Therapist Feature: Heather Riggins, Director of Physical Therapy, PT

Company News

Oct 14

This month we are highlighting our Director of Physical Therapy Services, Heather Riggins, PT! Heather has lived in Las Vegas for about 10 years at this point, but is originally from Omaha, NE. The move to Las Vegas was prompted by the profession, as she relocated to go to PT school. She enjoys living in LV for it’s temperate weather much of the year and because of the friendly nature of the people that live here.

Heather attended Creighton in Omaha for her undergraduate studies in Exercise Science. When she was very young, she volunteered with her mom at The Ronald McDonald House with the families and kids and enjoyed the time working there. In 8th grade, she started working at a day camp for kids with special needs every summer through her college years.

She learned about Camp Monroe because of a community service requirement in school, and after completing one summer, she loved it so much she kept going back for years. Her time in these experiences inspired her interest in special education, teaching, occupational therapy, or physical therapy. Later, an internship in teaching would lead her to discover a passion for working one on one with kids. This is what helped shaped her decision to continue with that path in her higher education and life. In 2012, after 3 years at UNLV for her Doctor of Physical Therapy education, she graduated and passed the board examination to become a licensed Physical Therapist.

The theory or aspect that Heather most enjoys about being a PT is the ability to work with the child to maximize their individual potential. She likes problem-solving to work with the kids and their families to get them where they need to go. Seeing kids in their natural environment and getting to interact more with the parents is one of the best parts of working in the setting with Tilton’s Therapy for Tots. Heather has worked with TT4T for a year at this point, and previously has worked in varied settings, like hospitals, skilled nursing facilities for adults, and OP pediatrics.

Throughout her career she has given back to the profession by volunteering her time with organizations like AMBUCS. Her efforts involve working with providers to get bikes for kids with disabilities. Heather has also taken 10-15 students so far for fieldwork and clinical experiences as well as teaching Cardiopulmonary coursework at CSN for the PTA program.

Of course one of Heather’s passions is working with kids with special needs, but occupational balance is important in life. She also enjoys heading to the bowling alley with her boyfriend or to an amusement park (as a big roller coaster fan), or taking a vacation to spend time at the beach. Heather is also an avid reader of science fiction and fantasy novels and loves spending time with her three pups: Teddy, Troy, and Trixie.