Today’s guest was Troy Robert, who has multiple entrepreneurial ventures in the healthcare system related to physical therapy and staffing of allied health professionals.  Troy explained different models of delivering and paying for physical therapy.  He compares the incentives of fee-for-service and direct pay models, plus a new model that aims to change the way PT is accessed for large employer groups.  This new model uses a per member per month approach and has patients access PT quickly after an injury or problem so that assessment and treatment can begin right away.  This approach is in contrast to the typical approach that involves primary care sending the patient for images and referring to an orthopedist.  Troy explains how his approach minimizes the delay to the start of treatment and can lower the use of opioids and imaging to provide an outcome that is often superior for less spending as compared to the typical approach.  We are looking forward to seeing what happens as this new model takes off.

Troy talked about how PT fits into the healthcare system, including whether physical therapy is a catastrophic expense and how PTs and other allied health professionals were dramatically affected when the Medicare reimbursement approach was reworked in 1998.  This particular change led to the creation of his company, Quantum Health Professionals, Inc. 

Troy and Gayle wrapped up the conversation with a lively discussion of what’s wrong in the healthcare system, how we got here, and how we need to change our thinking if we hope to improve it so that it better serves everyone in a much simpler and less expensive way.