Fourteen years after leaving his hometown, second-generation Neapolitan Dr. Jake Berman, owner of Berman Physical Therapy, is back in Naples. “Some of those years away were spent at the University of Florida, where I earned my bachelor’s degree in health science and my Doctorate of Physical Therapy, while others were spent working in the offices of orthopedic and sports physical therapy specialists located in the Florida panhandle and Jacksonville area. I sought out physical therapists that offered the best in manual therapy so that I could learn from them while I practiced and developed my own specialty treating dysfunction of the feet and elbows, using functional manual therapy,” advises Berman.

Although the majority of the individuals that Berman treats seek him out for lower back pain, others want relief from neck or shoulder pain or knee or elbow pain, as well as relief from plantar fasciitis, the most common reason for heel pain, caused by straining the ligament that supports the arch of the foot.

Berman appreciates his one-man office where he has an hour to invest in each patient. “I greet them at the door. We talk about what’s going on with their body, and the remainder of the time they are on my treatment table, where I manually work on their problem areas. I finish each session by showing them one to three techniques they can do to maintain the improvements they experience in my office. It’s my opinion that each office treatment should build on the previous one, rather than being repetitive. This approach applies to their in-between homework of exercises or stretches which should also have an accumulative effect,” explains Berman.

Berman has no obligation to health care providers. “Before I owned this practice and became my own boss, I was required to see two or three patients per hour, and occasionally, depending upon the clinic’s caseload, three to four. There was no way that I could spend quality time with a patient or provide them with what was best—the amount of quality manual therapy they really needed. Once, where I often saw patients who showed some improvement in 15 to 20 visits, I now see individuals who show much more dramatic improvements in far fewer appointments,” he remarks.

The main reason that Berman opened a private practice is something he takes pride in. “I opened this practice to help people make better decisions about their health care, whether or not it affects my wallet. If I can restore their function, reduce their pain and improve their ability to move, I do; if I can’t, I refer them out,” he says.

Berman cares about what his patients want and feels a great sense of personal reward in helping them to attain it. “Some individuals want to be able to get down on the floor and play with their grandkids. Some want to shoot par or play tennis five times a week, while others simple want to enjoy a walk on beach. I don’t agree with many healthcare professionals who tell their patients, ‘Your problems are just part of getting older. Take this pain medication and if that doesn’t work, we’ll find you a surgeon.’ I don’t agree with that perspective because I feel that people can stay active and mobile at any age. It just takes some time, attention, exercise, functional manual therapy and someone who cares,” says Berman.

Berman Physical Therapy is located at 501 Goodlette Rd. N, Bldg. C, Unit 104,in Naples. For appointments, call 239-564-0069 or visit BermanPT.com.