Assistant Manager Cory Ash, PT is a great example of someone who has built strong relationships with medical providers in his community. Cory, who has been with RehabVisions Outpatient Clinic in Dickinson, North Dakota for 11 years, said the relationships he’s built are consistently strengthened because of good patient results.

“I think a lot of trust comes from just taking really good care of patients,” he said.

Cory’s genuine care for his patients is obvious but he has also taken other steps to cultivate relationships with physicians and other referral sources. He attends continuing education opportunities put on by local physician groups and takes advantage of the social time to get to know doctors more personally.

He also said that, as in all relationships, communication is key, and it’s important to learn how your physicians want to communicate.

Cory prefers writing notes to his physicians to give them progress on a patient. “In the days of electronic communication, a hand-written note goes a long way,” he said. “Just yesterday I jotted down some ROM numbers and what we’re expecting as results and sent that over,” he said. He uses the RehabVisions FYI cards to send these.

Cory is also not afraid to call physicians directly if he has concerns about a patient. “I will call especially if I see any worsening of symptoms or if I have significant concerns,” he said.

Cory admitted that it’s taken a lot of time to build the relationships he has. “I think about a young therapist,” he said. “It’s not going to be immediate. It takes time to build that trust. It’s like a snowball rolling down a hill.”

And again, he circles back to the genuine care he takes of his patients. “I always say ‘People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.’”

That’s a mantra we can all aspire to.