Nicole Solfanelli believes in doing a job and doing it well. To date that philosophy has served her well.
As a doctor of physical therapy, quality assurance and maintenance therapy manager at Caregivers America, she is in a constant state of wanting to learn and know more. As the oldest child of three, Solfanelli says she is a perfectionist, “If I am going to do something I want to do it as well as I can.”
Solfanelli is responsible for implementing and monitoring the agency’s quality assurance program for all the home health offices in Clarks Summit, Tannersville and Berwick, and private duty nursing out of the Clarks Summit and Philadelphia offices. She implements processes to monitor and evaluate safety, risk management, infection control, and competency programs, and provides orientation and training for new hires, identifying areas of need with regards to staff education and addressing them accordingly, among many other duties.
Solfanelli graduated from College Misericordia with a master’s degree in physical therapy, and began working at Allied Services focusing on adults and children with neurological diagnoses. She obtained her doctorate and became employed with NEIU #19, providing physical therapy for children with special needs in the school setting. Her career path then led to Florida with Brooks Rehabilitation Hospital in inpatient rehabilitation. Missing her family and NEPA roots she returned and took her job with Caregivers America in 2016.
“I have been a PT for almost 20 years at this point, so moving on to the quality assurance manager has been a nice change of pace as it is a shift in roles and is allowing me to explore new areas of home health, which is a setting I love, and continue on with my lifelong learning process,” she admits. She is also employed as an adjunct professor in physical therapy department at the University of Scranton. “My students challenge me and keep me on my toes, so skills that could have gone rusty become fresh again as I answer their questions and help guide them with their classwork.”
Her parents, Bill and Sandy Dixon, are two of her greatest mentors and supporters. “They are very driven for success themselves and have always supported me in whatever I do,” she said. Professionally, she has been blessed to have several skilled physical therapists who have helped her to further develop her clinical skills and strive to be the best PT she can be.
Solfanelli says her husband is her greatest supporter with her in every challenge she decides to undertake. In addition, her parents, brother and sister have also been there as well, whether it is to move on to a new job or pack up her life and move across the country! “I know I always have my family to fall back on,” she admits.
She is active in her church as a lector and teaches CCD for the parish’s children at Our Lady of the Abington’s/St. Patrick’s Church.
She and her husband have three children and nine nieces and nephews.