Premier Physical Therapy & Wellness

Now part of the Professional group. Had a wonderful experience. Highly recommend Maria Batzer. Knows her stuff and is friendly and patient.
The reception staff seems over worked but the therapists handle it with ease.

This is a review on my physical therapist, Mark Lusk. He came highly recommended by my colleague and his wife. He is very pleasant, professional, helpful and extremely knowledgeable; he has taken courses on his own that have made him a more experienced therapist than most. I never felt rushed, and appreciated his encouragement to complete my exercise routine. I would definitely go back to see him. The place itself is no-​frills but clean and great location as ½ a block from the 72^nd street train. A mix of young and old patients. Pleasant atmosphere overall.

My orthopedist’s office recommended Premier before and after my knee surgery… what excellent advice! The therapy and exercise plan I got with Morgan, Sheena and Mark got me on the road to pain-​free, limp-​free walking. Twice a week my knee was examined, massaged, and I was given exercises to strengthen and correct my walk. I always felt safe and in expert hands, as well as challenged to do just a little better every time. Sheena was terrific at helping me regain balance and keeping it fun! At the end of each session, stim and ice, what a treat. And the office was great at negotiating Medicare and insurance coverage. Thank you Premier for the best outcome possible. I highly recommend.

i just completed six weeks of therapy at Premier for a torn rotator cuff and I am very happy! I am specifically pleased with my therapist, Maria Batzer. I felt better after two visits and left pain free at the end of the 6 weeks. Maria was knowledgeable, friendly and interested in my health and progress. The front-​of-​office staff is friendly, attentive and accommodating. I will go back to this location in the future if needed!

This review has two sides to it — First, Mark Lusk is amazing and if this review were based on him alone, I would give him 5 stars. He is so knowledgeable and just lovely to interact with.
On the other hand, Premier PT has turned into a factory. PT’s only see clients for 20 minutes, which is not nearly enough one-​on-​one time to make an impact — it seems as if Premier PT cares about their margins more than clients, which is NOT a good thing, especially when it comes to rehabilitation.

THIS PLACE IS HORRIFIC.
Had them make orthotics for me and everything went smoothly. When I called a year later to reorder the same orthotics, they REFUSED ME SERVICE even though I am IN NETWORK and the service is 100% covered by my insurance company. Their explanation was «sorry, we don’t know exactly how much the insurance company will pay us back for the orthotics.» Absolutely horrible customer service as it took me calling them every week for over a month and a half to FINALLY get an answer from them.
Will NEVER use this place ever again.

The 72^nd street location is staffed with the rudest most combative and intimidating front desk outside of the DMV. They know very little about how to manage insurance claims and make up for their incompetence by being shockingly aggressive towards the largely elderly and frail clients. The room is cramped, dingy and poorly maintained.
I felt that nothing mattered here except making money. It’s about turnover, not about your pain or progress.
This business should be avoided. There are places that are courteous and clean with front desk staff who won’t harass you and understand how to navigate insurance claims and explain the process to clients. I regret that I didn’t walk out when I first saw the place. I would have saved myself a lot of time and aggravation.

I truly recommend Premier Physical Therapy, and especially the therapist I worked with, Michelle Strauss! I arrived with a sprained ankle that had never been treated properly and I was afraid that there was not much one could do since the orthopedic surgeon shrug his shoulders after «I» suggested PT following an x-​ray that confirmed nothing was broken.
Bottom line, I still had pain 3 months in and there was no thinking of going back running or playing tennis once Spring arrives. Luckily, my PC sent me to Premier saying «most of my patients love this place» and I do know why now! I have been to both locations 96^th and 72^nd Street as my wonderful therapist treats in both places and while I have to agree that the front desk staff is not stellar, the PTs absolutely are and that’s what truly counts, no?
Michelle not always took her time to truly understand where my injury was and how it developed, she skillfully massaged through the pain, guided me though the exercises, mixing them up with fun stuff, like using marbles for building toe strength, and printed out or emailed exercises so I was clear on what to do at home.
I truly was taken by Michelle’s focus and dedication to each patient as I observed her also treating other people. While I cannot speak for the other therapists, they all seemed very nice and sincerely concerned with each patients particular situation. I give it a wholehearted 4-​star, Michelle would get a 5-​star in my eyes!

I did not receive the service at the UWS location of this medical office as I expected. The front desk woman was just awful. She kept telling me that I will have to pay out of pocket with my insurance while I told her not to worry about it — that I know for sure my insurance covers it. I felt really unwelcome there. Hence I cancelled my appointment. Then, in some while, since my lower back pain was not going away, I decided to schedule with them again — because there are not so many offices in that location. I was running 15 minutes late and the receptionist told me they cannot wait for me and I have to reschedule. On my third attempt, again there was lengthy tag-​and-​pull about whether my insurance covers the visit. And finally, with a residue of bitter experience I went into the room for physical therapy. After the session, for some reason, my pain did not go over but became worse. And on top of things, when I wanted to schedule a follow-​up the woman at the front desk mumbled something unclear about checking with my insurance first and then giving me a call back. I never heard from them again. And it is surely for the better.

Friendly therapists and capable too… But the place is a bit run-​down… Don’t expect much from the front desk … they lack the personal touch

Proceed… but with caution. I have only been to Premier a couple of times so far, and I have been very impressed with my therapist. She seems knowledgeable and patient, and already seems to be helping my injury. HOWEVER, the front and back offices leave little to be desired. There have been numerous mix ups regarding my insurance, and this seems due to ignorance and/​or asking the wrong questions of my insurance company. Every time I speak to my insurance company, I receive clear and straightforward information. Every time Premier calls me regarding my insurance, they have misinformation that leads me to several more phone calls to my insurance company to set Premier straight. I don’t have time for this! I also overheard another patient having his own issue regarding insurance misinformation on the part of Premier, and he seemed to be at the end of his patience (indicating that this had gone on for quite some time). The front office is somewhere between indifferent to unfriendly. I called twice today, both times to be placed on hold for over 10 minutes. When I called back for a third time, there were no apologies made, but rather an obnoxious and defensive tone that she was the only one at the front desk. Perhaps more employees are necessary? Anyway, so far I do recommend Premier for their care, but you will likely have to deal with an unpleasant staff.

I’m a 31 year old female w/​chondromalacia patella. I picked this practice based on reviews and close proximity.
My physical therapist was very friendly and she assigned the correct exercises for me; however, I feel like I was just doing the exact same thing every visit, which I could just do at home and save money on the visit. I would have preferred to learn a new exercise every visit or do something I couldn’t do myself at home, instead it was a very slow process. I eventually just stopped going there.
So I guess my overall opinion is that they know what they are doing, but it feels like it’s more of a place for senior citizens or something rather than a place where you’d want to go if you were a young athlete that wants to get back on your feet quickly.

I highly recommend Premier Physical Therapy (upper west side). Carly Jacobson did an incredible job of treating my back. She was very knowledgeable, and took the time to carefully explain the mechanics of my injury, describe exactly what each exercise was targeted to achieve, and patiently answer my many questions. She was always motivating and upbeat, and I really appreciated her enthusiasm, honesty, professionalism and positive attitude.
With Carly, I made rapid progress both physically and mentally in terms of how I managed my back pain. I have now recovered my full range of motion and am able to return to my normal activities. More importantly, thanks to Carly, I have the knowledge and tools I need to keep strengthening my back for the rest of my life.
The administrative staff at Premier are also really helpful, friendly and competent. In short this is the best overall experience I’ve had with physical therapy to date.

I’ve had several physical therapists but none as personable and knowledgeable as the staff at premier! I mostly see Anna, who always pushes me just the right amount. I’ve had 5 knee surgeries in 2 years and i am confident that Anna will help me recover to my full potential.

5 stars for this place! I saw Mark Lusk after having ACL and meniscus surgery. He was great, very thorough and motivating. I made excellent progress with him, and my orthopedic surgeon was happy with the results as well. Overall, the staff is friendly, and the place is well organized and clean.

I was assigned to miss Anna Padilla, who was amazing during the whole treatment. He quick ability to recognize the issues that I have with muscle imbalance. I felt amazing after the appointment and felt improvement immidiatelly. I highly recommend her and will gladly refer to all my friends. Thanks Anna Padilla :)

Premier is the perfect name for this PT office because I have received nothing but top notch service here. I had my 2^nd ACL revision on 10÷11÷12 (Cool date right), and before the surgery I wanted to look into some other PT places rather than just going back to my original PT spot. I looked up some reviews and to say the least the original place I went to had terrible reviews, while Premier had great reviews. I went to Premier the week before my jersey to check it out and speak to a PT. I was greeted by the awesome front desk staff and they hooked me up with one of the PT’s, David Gershkovich, who specializes in sports rehab. He gave me a tour of the facility, talked to me about my injury, and explained the kind of treatment I would receive if I chose Premier. To say the least I decided to trust my fellow Unilocalers and my good gut feeling from my prospective visit and give Premier a shot. I had a good surgery and started PT a week after surgery. I am about 12 sessions in and couldn’t be happier. My knee is responding very well to the therapy and the care I have received has been nothing short of stellar! There is no comparison between the first PT place I went to and Premier… my speedy recovery process is a testament to it. I can’t thank Dave enough. He is very knowledgeable, willing to go the extra mile, answers any questions and will help with any concerns you may have. He is always introducing new exercises to my program, rather than repeating the same old exercises over and over. Just remember you can’t move on to other exercises and you won’t progress if you don’t work on them at home on your own time! If you do and you come to Premier I bet you will have an awesome recovery! I would highly recommend Premier to any friend or family member.
PS
There was one time I could not see Dave and I saw Anna Padilla. She is amazing as well, her and Dave share many of the same qualities. I have watched both of them with other patients and everyone receives the same care!

The first thing I noticed about this office was how lovely the receptionists were when I called to make an appointment. Then, when I met my PT (Carly!), I was even more happy with my choice. In sum, the staff is knowledgeable, helpful, and kind. I would recommend Premier to anyone.

Had a back injury from two years ago. I was a mess. But these guys got me fixed and going again in a month. Just one month of exercises. And they explained why I needed them, how to do them, and when… very helpful. AND they were always, always on time. I loved that. Everyone is friendly and the staff seem to enjoy each other, too.

So, I’ve got a bum knee. Because of this, I’ve been through endless sessions of physical therapy, both before and after surgery. Needless to say, I’m somewhat of an expert.
After moving to NY, I never thought I’d find a therapist that I liked as much as my beloved Erica, at Presidio PT in San Francisco. Well, then I met Christine at Premier PT. Fantastic.
Christine is knowledgeable, thorough, and really takes the time to explain WHY you are doing the exercises. Christine is a solid 5 stars, but the facilities are a bit run down. I’m definitely sticking it out though, because Christine knows her stuff.