on those types of benefits. Other than that, I am perfectly happy with my position, my direct supervisor, team members and upper management. This is a company I can see myself retiring from - and, I’ll tell ya, that’s an awfully good feeling!

Since reimbursement models have changed, patients get less therapy and therapists are required to do more. I personally had to leave since therapy frequencies were reduced, therapy minutes were reduced, Updated plan of care reports were required every two weeks (previously four weeks), and basically there was just a lot of gatekeeping for my discipline as to why a patient needs therapy.

This company actually used to treat therapist pretty well. But, now providing more therapy has become disincentivized by reimbursement changes, and this company has reduced to the quality of care therapist can provide in order to stay afloat. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
Given opportunities for advancement in the company

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The 95% benchmark productivity. Mainly due to its not just up to therapies, you need to contend with whether the pts are dressed and up on a timely fashion, which frequently isn’t happening

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
For the most part positive.you will always find a few negative Nellie’s.most staff outside of therapy are helpful and approachable

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
I start at 7:30 clock in get my schedule and I’m on the floor either getting my first pet who is up, talking to CNA about getting a client up by a certain time for therapy. Or assisting pt in there room with bed mobility and exercise etc in their room

The best part of this job was working with the residents, who, mostly, were eager to engage in activities that would improve their quality of life.  However, this was often overshadowed by the very poor management skills and lack of concern for patient care exhibited by co-workers and higher ups.  Feedback is not readily given, despite several requests for such.  Other than progress notes and plans of care for residents, nothing is in writing (i.e., policies, expectations, positive and/or constructive feedback).  The handbook contains some information, but this is disregarded consistently.  There are no paid holidays, either; one must use PTO to be paid for a holiday not worked.  If PTO is used or an employee calls in sick, they are very strongly encouraged to 'make up' the time missed over the weekend.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Physical therapist 1875 salaries reported	$49.12 per hour
Physical therapist assistant 1952 salaries reported	$31.90 per hour
Certified occupational therapy assistant 1721 salaries reported	$32.05 per hour
Occupational therapist 1787 salaries reported	$47.73 per hour
Speech language pathologist 1580 salaries reported	$48.94 per hour

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