There is no place like home for local chiropractor

The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well as local native Joshua Thiede came home to Medford to open Quality Care Chiropractic and Wellness in the former Implant Dentistry building across Hwy 64 from the Medford Area Senior High School complex.

Thiede, 25, was born and raised in Medford and is the son of Bill and Carmen Thiede. He graduated from Medford Area Senior High School. He went to school at UW-LaCrosse majoring in Exercise Sport Science – Pre-Chiropractic. He played two seasons on the college football team and after 2.5 years had enough credits to qualify for a fast-tracked program for chiropractic school.

It is while on the college team that he developed the passion for what he wanted to do with his career. He explained that there was a team chiropractor who worked with the athletes to help keep them performance ready as much as possible.

Thiede knew he wanted to pursue a career in chiropractic and learned that Palmer College in Davenport, Iowa, had a fast-track program that would accept him without needing him to complete a separate undergraduate degree at UW-LaCrosse. He transferred to Palmer College where he earned both his Bachelors of Science degree and his Doctor of Chiropractic Degree. He graduated magna cum laude from Palmer College on October 20 having earned about a 3.756 GPA for eight out 10 semesters there. Even before graduating he had made plans to come home to Medford and start a business here.

“As a young kid, I grew up in an entrepreneurial family,” Thiede explained. His father owned and ran Thiede Manufacturing for many years.

“Ownership was in my blood as something I was always familiar with,” he said, explaining that the concept of being his own boss and the owner of a clinic he knew would be the best route for him to take with the goal of building his own franchise in the process.

Things began to fall into place as far as the location and timing of opening Quality Care Chiropractic and Wellness when longtime dentist Kim Gowey happened to be talking to Thiede’s father and suggested that his building would be a good fit for a chiropractic clinic since he was looking to retire. It helps that Gowey is the great uncle of Thiede’s fiancé Sophia Pernsteiner.

“It was the perfect opportunity,” Thiede said. They purchased the building and began the renovations and remodeling needed to create the treatment spaces in the building.

“Medford has always been home for us,” Thiede said, explaining that it was always their goal to come back to Medford and start their own family here. Pernsteiner works as a speech therapist at Aspirus and as a real estate agent with Dixon Greiner Realty.

Thiede said there was no question about wanting to come back to the Medford area. He said both he and his fiancé come from very tight-knit families and on weekends enjoy spending as much time as possible together. He was also drawn by being close to his family’s hunting land.

“Medford is growing,” Thiede said, and that he was excited to be part of that growth and to eventually raise a family here.

Thiede praised the education and experience he gained at Palmer College, noting that it prepared him to be the best doctor he can be and to provide the best care to his patients.

As someone who comes from a family business background, Thiede recognizes the need to grow a business and said he has been happy with that growth in the approximately six weeks since he opened the practice, he said his client numbers have grown.

One of the things that Thiede brings to the area is embracing technology and tools to assist his patients. For example, his state-of-the-art Aspen Laser Therapy equipment. He explained it has been clinically proven to not only reduce pain and inflammation, but to effectively treat their underlying causes.

“It is one of the best laser systems on the market,” Thiede explained, noting its ability to get more healing power to where it is needed at a faster rate and that it is some of the only equipment of its kind in use in the Medford area.

He said it is awesome to see patients getting better at a faster rate. He noted it is used in treatments of such things as TMJ issues, plantar fasciitis, and shoulder issues.

He said he has worked with patients who have been living with pain for a year and half or two years or more that within a few weeks of treatment are feeling better than they have in the past two years.

Thiede said he likes to view the body as a whole and rather than just making the traditional types of chiropractic adjustments it is important to look at the whole body and different types of modalities to address people’s needs.

In addition to his treatment rooms, he has a space in the office for rehab therapy where patients can do band work, stretching and other exercises to get long-term relief. He said the combination of laser therapy and band work helps expedite the healing process and get the best healing rate possible for patients.

In addition to his chiropractic practice, Quality Care Chiropractic and Wellness also is home to Zen Den Therapeutic Massage offered by Thiede’s sister, Cassi Zondlo, who offers pregnancy massage, Swedish massage, deep tissue and trigger point massage, and cupping/ hot stones.

He said this has been a good partnership with the massage therapy setting aside time each week to work solely with the chiropractic patients. He said this a bonus because it is sometimes a challenge to get into massage therapists in the area because their client spots fill up quickly.

Thiede also taps into his sister’s decade of experience from working in radiology as a radiologist and MRI technician to have her help take x-rays if he is with another patient. He described it as being a good fit between the two ventures with most of the massage clients being seen on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Thiede said he is happy to be in his home town and looks forward to growing his practice here for years to come.

Joshua Thiede uses state of the art technology such as this Aspen Laser System (above) as well as traditional exercises and band work (below) to help provide patients with long-term relief of their symptoms. BRIAN WILSON/THE STAR NEWS

Quality Care Chiropractic and Wellness is also home to Zen Den Therapeutic Massage offered by Cassi Zondlo. BRIAN WILSON/THE STAR NEWS