Celebrating June...........in July
This month we take a pause to celebrate our very own Dr. June Santiano. June lives in San Louis Obispo, CA. She practices in SLO and LA focusing on manual therapy, movement analysis, and more recently.......dancers. She is certified in Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization, IASTM, also referred to as myofascial release. She will soon complete her Blood Flow Restriction, BFR, certification. June has experience working with a diverse population including D1 athletes, breast cancer survivors, and dancers. We are so impressed with her drive, creativity, and skills. We know you will want more of her too!
What is your favorite thing about being a PT?
My absolute favorite thing is when someone says something along the lines of, “I feel so much better” or “I can do xyz now when I couldn’t before”.
The real reward is being part of someone’s journey, seeing their progress of healing and recovery from start to finish, and helping them achieve their goals.
Why did you choose to offer cash-pay services?
I love the freedom of being able to make decisions for my patients that best fit their needs. Cash pay allows me to be unrestricted within my scope of practice as I am not bound to follow certain requirements of insurances. Cash-pay allows me to be direct with my treatment and provide the best quality of care that I can for my patients. Patients receive direct access to quality care and an overall decrease in healthcare costs in the end since they will have access to a physical therapist without needing a doctor's referral in the state of California.
How has your practice changed since joining CO?
Since joining CO, I have collaborated with a Fitness studio here in West Los Angeles and provide mini-therapy sessions to the members in-between their fitness classes. Because these sessions go by quickly (5-10 minutes), I have developed a keener eye for movement analysis and have greatly improved my time management and critical thinking skills to provide them with quality care.
How did you find CO?
I was updating my LinkedIn profile at the time when I started browsing local job listings in my area. I remember the post from CO asked if you were ready to start your own cash based business, and I thought, “Wait, what? This is too good to be true.”
I applied out of curiosity and was ecstatic to find out that CO heavily equips you with tools, resources, and guidance to get you started and thrive.
What are your goals for the next year of your CO practice?
One of my goals as a physical therapist is to make PT accessible outside of a traditional clinic. I was a former dancer and director for a competitive collegiate dance team in Irvine, CA. We would practice long hours into the night, mostly outside on concrete, and undergo various injuries and stresses on our bodies to meet the demands of our craft. At the time I worked as a physical therapy aide and I realized that dancers could really benefit from professional prehab and rehab to optimize our movement and performance. Dancers are more than artists; they are also athletes and need more than just practice to perfect their craft.
With CO, I plan to expand my services and collaborate with local dance studios and dance teams to serve the artist-athlete.
What is your favorite part about working with CO?
CO has made it easy for me to see patients anytime, anywhere. I love how I have flexibility with my schedule because I get to choose when to see someone. I also love how supportive my fellow CO therapists are with one another. Even though I haven’t met any of them in person, I have connected with some through Instagram and have had really positive interactions. I am really impressed with the wide range of niches and get very inspired by all of them whenever I see them post.
What tips and tricks can you share with other PTs to recruit cash-pay patients?
Setting up a good online presence would be a good first step. Whether it’s via Instagram, TikTok, a business website, you need to get your name out there. Then, post content. I am a little camera shy, but I am working my way up to posting more educational videos, like exercise videos. For now, I personally like to post my sessions that I have with my patients (with their consent, of course) so that potential leads can see what I have to offer. Do what is comfortable for you.
Like what you see? You can book with Dr. June on the link below!
Want to follow in Dr. June's footsteps? Book your own initial interest call with CO leadership!
