Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Hermes.
Mary, before we jump into specific questions about your practice, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’ve been working with children for over 20 years as a pediatric physical therapist and have worked and lived all over the US. I was incredibly fortunate to have attended physical therapy school in New York City, where the students were encouraged to be explorers and observers of so many different types of “normal life” of such a diverse city. That feeling of acceptance and diversity stayed with me over the years and helped shape my vision of what I wanted a high-quality practice for children to look like.
When I started Kids on the Go Therapy many years ago, I wanted families to feel the support and the benefits of my years of experience, and more importantly, to know that I supported their family. What I’ve loved most is being part of a family’s life and their journey, whether that’s included the “deer in the headlights” feeling of new parenthood, processing and trying to understand a difficult diagnosis for their child, or celebrating the wins- big and small- of a child’s life. The practice initially started with just me, doing home visits with materials I’d bring in from my car. Now we’ve expanded to a team of fantastic clinicians who bring fun and joy into children’s lives… and we sneak in some hard work for them without them noticing!
Has it been a smooth road?
When I went mountain biking for the first time, I tried my best to avoid all the bumps- I didn’t realize that the bumps, while scary at first, can be some the most exhilarating parts of the ride! I absolutely went into private practice with just a vision of helping people and knew very little about the aspects of running a business. That certainly has presented it’s fair share of challenges. Our current challenge is the one that we’re all challenged with now- how to continue to provide excellent care during the #flattenthecurve era of COVID-19. The advantage of being a small business is that it’s easier to pivot during challenges and the challenge is the uncertainty of not knowing what’s on the other side of this curve in the road. I’m lucky to have a great team, a supportive husband and amazing Kids on the Go families who’ve rolled with all of the challenges and the changes as they’ve come along.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Kids on the Go Therapy – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Kids on the Go Therapy is a boutique pediatric physical and occupational therapy practice. We help San Diego’s children move better, get stronger and learn new ways to be superstars! We treat infants up to young adults with almost any condition you can imagine. I have a strong background in working with children with special needs and medically fragile children, so we help many of those children, and our PT team has expertise in sports injuries, pre/post-operative care for children and teenagers.
Our OT team specializes in helping children with fine motor, sensory processing, feeding/picky eating and emotional regulation. Our ability to look at the child, the family and what is needed to help them be successful is what sets us apart from other practices. We are able to integrate our expertise into what the family needs, whether that’s a therapy intensive over a child’s spring break, a short amount of therapy to treat a sports injury or an extended plan to address needs associated with autism. Families often tell us: “This is my child’s happy place,” or “I feel so calm and cared for when I’m here.”That’s an amazing feeling that is so gratifying as a clinician and a business owner. I’m so proud of our work, our team and our support from our community!
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
Kids on the Go is one block from the beach, so it’s hard to imagine a better location than that! As a city, San Diego has been very supportive of our practice, and we love working here. That being said, it comes as no surprise to anyone who lives here that the cost of doing business and living is expensive. That makes it more challenging to attract and retain staff, as well as a challenge to maintain healthy profit margins. Some of our staff or potential staff live close to an hour away in order to meet their families’ needs.
We certainly have a smaller space than many of our colleagues who live in different parts of the country. It’s all a trade-off. We love supporting military families and have loved how they’ve supported and promoted us within their networks. San Diego has such a unique military culture- we love how many of our families have had such fun experiences within the military. We are also fortunate to be developing cool new programs for the children in our community and focus more on wellness for the whole family. I’d definitely love some help from the city in promoting more programs like ours throughout the city- if anyone has any ideas, please let me know!
Contact Info:
- Address: Kids on the Go Therapy 5759 La Jolla Blvd Suite B La Jolla CA 92037
- Website: kidsonthegotherapy.com
- Phone: 858-255-0092
- Email: contact@kidsonthegotherapy.com
- Instagram: kidsonthegotherapy
- Facebook: facebook.com/kidsonthegotherapy
Image Credit:
Emily Blackwood, La Jolla Village News
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