Sidekick Therapy Named a 2022 Top Workplace in Knoxville

Sidekick Therapy Partners has been awarded as a 2022 Top Workplace in Knoxville through Top Workplaces, a national employer recognition program. The award is based solely on feedback from company employees through a third-party survey program. More than 100 Sidekick employees participated in the survey.

Only 55 companies made this year's list. Sidekick competed in the regional program for Knoxville; other programs across the Southeast include New Orleans, Atlanta, and Charlotte. 86% of employees at winning companies say they are committed to their work compared to 43% of employees at the average company, according to Top Workplace's survey research.

“Our talented Sidekick teammates are the heart of our business, and ensuring that they are supported and valued allows them to deliver the best care possible to our clients,” said Sidekick President Justin Graham. “We absolutely have a people-first culture, and it’s great to be recognized for that. We want our therapists to find a home at Sidekick where they can flourish and grow for many, many years.”

What's a typical day like at a Sidekick clinic? Our therapists share some of their experiences:

Physical Therapy

"I start my day off viewing my schedule and gathering toys/items needed for first appointment. The majority of my clients are around 3-12 months with a few 5-7 years old. I treat a lot of babies for plagiocephaly (flat head syndrome) and torticollis (tight neck/head tilt) as well as developmental delays. During those sessions, I spend a lot of time performing passive stretching and strengthening during various positions (back, belly and sidelying) to help with tight and weak muscles. I also educate and help parents with positioning, stretching exercises and setting up purposeful play activities at home. The older clients I treat are mainly for toe walking, ankle alignment (not enough arch support) and lower leg pain due to hip and ankle alignment. During those sessions, I provide passive stretching as well as active stretching (activities/exercises that client can perform themselves while still stretching appropriate joint) and strengthening exercises that incorporate some of their favorite things to make it more fun. In between clients, I document what happened during the sessions and other case management type duties that need to be completed (emails, faxing order requests for helmets/braces, progress updates on clients and documenting evaluations.)" Whitney Castle, PT

Speech Therapy

"I begin each day by looking at my schedule and preparing appropriate materials for individual sessions: games, toys, worksheets, etc. Most of my clients are between 2 and 6 years old. In the clinic, we work with a broad range of diagnoses, but I mainly work on speech articulation, language expression and understanding, alternative communication approaches for nonverbal clients, and stuttering. A lot of this therapy, especially for language, is play-based, and I like to include clients' preferred activities and choices during a session. The clinic often hosts themed weeks (Olympics-themed weeks during competitions, camping and beach themes during the summer, etc.) that can influence activities in sessions, as well. When I'm not working directly with clients, I write visit notes and evaluation reports, research therapy approaches, and prepare materials for future sessions." Paul Rice, M.S., CCC-SLP

Occupational Therapy

"I get to work between 7:30-7:45 AM, because I’m the type of person who likes to have time to collect my thoughts before starting my treatment sessions. I’ll sit in the conference room and have my morning coffee while looking over my schedule for the first half of my day to see if I have any cancellations or schedule changes. Then I’ll begin mentally planning intervention activities for each child.

My real workday begins at 8:00 AM when I’m scheduled to have my first client. I see each child 1-on-1 and tailor my interventions to address their specific goals using the just-right challenge. I use the same games, crafts, and activities that fill the cabinet in my treatment room, but I set them up and use them in different ways for each child.

The biggest part of my day is spent working directly with my clients, but I also have documentation time and a lunch break built into my day. Any time I have an opening or a cancellation, I use that time to either plan and prep new activities, conduct research, complete supervision duties, write blog articles (such as this one), or work on other case management/administrative duties. Between clients, we use the conference room as our ‘home base’ where we do our documentation, collaborate with each other, and of course, socialize, too."

Glenna Nave, OTR/L