Lisa George
[Better Body Physical Therapy]
The practice started with an offer. In 1987, physical therapist Lisa George, who had worked previously at Munroe Regional and recently become a new mom, didn’t have a place to open her own practice. But Fred Schweitz had an idea. The owner of Too Your Health Spa offered to rent Lisa a small space in his gym and the use of his equipment to get started. She accepted, and Better Body Physical Therapy was born.
“In six months, we were kind of taking over his spa,” Lisa recalls with a chuckle. “But that was extremely helpful to me. It allowed me to
get started.”
With Fred’s blessing, Lisa moved up into a 1,000-square-foot office, and today operates two Ocala clinics that are four times as large. The spa aspect of that very first location, however, stayed with Lisa.
“Everything is plush, nothing aluminum,” she explains of her offices. “It’s more like a spa.”
Lisa’s approach is remarkably different than most physical therapy practices—comfort is paramount. Patients are never rushed, and everyone is treated with respect and understanding. Without those elements, Lisa stresses, patients cannot begin to heal properly.
“We go out of our way to make their experience easy for them from the very first phone call,” she says. “I make their physical and emotional comfort a priority.”
Lisa and her staff, which includes a fellow therapist and several certified nursing assistants, can handle everything from simple, isolated problems to the most difficult rehabilitation. Their specialties include pain relief, back and neck disabilities, neuropathy, medical massage, balance correction, and any orthopedic conditions.
“I really like working with the difficult cases,” Lisa says. “I know no one else is going to put the time in that I’m going to. To give them some power over their circumstances, treat them with respect, and see how they blossom—it’s wonderful.”
That commitment has made Lisa’s practice one of the area’s most sought-after physical therapy clinics, and she’s always looking for ways to improve the patient’s experience. Recently Lisa purchased Wii Fit as a fun therapy option. The interactive video game simulates golf, tennis, and bowling, among other activities.
“We use it a lot,” Lisa says proudly. “The patients love it.”
After all these years, Lisa says the greatest compliment she can receive is still a referral from one of her patients to family or friends.
“That’s the best,” she says humbly. “When they trust us enough to bring a family member in, I take that to heart.”
Want to know more?
Better Body Physical Therapy
9401 SW SR 200, Bldg. 2000, Ste. 2001
Ocala, FL 34481
(352) 854-4017
821 NE 36th Terrace, Ste. 8
Ocala, FL 34470
(352) 694-6466
