Steven Inglefield knows the difference movement can make. So much so that he dedicated his career to physiotherapy. When he came to Canada from the U.K. eight years ago, he noticed a specific group of people were commonly underserved in this area: military veterans and service personnel.
Inglefield partnered with other experts to open Rehab and Performance, the first physical rehabilitation centre in Canada that caters exclusively to military veterans, the RCMP and first responders. The Langford facility has a mission to help those in the sector reclaim their health and lives and build a supportive community to foster connections.
“We wanted to bring all rehabilitation modalities under one roof, to give people easy access,” says Inglefield. “What we didn’t realize, initially, was how important the community and camaraderie would be in people’s healing processes. You become family.”
It isn’t just the community aspect that makes Inglefield’s business different. The group provides trauma-informed programs through a membership model, which means staff are paid salaries (instead of the pay-per-service model common to
the health-care industry) and clients can access a variety of services — from physio and massage to exercise therapy — as they need them. Says Inglefield, “Our aim is to have our clients leave our facility each day feeling better than when they arrived.”
A Q & A with Steven Inglefield
What was the best business advice you ever received?
My dad always told me “delight the customer.” It may sound cheesy, but when you’re able to offer people more than they expect from a service, it means a great deal.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out?
Make sure the business you want to start is something you’re deeply passionate about. More than anything else, it’s that passion that will keep you going when things get challenging.
What would you do differently if you could do it all again?
I would spend more time in the beginning developing ties within the local community. It’s remarkable to me that there are over 7,000 veterans south of the Malahat in our area alone, but we’re the only facility in Canada offering this service. It’s a tight community, and there are great benefits in cross-promoting each other’s work and letting people know you’re here to help.
This article is from the April/May 2020 issue of Douglas.
