Meet Dr. Kim Bell, DPT

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dr. Kim Bell, DPT. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Dr. Bell, so great to have you on the platform and excited to have you share your wisdom with our community today. Communication skills often play a powerful role in our ability to be effective and so we’d love to hear about how you developed your communication skills.
My ability to communicate has definitely improved over time and I continue to learn how to communicate more effectively.

I had my first hard lesson in the consequences of poor communication when I was in elementary school. I must have been in fourth or fifth grade when my teacher called my parents to report that I had been gossiping with some of my friends, apparently hurting the feelings of one of our classmates.

In response, my dad announced that I was grounded and unable to do any fun activities with my friends until I had read the book “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie. He handed me a copy of the book and walked away.

I thought he was joking since it was very thick and was clearly a book written for adults. But after weeks to months had passed and I was still grounded, I realized he was dead serious.

I finally finished reading the book about six months after the initial incident for which I had gotten in trouble. After that, my dad quizzed me to ensure that I had retained the key concepts from the book.

When he decided I passed the oral examination, I was released from being grounded.

That was my first lesson in the harmful effects of thoughtless communication and the power of purposeful and skillful communication.

My dad served in the U.S. Coast Guard for 27 years and was working at the Pentagon in Washington D.C. during the six months that I was grounded. He died when I was seventeen years old.

After his passing, I was looking through his belongings and I found notes that he had typed from that specific book in a sheet protector in the front of his work binder. I found out that he had apparently used the principles he had learned from that book in his leadership role as a Commander in the Coast Guard and eventually as the Captain of the Coast Guard Yard in Curtis Bay in Baltimore, Maryland, before his passing.

I kept his notes in my work binder for years when I was working in physical therapy management positions at various home health agencies.

The second book that helped me further develop my communication skills, especially in difficult situations is called “Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High.” I read this excellent book when I was working in a Director’s role of a vestibular PT specialty program at a home health company in 2007.

I learned techniques and strategies for conflict resolution and dealing with employees who have unproductive behaviors, which is a major challenge of a role in PT management. My favorite technique that I still use to this day is called the STATE technique, which lays out a tactical way to approach and de-escalate a potential conflict.

I can highly recommend both of those books to anyone looking to improve their professional communication skills.

In 2009 as an adjunct faculty at the University of St. Augustine San Marcos Doctorate of Physical Therapy program, I actually co-taught a course in professional communications. This teaching role caused me to develop lectures, powerpoint presentations, and lesson plans that all further refined my professional communication skills.

After I became a born again Christian on January 1, 2017, I began studying the Holy Bible. I have now found that the Bible has a lot of good insight on communication which helps me continue to learn and grow in my interactions with others.

For example, in Ecclesiastes 3:7b, the Bible instructs that there is a time to speak and a time to listen. I think it is important to discern the difference.

Being heard or feeling heard can be a very healing experience for many people, including the patients I treat in my private physical therapy practice for people with dizziness or vertigo.

Another excellent teaching on communication from the Bible is in Proverbs 18, which states that giving an answer before you listen is shameful and foolish.

My favorite Bible verse on communication is Colossians 4:6, which you can check out if you are interested and not familiar with it already.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
The most exciting and special aspect of my professional work is rescuing people with dizziness or vertigo, so they can literally get their life back.

I have been practicing as a Doctor of Physical Therapy since 2002 and specializing in treating people with dizziness or vertigo since 2006. Over the years, I have realized how beneficial vestibular physical therapy can be for people suffering with dizziness, vertigo, or imbalance.

In June 2014, I launched a private physical therapy practice in the greater San Diego area and I now only accept new patients if they are suffering from dizziness, vertigo, balance problems, or chronic falls.

I treat patients at my office in Encinitas, CA, which is north coastal San Diego County. My team and I can offer house calls within San Diego County, if needed for an extra fee.

My mission is to determine the root cause of their symptoms and hopefully resolve the issue with vestibular physical therapy! If the prognosis is not good for a full recovery or the symptoms are likely to recur, I teach self-care strategies to manage their discomfort from day to day.

Over the years of working with thousands of people with these problems, I have developed a unique and comprehensive approach to evaluating and treating dizziness and vertigo, which I have now trademarked as The Bell Method®.

I especially enjoy working with patients who have already “tried everything” and “seen everyone”, but have found little to no relief within the traditional health care system. These mystery cases can be the most tough but also the most rewarding!

We do not accept any health insurance, so all appointment fees are paid by the patient at the time of service. If patients have a health insurance plan that will cover their care with out-of-network providers, I can provide a superbill that they can submit at their discretion to attempt to get reimbursed.

For many patients who feel they have gotten the run around without sufficient answers or relief, paying out of pocket for my specialty services is well worth it!

I also balance my professional endeavors with creativity, as I am focusing more and more on content creation. I write blog articles and create educational videos about dizziness and vertigo, in addition to playing and writing original music.

I recently recorded and released my first original worship music album, which is available on all digital streaming platforms under my artist name, Kimi Poon.

Right now I publish two educational blogs per month, one on each of my blog websites, BetterBalanceInLife.com and VertigoDetective.com. I have published over 200+ total blogs (and counting) between those two blog sites.

I have also created free educational videos and webinars, and offered free public lectures on dizziness and vertigo around San Diego. One public lecture that I gave at UCSD Stein Center in 2017 has garnered well over three million views on UC-TV and YouTube.

The online popularity of this UCSD lecture called, “Dizziness and Vertigo: Research in Aging Part I” has prompted calls and emails from people worldwide who are desperate for help with their dizziness or vertigo.

Since I am a licensed health care provider in California only, unfortunately I cannot offer anyone individual medical advice outside of California.

Inspired by the demand for help from people outside my physical therapy service area, I decided to write a book!

I have been working on this project for more than two years now and I am thrilled to share that I am in the final phase of editing. The next steps are cover design and then we will be ready to publish.

The book is called “Navigating the Health Care System as a Dizzy Patient,” so keep an eye out for my very first book coming out in 2024!

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to one that matters most, which skill or quality would you focus on?
Looking back, I am glad that I never stopped learning. Sometimes, I think back to patients I saw in 2002 or 2009, or even 2020, and I realize I could have done better.

The reflective thought process is something like, “If I had known then what I know now, I could have helped that person more.”

I used to let that feeling cause me to cringe or squirm with discomfort.

But one of my wise, older PT colleagues encouraged me that I should be happy when I think that thought, because it means I have continued to learn and develop my skills as time has passed.

My colleague said, “You should always look back at past patients and think you could have done better. That means you are growing and continuously improving.”

As a professional, I think it is important not to become complacent no matter how much I have learned or achieved. There is always more for me to learn and certainly there is always room for improvement.

Whether in the areas of clinical skills, academic knowledge, leadership abilities, business management strategies, marketing and brand development, entrepreneurship, video content production, communication, writing, or public speaking, I can always get better.

For example, this year I enrolled in the inaugural class of the Johns Hopkins University Vestibular Competency Course.

Even though I am already a master vestibular PT clinician and have taught many courses to my PT colleagues on the topic of vestibular physical therapy, I wanted to keep learning more.

Am I ever glad that I did! The course turned out to be extremely challenging, way harder than I expected.

There were 31 modules to complete online, with 25 online quizzes and an online final exam. Then I had to fly to Baltimore for a rigorous two-day in-person course, which included three more final exams to test my vestibular knowledge and hands-on skills.

I was honored and thrilled to find out I had passed the certification!

Therefore, I earned a Certificate of Competency from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

After practicing vestibular physical therapy since 2006, I was surprised at how much I had learned. I have since updated my evaluation forms, my treatment templates, and purchased some new equipment for my clinic to integrate my new skills.

I was amused, after the course was over, when I learned that the course was indeed not accredited for physical therapists, but was only approved for continuing medical education for physicians. No wonder it was so challenging for me!

But that is the point I am trying to make: I think it is important to make a commitment to keep learning as you go along.

Never stop growing. I have never stopped trying to improve.

Tell us what your ideal client would be like?
My ideal patient is someone with dizziness or vertigo who wants to get better, follows their treatment plan in detail, and values their health enough that they are willing to pay for high quality health care.

Since I am a highly specialized vestibular physical therapist, I actually only accept new patients with dizziness, vertigo, balance problems, or chronic falls.

That is a prerequisite for consideration as a potential new patient in my private PT practice. For example, if someone calls me seeking PT for some other problem like back pain, I will refer them to another PT provider.

I really appreciate working with patients who want to get better and follow the individualized vertigo treatment plan that I develop for them. I am about driving results, so I am always going for 100% better if possible.

The vertigo treatment plan includes extensive patient education along with any combination of the following:
(1) follow up visits with me for vestibular physical therapy,
(2) home exercises or self-care strategies for home use,
(3) referrals to other specialized health care providers,
(4) case management and care coordination, and
(5) caregiver or family training.

Patients who listen carefully to my instructions and follow their treatment plan in detail typically get better, of course with certain occasional exceptions depending on their underlying health issues or other comorbidities.

Patients who decide to pick and choose which aspects of my treatment plan and recommendations they will follow typically limit their own results. That can cause frustration and disappointment for both of us.

I really enjoy working with patients who will do whatever it takes and pay whatever it costs to resolve their dizziness and vertigo issue.

Even so, I am very mindful of the cost of my care and I try to minimize the total cost of an episode of care as much as possible. Most patients see me for an average of four to eight visits for an episode of care.

Vertigo does have a fairly high rate of recurrence and is not generally considered to be a preventable health condition. If their vertigo symptoms recur at some point in the future, patients may return to me for another episode of care.

When I first started my private practice, I used to try to talk people into working with me even if they seemed unwilling or uninterested in paying out of pocket for my services. Now I have realized that doesn’t work well. Some people are wiling to pay for high quality health care and other people expect everything to be covered by their health insurance.

I operate my private PT practice with full price transparency, which means that I share the prices for my services in my very first interaction with any new potential patient. There are no hidden fees or surprise medical bills – EVER!

After reviewing my prices and services, the new potential patient can decide if my services are within financial reach for them. If not, I will suggest another provider who may take their insurance or offer care for a lower cash rate.

If the patient expresses interest in moving forward with my care after reviewing my prices, I use a set of 20+ screening questions to ensure that my care is appropriate for their current situation.

After reviewing their answers to the screening questions that I use for all new potential patients, I am able to determine if their current health needs match with the vestibular physical therapy services I provide. Sometimes I realize that I need to refer them to a different health care provider instead or share various other resources.

I am a patient advocate first and foremost! I try to treat everyone like they are my own family member and do right by them accordingly.

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