Brenda Hicks is a nurse by trade. She has been in nursing for over 20 years. Geriatrics, also known as elder care management or aging life care, is her specialty. She was well-regarded as an excellent nurse, and her reputation led a friend of hers to ask for Brenda’s assistance in opening a private therapy company for her.
“I didn’t know anything about the business, but I was good with the CPT codes and the diagnostic codes from my time as a nurse, so I was good with numbers” Brenda says. She opened the business for her friend in Columbus, Georgia, and soon after, she found herself opening another therapy business in Warner Robins.
While she was working in the Warner Robins area, Brenda noticed that the owners appeared to decline to accept certain clients in need of therapeutic services. They seemed reluctant to agree to provide services to clients of color or to clients from a low socioeconomic status. Brenda brought this to the attention of the owners, demanding that they address the issue, but she didn’t feel that the needs of significant parts of the community were not being met. Brenda saw a need for everyone to be included.
Frustrated by the lack of services for poor and minority clients, Brenda resolved to make a change.
She decided that she would open her own facility “I don’t discriminate, I don’t care if they’re white, black, blue, green, pink, I don’t care how you look, smell, or dress, I treat ALL, even those who don’t have insurance,” Brenda adds.
Soon after, Brenda opened her Byron, Georgia, location of her business, Middle Georgia Family Rehab. A short time later, the Macon clinic location opened.
I decided to visit the Macon location. Once I entered, the receptionist Cheryl Robinson greets me with kindness. Her smile is so warm and welcoming one might forget that the temperature is so low outside.
Not knowing who Brenda was at the time, I didn’t immediately recognize her, but she, too, is in the office and she greets me with a smile at the time. I pay attention to the staff, and they all seem caring and energetic. Everyone I saw in the office greeted me with a smile, and it reminded me how rare that is these days.
I think sometimes people forget how important customer service is. Something so simple as a smile accompanied by a “hello, how are you?” can change a person’s day. Brenda and her staff clearly remember this.
The walls of the Macon clinic are painted yellow. The wall color is something that may seem so insignificant, yet at Middle Georgia Family Rehab, it is the best thing to accompany the staff’s energy. The rooms radiate optimism. When you enter Middle Georgia Family Rehab, you are made to feel just as the name states, like part of a family.
Middle Georgia Family Rehab offers Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and
Speech Therapy for adults and children. They specialize in kids with special needs.
The staff does all they can to accommodate every client. On days when the clinic is slow, Brenda allows clients who are uninsured to come in for treatment. “You have to give back to the community,” Brenda says.
“Times are hard” she goes on, “and sometimes our elderly patients cannot afford to pay their co-pay because they are on a fixed income, but we still see them. It’s a reminder that you may need someone’s help one day” she adds.
When she is able, Brenda sends members of her staff to the senior citizen’s center in her hometown to provide therapeutic services to the elderly residents. This is just another way that she tries to give back to the community that has trusted her skills for so many years.
Brenda and the staff of Middle Georgia Family Rehab go above and beyond to make their clients feel like family.
In the future, Brenda hopes to expand Middle Georgia Family Rehab by opening facilities in more rural areas, so that when people who cannot afford to get to Macon or Byron are in need of therapeutic services, they may also be able to receive the help that they need.
When asked what advice she would give others who are interested in opening their own businesses in Middle Georgia, Brenda responds: “If you’re going to go into a business, go into something that you enjoy doing; go into something that you know how to do. If you go into a field that you enjoy doing, you won’t look at it as a job, you will look at it as a hobby.”
“Coming to work everyday is not a job for me,” Brenda explains, “it is a hobby, because I enjoy helping people–especially the elderly and the special needs kids.”
Middle Georgia Family Rehab services clients with Tri Care, Tri Care South, Tri Care East, Tri Care West, Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, United Health Care, Amerigroup, Medicaid, and Peach State. Patients who self-pay are also welcomed. If your insurance provider is not listed, feel free to contact the clinic with questions to see if your insurance is accepted. For more info about Middle Georgia Family Rehab. visit their website or contact either clinic listed below.
Byron Location:
100 Hamilton Pointe Dr.
Suite 110 & 115
Byron, Georgia 31008
MAIN: (478) 845-3520
FAX: (478) 956-0958
Macon Location:
5021 Mercer University Drive
Suite D-2
Macon, Georgia 31210
MAIN: (478) 845-3520 (Option#2 at menu)
FAX: (478) 621-7233
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