Sarah Brown, Coordinator of Physical Therapy Services, VNSNY Home Care Manhattan Branch 6

“Being able to see people improve and meet their goal is the best part of my job.”

In her role as coordinator of physical therapy services for VNSNY Home Care’s Branch 6 in Manhattan, Sarah works in the field full-time as a physical therapist and also supervises a physical therapy assistant (PTA). “Being able to see people improve and meet their goal is the best part of my job—whether that’s simply getting out of bed, or being able to leave the house and go to the store,” says Sarah, who joined VNSNY a little over two years ago. “It’s incredible to see how happy they are when they’ve met that goal. Sometimes I’ll have patients call me months or even a year later to thank me for helping them.” A consummate organizer, Sarah’s challenges include dealing with last-minute scheduling changes and patient authorizations that occasionally materialize a day late. She has learned to be flexible in the ever-changing healthcare universe, and notes that the rewards far outweigh the challenges. “I’ve worked in hospitals and in the field doing home care,” she says. “I really love both settings, but the beauty of working with patients in their homes is being able to spend so much more time with them. In the hospital, you only see a patient a couple of times before they’re discharged or sent to rehab. As a VNSNY therapist, I can really monitor their progress, which is very gratifying.”