Community Highlights: Meet Mark Jagodzinski of Rise Orthopedic and Sports

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Jagodzinski.

Hi Mark, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers. 
I am AZ-raised and educated, attended Brophy College Prep in central Phoenix. From there, I went to Glendale Comm Coll to further my athletic and educational career, finally ending up at Northern AZ University where I completed my Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise Science in 1997 and eventually my Doctorate in Physical Therapy in 2001.

I opened my business, Rise Orthopedic, and Sports Physical Therapy, in 2017 to fulfill a vision of providing evidence-based, patient-centric care in a welcoming, family-like environment.

We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
My story took a lot of left turns and met some obstacles along the way, but I would not change a thing. As an HS senior, I was very highly recruited for Football but suffered a devastating knee injury, which essentially wiped out my possibility for an athletic scholarship.

At the time I wanted to be an Orthopedic Surgeon and was choosing schools based on that criteria. I ended up spending enough time in a surgeon’s office vs a PT’s office that I decided to pursue Physical Therapy as my calling.

Coach Joe Kersting at GCC gave me a shot to play, and after suffering another severe knee injury as a sophomore, I decided injuries would not determine the course of my career; I would only do that. Coach Steve Axman gave me a shot to finish my collegiate athletic and academic career at Northern AZ University. Along the way, I met the love of my life who I have been married to now for over 25 years.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We are a small therapist-owned Outpatient Physical Therapy office that specializes in orthopedics and sports medicine. We see patients across the lifespans, from young athletes to senior-level athletes and everyone in between. The hallmark of our reputation that sets us apart from other PT providers is our attention to the patient as a whole being and not just a diagnosis.

We do well, but we leave a lot of reimbursement money on the table because we work with the patient until their treatment is completed each visit, as opposed to basing it on what their insurance will cover. We have a staff with 35+ years of combined experience in orthopedics and sports medicine with a singular vision to provide evidence-based, patient-centric care to the community we serve in the Northwest Valley.

The cohesiveness and attention to that is what I am most proud of. We offer a whole range of PT services, manual therapies, corrective exercise, dry needling, cupping, and blood-flow restriction therapy, among others.

In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I am in the twilight of my professional career, so the changes I foresee probably won’t come during my practice lifetime. As the entry-level degree for PT was elevated to the Doctoral level, our responsibilities as major contributors to the health and well-being of our population have increased tremendously. We have a unique skill set as Physical Medicine providers that allows us to work side-by-side with our referral sources, including MDs, DOs, NPs, and PAs.

With a much more demanding curriculum, I foresee PTs eventually becoming a primary point of entry into the healthcare system for musculoskeletal and neuromuscular-related diagnoses with a responsibility to refer out appropriately based on the needs of the patient.

Pricing:

• Evaluation $150
• Follow-up session $100
• Dry-Needling, Cupping $50

Contact Info:

• Website: www.riseorthosportspt.com
• Instagram: @rise_ortho_sports_pt
• Facebook: @Rise Orthopedic and @Sports Physical Therapy