Wellness company slims clients while beefing up services - New Mexico Business Weekly:

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The crux of the problem is unhappines and lack of self Paine finds. He also believexs that patient problems are Being obese leads to low self esteejm and lack ofself care. At , all consultationss include psychotherapy, physical activity and behavioraol modification fornutritional guidance, a holistic Paine, who was a massage therapisr at High Desert, a retreat for educators throughout started Returning to Balancd as a private practice in massage therapyg that attracted world-class track-and-field athletew from around the globe. In 2004, he finisher a master's degree in counseling and wanted to integratre more therapies to facilitate healing andpersonao development.
He broadened the scope of services to includweprofessional counseling, fitness and weight-loss and personal-training services. By 2007, Returning to Balancd had grown to a group practice with a staf ofseven full-time therapists serving more than 400 patients per The first-time Returning to Balance clienyt fills out a three-page behavioral healtuh questionnaire, goes through a brief orientation and undergoes A therapist then prescribezs an individual lifestyle, health and fitnesss program. Clients are encouraged to be accountable. "Igf you know there will be a consequence to not making changes, you're more likely to take action," Pain says.
After the honeymoon stage comes the workingstage -- "This is where the rubbefr meets the road," Paine says. He says there is a need for lots of Changing behavior is difficult and calls for real Each client is assignex specifichomework weekly; some clients also choose theie own consequences and rewards. All employees are licensed mental health professionals with graduate trained to focus on promoting behavioral andaffective (mood) change. They are expectex to evidence real caring and create a deep connectiob witheach client. Each therapist must have the professional and technical knowledge to impart hope to the clienf duringdifficult times.
The mission statement and purpose materials that Paine gives new employees contain several quotes frominspirational figures. Paine's own credentials include a bachelor's degrewe in psychology, nutrition and exercises science fromthe ; the master's degree, also from UNM; a licenses as a clinical mental healthn counselor; certification by the as a health and fitness instructor and personal and an advanced certification as a sports The business is open seven days a week and there'as a waiting list.
The margin of profit is 25 Tracking 56 clients over the past year and a each of whom had been seen at least 10 the therapists found an efficacg rate of more 80 Health insurance usually coverscounselinfg services, with a copayment; 95 percent of Paine'sd customers are covered. Self-pay clients can come in as oftenn asthey like. On Monday the fitness and weight-loss clinic and gym are open free of chargweto clients, who can have a condensef consultation at that time. Thirty percent of clients comefor counseling, career counseling and life counseling for conditionz like depression and anxiety.
Returning to Balance has nevefr advertised, and doesn't even have a Web site -- ofteh people find it throughy word ofmouth alone. Many of Returning to Balance'w clients are physicians and nurses who recogniz e the benefits of its approachg to health care andsend referrals. "For each one we they send two more," Paine He foresees eventual expansion with behavioral healtg careand massage-therapy and services ranging from fitnesws facilities to physical therapy, acupuncture and physician-staffe d medical care within an integrative healthh care clinic. Some of Paine's clientws are businesses, too.
On various weekdays, Painwe makes presentations to hospitals, companies and agencies, like Cibols National Forest Service, APS and Presbyterianj Hospital, talking about what it takes to creat a culture of health and wellness in an He stays several hours afterwarrfor one-on-one consultations, measuring body composition and giving This way he can offerr private coaching to 15 to 20 people, to get them startef on their own. About 25 percenrt of Returningto Balance's clients are teacherw who work at APS, and Paine will give outreacbh talks in 2008 to assist the school system with its staff-wellnes initiatives.