Why You Should Consider A Job At South Mountain!

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Meet Aaron Fuller, our extraordinary therapy leader at South Mountain Post-Acute in sunny Phoenix, AZ! He literally fell into a therapy career when he fell off a ladder and broke his hand, consequently receiving occupational therapy services to get him back on track. He had already wanted to find a career where he could be of service to others so he enrolled in an Occupational Therapy Assistant program immediately – and hasn’t looked back. As a therapy leader with our organization since 2015, Aaron loves his interdisciplinary team at South Mountain. “My favorite thing about my team is that no matter what is going on or if we are in a disagreement about something, we can all trust one another to do the right thing and do it well,” Aaron explained.

South Mountain has maintained  a steady push to be better and provide great care for their residents and patients.  They are currently working on a B&B/urinary incontinence program (which has been life changing for patients and their families in our other locations), social and leisure participation programs, a growing outpatient program, fall prevention and a vent/trach unit.  In five years, the therapy team should have a thriving outpatient program as well as a project to expand the therapy gym space along with 26 beds dedicated to vent/trach patients. South Mountain recently won the Arizona Therapy Program of the year, with some big competition from our other area operations.

Aaron is a proponent of growing our own leaders and three of his therapists have gone through our DORITO (Director of Rehab in Training Opportunity). Two of them are now therapy leaders in other Phoenix area facilities.  The therapy team at South Mountain has won the facility Halloween costume contest the last two years running.  Last year the team dressed as rock stars in a group called Thera-Band – this team is witty!!  Plans are in the works for another successful Halloween take over!

Aaron is a Phoenix native and plans to stay. He enjoys all of the great restaurants and abundance of outdoor activities. Even when the weather gets hot in the valley, cooler weather is a short drive away. Aaron spends his non-working hours taking advantage of the great weather, hiking, gardening, practicing Latin, Latin dancing and Country dancing, and cooking!

South Mountain is currently offering an amazing career opportunity for a Physical Therapist. Find out more about these amazing opportunities and browse our complete list of therapy job opportunities.

Discovery Rehab & Living Center is Hiring!

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Discovery Rehab & Living Center in gorgeous Salmon, Idaho, has a unique and exciting career opportunity available. We are currently scouting for an amazing Occupational Therapist or Physical Therapist with an interest in being groomed for leadership in our growing organization. We have immediate opportunity for this role to be an ADOR with the freedom to work as a therapist outside of the typical corporate red tape you find in many large healthcare operations.   Come enjoy the world class outdoor recreation and low cost of living  that Salmon offers while learning the leadership role that will expand your therapy career!

Find out more about these amazing opportunities and browse our complete list of therapy job opportunities.

Therapist Spotlight: Avenlea Gamble

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Submitted by Julia Schmutz, PT, Therapy Resource, Northern California

There is something magical about Northern California, the landscape, the misty mornings and warm afternoons, the ageless redwoods, spectacular rugged coastline, the orderly rows of lush grapes and, of course, the people. This is a place that embodies hardiness and resilience. For the best wines, grapevines need a challenge. They love slate and sand and clay and rocky, precipitous hillsides to produce wines of character. In poor soil, the roots have to work harder, “ramifying” or branching out to gather nutrients. This increases to surface area of root to soil and regulates water absorption, and produces better grapes. The redwoods, too, show an amazing picture of resilience, burned out but still standing, majestic and wise. And so, the people who live here reflect the lessons of their environment. Avenlea Gamble is one of those people.

Avenlea is the DOR at Northbrook, a small facility in the northern town of Willits in Northern California. She grew up in this facility, where her mother is the administrator. She has worked there since she was 17 years old and specifically went to school and studied to be an SLP to fill the need in their community. She is one of the most resilient people I have ever had the joy to know. With each challenge she rises up to meet it with a smile and determination. She is unassuming and sees herself as just doing what anyone else would. But ask yourself: Would you be willing to run the kitchen if you didn’t have staffing? Would you step up and cook dinner for your residents twice a week if the need arose? Would you cover for admissions if someone quit?

Besides the challenges of the COVID pandemic, Avenlea has been faced with a multitude of ongoing trials, all of which she has met with grace. She puts it down to her team and facility community who she sees as family. These are deep roots, spread out and well-grounded like the grapes that surround them. Her commitment to serve this small community is unwavering and remarkable. Her foundation is strong and immovable as the redwoods and is built on relationships.

Avenlea is the personification of Herzberg’s theory that for a job to be meaningful, there has to be passion, challenging work, responsivity, personal growth, recognition and meaningful contribution. Hers is a life well-spent from which I am learning much and hope to learn more as I get the privilege of continuing to journey by her side.

#PIVOT for Nursing

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By Dominic DeLaquil, PT, Therapy Resource, Pennant Idaho/Nevada

#PIVOT is the rally cry for Summit, which comprises the markets in Utah, Idaho, Nevada and Washington. It stands for Proactively Identifying Vital Opportunities in Therapy, and in September, the DORs in Idaho/Nevada decided to apply #PIVOT to support their Nursing partners. Here are some of the ways Therapy has been helping Nursing:

Monte Vista — Therapy is “donating” one hour per day to Nursing to answer call lights, pass trays, train on hoyer lifts, decorate the halls, etc. and it rotates among the Therapy staff, which helps the nurses and aides get to know the Therapy team better.

Owyhee — Therapy is doing the showers for skilled patients and they are also doing the assisted feeding in the RNA dining section at breakfast and lunch two days each week. They are also helping by doing larger groups, even with many non-skilled patients, so that the aides have that me to actually take their full breaks.

Meadowview — Therapy is lending their Rehab Tech to nursing to work on the floor and the Therapy team is giving more attention to call lights.

Rosewood — They are helping nursing to pass trays at mealtimes.

Creekside — Therapy has a PT assisting with ADLs on the COVID unit, and Therapy is doing resident showers on the skilled side of the building.

Bennett Hills — Daily Post-Stand Up Huddle with floor staff, led by Therapy to discuss admissions, discharges, appointments, room changes, and family visitation schedules. Monthly CNA meeting led by Therapy Program Manager to discuss opportunities for collaboration, education, ways to better support one another, and develop trust. Monthly recognition of specific CNAs that embody the CAPLICO culture, awarded with plaque and T-shirt.

The response has been extraordinary so far, and these are just the starting points! The DOR clusters are having an ongoing dialogue to share ideas and inspire each other to continue to find more ways to support their Nursing partners. Great job, Idaho/Nevada DORs. #PIVOT for Nursing!

Clinical Spotlight: Love My Clinical Partners

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By Brooke Stanley OTR/L, DOR, The Terrace at Mt. Ogden/Mt. Ogden Health and Rehab

A partnership is a valuable tool that leads to great success but must be planted, nurtured and maintained to grow. It is vital to any successful organization, building or department. It is giving selflessly. It is serving your partner. It is respecting one another.

I have the great blessing to work with two incredible women, moms, wives, who happen to be the best DONs and clinical partners, Channdra Dabling, the DON at Mt. Ogden Health and Rehab, and Jessica Hawkins, the DON at The Terrace at Mt. Ogden. They are the most selfless, loving women who lead by example. They both care about our staff and residents, as it shows in their quiet actions, not just words. They are humble. They both are not afraid to accept help when asked and ask for help when they need it. They truly lead out of love!

“Great leaders may be found at the top of a mountain looking back upon their challenges, but the greatest leaders are often found at the foot of that mountain still helping others reach that summit.” —Robert Clancy

Jessica is one of those leaders. She steps up, helps quietly, and leads by working side by side. She asks for opportunities to problem-solve difficult patients or situations and values the input from other partners in the building. Most importantly, she leads out with love. If you haven’t had a Jessica hug, you’re missing out!

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou

Channdra is a master of making you feel loved. She is often found in patient rooms, talking with them, getting to know what is important to them. She takes time to truly know her staff. She is patient and kind to all those she comes in contact with. Channdra speaks kindly of difficult patients and families and strives to understand and not make judgements. She makes you feel valued because your concerns are heard. You feel that love anytime you speak with her.

I value the partnership I have with both of these amazing women. I could not lead effectively without them. I value their knowledge, leadership and friendship! They inspire me daily to LOVE and serve.

Moment of Truth: Truly Demonstrating Our Amazing People

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Submitted by Devin Bodily, PT, Cedar Health & Rehabilitation, Cedar City, Utah

During the month of August, Cedar City received a large amount of rain within a very short span of time, including over 6 inches during a 24-hour period in the mountains above town. A frightening amount of muddy water, logs and boulders came crashing down Coal Creek, out of the canyon, and right through town. This eventually clogged a main floodwater-diverting channel, which caused the water to rush into, and overflow, the canal in the western part of town. Many homes were flooded and surrounded by several inches of water and mud without warning.

Our Director of Nursing, Trent Nielsen, has a home in this area and had been keeping tabs on how the flooding was going throughout the morning. To complicate matters, Cedar Health and Rehabilitation was undergoing state survey, which made it difficult for Trent to adequately prepare for any flooding at his home.

Just before noon, Trent was made aware that the water had crossed the road and was quickly traveling across the field toward his house. Without knowing how much time there was to spare, Devin Bodily, PT; Jake Holm, OT; and Braden Wiscombe, AIT, quickly rearranged their schedules and left to help Trent and his family. They were able to quickly obtain sandbags and shovels to create a wall to divert the floodwaters from reaching Trent’s home. If they had arrived minutes later, Trent’s home would have been flooded and permanently damaged.

They stayed for several hours into the evening to help maintain the wall. Community members eventually came along with skid steer loaders and mini excavators to build a dam and divert the water around the neighborhood. Ty Liston, COTA, and Eric Brown, Director of Maintenance, joined later in the evening and late into the night to help with the efforts of having an adequate water pumping system in his backyard. Having these pumps in place was instrumental to saving his home as heavy rains returned that night and broke the dam, pushing floodwaters within inches of Trent’s home before they finally subsided.

The effort to save Trent’s home was bolstered by the many facility staff members, regional nursing resources, and Executive Director, Spencer Eaton, who helped fill in for Trent’s duties during the state survey process so he could focus on saving his home through the night and into the next day.

The response to help Trent and his family was automatic as several employees demonstrated the core values of “Love One Another” and “Customer Second.”

We’re hiring in Vancouver, WA!

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Located in Southwestern Washington on the shores of the Columbia River. Here in Vancouver, the locals do a large variety of activities. From picnics and hiking at the waterfalls, windsurf, paddle board, conquer mountain summits, ride the trails on mountain bikes and ATV’s, and cast a line out to catch some fish to name a few of the activities they engage in. Vancouver is known for their local breweries and wineries, offering some unique flavors that can only be experienced in WA. Some of best fall colors of the NW United States are found right in the Vancouver area. Amazing cuisine can tempt and satisfy your palate in Vancouver and their close next door neighbor, Portland, OR. It’s is truly a paradise for those who live there. Come and see what life is like in SW Washington.

Where else can you find this kind of peace in mind and soul at work and in play? Our therapy teams are innovative, creative and fun. The care is evidence based and excellent. Our outcomes are exceptional. Join us, The Oaks Timberline is currently offering amazing career opportunity for a full-time Speech Therapist. Find out more about this amazing opportunity and browse our complete list of therapy job opportunities.

Student Loan $$$

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Our amazing network of Ensign Affiliates is serious about supporting your career as a therapist and helping you pay off your student loans so you can focus on expanding your experiences and continued learning as a therapist!  

The following locations are currently offering from $10,000.00 to $15,000.00 in either student loan repayment funds or sign-on/retention bonus dollars:

•Bennett Hills (PT, OT, SLP)– Gooding, Idaho

•Discovery Rehab & Living Center (PT, OT)– Salmon, Idaho

•Ukiah Post Acute Care (PT) – Ukiah, CA

•Broadway Villa (PT) – Sonoma, CA

•Pinnacle Nursing and Rehabilitation (SLP) –  Price, UT

•Pacific Care and Rehabilitation (OT) –  Hoquiam, WA

In addition to the financial rewards of being part of one of our in-house therapy teams, we offer the opportunity to practice at the top of your license with sponsored continued learning in a variety of areas including EMG certification, Kinesio-taping certification, HeartMath,  PAMS, Vital Stim certification, LSVT Big & Loud,  DORITO (Director of Rehab in Training) and many more.  

We believe in work/life balance  and offer a variety of schedules from part time to full time, depending on your needs. 

For more information please contact us at 877-595-0509 or find out more about these amazing opportunities and browse our complete list of therapy job opportunities.

Granite Creek is the place to be!

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Meet our team at Granite Creek in beautiful Prescott, AZ!  Prescott is nestled in the Northern Arizona foothills and offers a huge array of outdoor recreation opportunities along with the charm of a historic mid-sized town with reasonable cost of living and average temperatures at least 20 degrees cooler than Phoenix!  The therapy team at Granite Creek takes full advantage of their surroundings – they hike together, kayak together, play pickleball together and enjoy happy hour together at outstanding restaurants like El Gato and Farm Provisions.  Larissa Osio, our amazing rehab director at Granite Creek describes her team as one with longevity that supports  each other like family.  She is looking forward to continuing the growth of their outpatient and inpatient services to have an even greater impact on the community.  Granite Creek partners with the hospital in Prescott to accept patients who are difficult to place in other facilities – and our clinicians love seeing them progress to the point where they can return to their home or assisted living after years in long term care.  Larissa supports the local community through teaching weekly exercise class at one of the local Independent Living Facilities to teach seniors how to use the equipment in their gym.  This team also embraces new grad therapists.  Larissa pairs a new grad therapist with an experienced therapist on her team and makes sure she has a weekly check in to ensure that the new grad is getting the support they need to be successful and progress in their therapy career.  She also provides leadership training opportunity to her team and currently has one of her therapists in our DORITO (Director of Rehab in Training Opportunity) program so they will be ready to step into the next leadership role that comes available. 

Intrigued? Granite Creek is currently offering amazing career opportunities for an Occupational Therapist Assistant, Speech Therapist, and a Physical Therapist. Find out more about these amazing opportunities and browse our complete list of therapy job opportunities.

Golden Acres Outpatient at ABBA Healthcare

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By Cara Koepsel, M.S. CCC-SLP, DOR/CTO, Golden Acres Living and Rehabilitation, Dallas, TX
Golden Acres began a partnership with this ALF at the beginning of March 2021. It all started with a cold call from the DOR to the facility, in which the administrator agreed to a Webex with her team and me. I was able to really sell the services of what my team has to offer and show why a partnership would benefit their facility.

We started day one with two screens that turned into PT/OT/ST evaluations. Pictured is my team that accompanied me on day one! We came prepared to be flexible and assess as many patients as they wanted. I sat on the couch in their dining room and communicated with my BOM to run payer sources, check for home health, find primary MD to obtain orders, etc. These items were certainly a barrier, but all things that, with patience and persistence, we were able to work through.

Since day one, we have established six to seven patients on caseload for all three disciplines, and we visit the facility with a team that is there all day to treat these patients three days a week. We are a part of their daily routine, and they absolutely love our presence there. Also pictured is our group therapy we have initiated with the patients as well, which they love! Currently, we are working on partnering with this ALF to host an event at their facility to assist them in building their census after COVID. They are pleased to be able to tell prospective families and patients that Golden Acres’ rehab team will be a part of their loved one’s stay at their facility and their potential new home.

There may be hiccups and barriers as you start these partnerships, but once you get in the door and show these facilities what your team is capable of, I guarantee you they will want to partner with you for life! Keep pushing that flywheel even when it seems tough, because an ALF partnership is so worth it.