RehabAuthority gets clients back in action

Brett Haney’s back troubles came on gradually. A few minor “tweaks” after lifting boxes during a move evolved into shooting pains that traveled down his thigh and into his foot.

Imaging studies revealed a bulging disc that pressed against a nerve. Haney took the highest dose of ibuprofen possible, then consulted a surgeon, who told him, “I can fix this.”

But at 46, Haney, a Hauser pharmaceutical salesman, felt surgery was a radical approach, and he wanted to investigate options.

He searched the Internet, and the “McKenzie method” popped up.

Haney began treatment with Mark Feasline, certified McKenzie therapist and the rehab director and physical therapist who opened RehabAuthority in Post Falls last September.

The RehabAuthority company, which has 10 clinics in Idaho, was started in 1999 by physical therapists who were committed to “high-tech, high-touch” solutions to pain.

“What makes us special, as far as neck and back pain, is a thorough evaluation based on the McKenzie method,” said Feasline, the only certified McKenzie therapist in North Idaho.

The McKenzie method, which was developed by a physical therapist in 1959, involves assessment, treatment and prevention strategies that are specific to each patient’s condition.

Haney understood he needed to get his core muscles in shape to hold his bulging disc in place. After working on a series of exercises and stretches, he could feel his back growing stronger, he said.

“I was in real severe pain when I started, and within a month, I was 50 percent pain-free,” he said.

After two more months, his pain was gone completely, Haney said.

Feasline claims this story is not unusual.

He says he became a believer in the McKenzie philosophy after one particular case. “I can point to the patient who was the kick-over for me,” he said.

Feasline’s patient was suffering from bursitis in both hips. He received cortisone shots from his doctor but experienced no improvement.

The doctor wanted Feasline to introduce more medicine into the hip tissue with a procedure using electric current. But Feasline didn’t think it would work and met with a mentor who suggested he try the McKenzie method.

An in-depth evaluation revealed that the hip pain actually was referred pain from the patient’s lower back. So Feasline targeted his therapy in that area.

“In a couple of visits, the pain in his hips was gone,” Feasline said. “If I can help a patient this quickly and this well, I’m all for learning all about it.”

Feasline attended the University of Montana and returned to his roots in the Midwest after graduating. He earned master’s degrees in physical therapy and exercise physiology, then returned to the Northwest a few years ago to work in Coeur d’Alene.

Meanwhile, a study partner from college was looking for a qualified therapist to join the RehabAuthority group in Boise and traced Feasline through a Web site where he was listed as a certified McKenzie therapist.

Because Feasline wasn’t interested in another move, he was given the option of opening a branch in Post Falls, where he now is part-owner.

Also key to Feasline’s approach is the MedX machine, a diagnostic back-strengthening machine that compares a patient’s back strength and range of motion with the norm. Computerized information is used to create an exercise program that focuses precisely on the weakest muscles.

Feasline says his techniques work for post-surgical patients as well as those with acute and chronic pain.

Often, physicians will take a “wait-and-see approach” before referring newly injured patients to surgery, Feasline said.

“Typically, we can make them feel much better without waiting,” he said. “With the McKenzie method, you usually have a home program (on) day one.”

As for chronic issues, Feasline says there is hope.

“Just because you’ve been to physical therapy before doesn’t mean we can’t help you,” he said. “I’ve helped plenty who already had had physical therapy.”

Feasline says he likes the collaborative spirit among the RehabAuthority therapists, who comb research information in search of new ideas.

“We try to do things that are shown in research to work,” he said. “We try to get people back to doing whatever they want to do. We try to restore them to normal and leave them with knowledge about their condition and what to do to prevent a reoccurrence.”

It’s been about seven months since Haney completed his treatment, and he says the responsibility to stay well is on his shoulders now.

At the first twinge of pain, Haney is reminded of what he must do to keep his muscles in shape. He devotes about four hours per week to exercise but believes he probably could remain pain-free doing only half that.

He is grateful that Feasline taught him a home wellness program and that he was able to continue working throughout his treatment.

“I was thinking, ‘Am I going to have to deal with chronic pain the rest of my life?’ ” Haney said. “It was pretty amazing how much better I felt.”