Meet Hailey Alfred | Physical Therapist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Hailey Alfred and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Hailey, what is the most important factor behind your success?
Physical Therapy is a customer service oriented profession. We are face to face with our clients. I am responsible for making sure they feel comfortable, are being heard, and are getting the care they require to get better. I think what has made me so successful is that I have created a clinic focused on quality care. I am able to be one on one with my client through his or her full session. This helps guide treatments to be as custom-fit as possible so patients get better quicker and have an enjoyable experience getting there. Creating my office vision to have one client at a time also helps to build a rapport and I have the pleasure to learn more about who they are outside of their injury. Most of my practice is through word of mouth referrals. If one person truly enjoys the PT experience, they are likely to tell a friend or a family member. This is where I have had great success, in that I get a lot of friends and family of clients coming in to see me.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
My business is called Nalu Physical Therapy. Being from Hawaii and surfing for most of my childhood, I was never happier than being on the ocean. The word Nalu means wave in Hawaiian. Waves embody change & motion, are dynamic rather than static, flow, transition, & progress- mirroring life Itself. I feel that injuries also are dynamic, change, flow, and progress. As a physical therapist, I hope to navigate someone’s injury in order to minimize the “wipe outs” and progress steadily towards the better.

I believe what sets me apart and what I am most proud of, is that I put my effort into creating a clinic where I can be one on one with my clients through their whole sessions. A client does not have to share their time with anyone else. I don’t have any pt techs/aides so I will be the one helping with all the therapeutic exercises as well as ample time for hands on manual techniques. I have accomplished this by being a one woman show. I do not have front office staff or techs to employ, I learned how to do my own medical billing, I do my own laundry (the kids help to fold), I manage my own accounts (with some help from my husband and friend), and I do my own marketing. In this way, I do not need to see multiple patients in an hour to maintain the clinic. Yes, it does mean that if a client calls in the middle of a session I would not be able to return their call until the end of the day, and I cap out at 8 sessions a day. It’s all worth it when a patient tells me they’ve never been to a PT clinic like this before and they will never go back to how it used to be.

Yes it was hard!!! I am very proficient at the PT treatment side of things having been a PT for the past 13 years and taking double the amount of continuing education classes a year that’s required of a PT. However, the business side of things was very different. I don’t even keep receipts for my personal bank account let alone figuring out accounts for a new business. I learned quick books, how to open a business bank account, how to file for an LLC, get a tax ID number, make a website, get an electronic medical records system, and the hardest of all was how to bill medicare. I now keep all my receipts, record all my expenses, and plan for the future. There was a lot of trial and error with how to set up my processes, bill medicare, set up my online schedule, and tweak my website.

Through all this, I have learned to be patient with myself. I’ve had to give myself grace for not nailing each thing the first time as it has come my way. I’ve taken help from friends and family when offered. And most importantly, I have to remember to be proud of myself for what I have accomplished. It is easy to say “thank you” to people for saying how great I’ve done, but to truly believe it myself is important.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Being from Maui, I love the outdoors. So, my favorite places also involve being outside. Weather it is eating outside, exercising, or exploring. Let’s say it is a Saturday. I would start by taking my friend to my boot camp class at Burn Boot Camp, they offer drop-in classes. After we are good and sweaty and hungry, we would go to the farmer’s market. My favorite one is the Uptown Market off Bethany Home. They have so much prepared food, hot food, crafts, coffee, and produce. I especially love the avocado toast with the fried egg and feta cheese from the avocado toast truck and taking home a bag of Hunger Bomb bars for my breakfasts on the go. Next, we might go sit outside at a park to chill. There are a bunch of trees and nice grass at Sereno park and a playground for the kids. For special occasions, I like happy hour with a view at the Point Of View restaurant to watch the sunset. On other weekend days, we might go on a hike at Fat Man’s Pass, followed by The Farm at South Mountain, the brunch is delicious and spending time on the property is beautiful. It is like a little green oasis in the desert. I love the outdoor area at Isabella’s Kitchen near Grayhawk, and the kids love to play on the grass. The string lights on Market Street also make me so happy, and sitting outside at the Living Room is icing on the cake. We would go exploring at The Botanical Gardens and Papago park. I also love the Japanese Friendship Garden, and my kids delight in watching the koi fish. Of course getting out of the valley to Sedona or Flagstaff is high on the list in the summer months. There are so many festivals, Polo Match, Wine Festival at Kierland, Food and Wine Festival at the Scottsdale Civic Center park, Pumpkin Patch in Queen Creek, and Christmas at the Princess. I truly love all the valley has to offer.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
First off, my husband has been so supportive. I told him that I wanted to leave my job, start my own clinic, and that I had only a half an idea how to do it. Even with two small children who take up a lot of our time :), He didn’t hesitate to trust me and he let me go for it. He took on extra responsibility with the kids during those nights after my full time job when I was on my laptop for hours working on the business. He continues to be supportive as I have navigated this first new year in business. Second, I have the most amazing group of friends anyone could ask for. We call our group “The Dandelions” and we consist of a handful of women who are continuously supportive of each other. When I told the group I was thinking of leaving my position at my previous clinic of 6 years, they were incredibly helpful. Not only are they emotionally encouraging, we are also in the trenches with each other. I got help unpacking boxes, hanging certificates on the wall, putting together shelving, and creating a beautiful charcuterie board for my open house. One friend is a small business consultant at “Two Sense Consulting”, and she helped me figure out the financial parts of owning a business. Another friend set up a PT workshop at her finance position for clients which started some inflow of new patients. Throughout the whole process, the dandelions have been a rock to rely on for unwavering trust that I could do it.

Website: https://www.ptnalu.com

Instagram: @ptnalu

Facebook: ptnalu