Leadership Team

Richard Hoffman

Richard Hoffman is the Founder, President and Chairman of the Board of Managers of Premiere Rehab Group, LLC. His experiences as an owner of multiple physical therapy clinics and a revenue cycle consulting firm serving therapy clinics in 50 states makes him uniquely qualified to lead Premiere.

About Richard Hoffman 

Richard Hoffman is an accomplished entrepreneur and industry leader in the field of physical therapy. He is the owner of multiple freestanding outpatient physical therapy practices throughout Florida and manages a network of therapy practices across the state. Through his extensive expertise, Richard has also built a successful therapy specific revenue cycle management (RCM) company called RMBS that services over 1,500 therapy providers in all 50 states, helping optimize billing and administration processes nationwide.
In addition to his practice and RCM ventures, Richard is the owner of Prime Credential, one of the largest therapy credentialing and contracting companies in the physical and occupational therapy sector. This company provides vital services to therapy providers, ensuring compliance and seamless interactions with insurance companies and regulatory bodies.
Richard’s journey into physical therapy was inspired by his own personal experience as a former pitcher in the St. Louis Cardinals organization. After sustaining a shoulder injury, Richard turned to physical therapy for rehabilitation, which sparked a deep interest in the field. Motivated by the rewarding experience of recovery, he pursued a career as a licensed therapist.
Richard’s academic credentials reflect his commitment to professional excellence. He earned a degree in Physical Therapy from Miami Dade College, followed by a Bachelor's degree in Management and Marketing with a minor in Finance from Long Island University, Brooklyn, New York. He further advanced his education with a Master’s degree in Health Science Administration from Nova Southeastern University, Davie, Florida, and a Master’s degree in Management from Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts.Through his diverse expertise and leadership, Richard Hoffman continues to make a significant impact on the physical therapy industry, driving innovation and improving healthcare delivery across the nation.

David J Menkhaus, Esq. 

David J Menkhaus, Esq. his work experience in health care and law makes him uniquely qualified to guide Premiere Rehab Group's efforts to maximize partner value. Dave has succesfully completed over a billion dollars worth of transactions in his carrear.

About David Menkhaus 

David J. Menkhaus, a Cum Laude graduate of Harvard Law School (1980), has worked primarily in the area of healthcare and health care finance. He has practiced in BocaRaton, Florida since 1984. Mr. Menkhaus has had extensive involvement in the development and syndication of numerous physical therapy practices (pre-Stark), ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) and other health care-related ventures. He is also the owner of Surgical Solutions, Inc., an ASC development and management firm. He was a shareholder in Comprehensive Home Care, a leading provider of Medicare certified home health services throughout the State of Florida, and Practice Solutions, Inc., which represented more than 20 physician groups in negotiation and sale of their practices to national practice management firms.
 

Mark Padgett

Mark Padgett's experience makes him highly qualified to lead Premiere Rehab Group's efforts to obtain the best possible transaction offers. Mark has executed almost a billion dollars in deals in his career.

About Mark Padgett 

Prior to founding Estill Advisory Group, Mark served as a healthcare industry operating manager, an equity research analyst and an investment banker. Mark's experience in the healthcare industry includes conducting biomedical research for the Medical University of South Carolina's Department of Medicine, where he co-authored multiple articles published in the Journal of Endocrinology, and working for Johnson & 
Johnson in New Business Development. On Wall Street, Mark conducted sell-side research at Buckingham Research Group and Key Bank, and was a buy-side analyst at Natexis Banque Populaires, an investment banker at Susquehanna International Group, and a co-founder and investment banker at Plutus Capital Partners. Mark received a B.S. in Biology from The Citadel and an International MBA from the University of South Carolina. As part of the IMBA degree, Mark studied at the Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey in Guadalajara, Mexico and also received a post-IMBA grant from the Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) to study emerging economies and attended the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore, India.  Mark has represented numerous healthcare entities, including therapy providers, in the organization and ultimate consummation of auction process sales to financial sponsors (private equity firms) and strategic buyers.  In the past 4 years alone, Mark has personally closed more than $400 million in healthcare transactions.
 

Rick Gawenda

About Rick Gawenda

Rick Gawenda, PT, is a licensed physical therapist with 30 years of experience and currently serves as the founder and President of Gawenda Seminars & Consulting, Inc. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Therapy from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, in 1991. Mr. Gawenda previously worked as the Director of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Detroit Receiving Hospital where he was responsible for physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech-language pathology services, both in the inpatient and outpatient setting.

He has provided valuable education and consulting to hospitals, private practices, skilled nursing facilities, and rehabilitation agencies in the areas of CPT coding, ICD-10 coding, billing, documentation compliance, revenue enhancement, practice management, and denial management as they relate to outpatient therapy services. Mr. Gawenda has presented nationally since 2004 and currently presents approximately 100 dates per year around the United States.

Mr. Gawenda is a member of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) and Michigan Physical Therapy Association (MPTA). Mr. Gawenda is the Past President of the Section on Health Policy & Administration of the APTA as well as Past President of the Michigan Association of Medical Rehabilitation Program Administrators.

Mr. Gawenda is also the author of "The How-To Manual for Rehab Documentation: A Complete Guide to Increasing Reimbursement and Reducing Denials" and "Coding and Billing For Outpatient Rehab Made Easy: Proper Use of CPT Codes, ICD-9 Codes and Modifiers".
 

David Light

 

David Light, PT, DPT, MTC, MBA is a licensed physical therapist with over 20 years of experience. He currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer of Premiere Rehab Group. David graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Florida, and was one of the first Master’s level graduating classes from the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences.  Realizing the profession was moving to the Doctorate level, he returned and completed his DPT degree while continuing to grow professionally in the corporate world. Over the past two decades, David has had the unique opportunity to work with clinicians all over the country in a variety of roles, and attain an MBA from Palm Beach Atlantic University.  This experience has allowed him to view opportunities from all sides of the table, as a clinician, as an owner, as a consultant, and from a pure financial/strategic perspective.

Prior to joining PRG, David was a serial entrepreneur (including private practice), consultant, and a senior manager for D1 Sports Medicine (Nashville, TN), CORA Health Services (Lima, OH) and HealthSouth, (Birmingham, AL).