Physical Therapist Lucas Thompson joins Rehab & Wellness Center staff

Lucas Thompson,
PT, DPT

Iowa native Lucas Thompson, PT, DPT, has joined Box Butte General Hospital’s Rehab & Wellness Center as its newest Physical Therapist. His first day was January 9, 2019 as a rehab technician while he cracked down in his studies for his board exam, which he passed in early February. He’s now seeing patients.

Lucas grew up in Adel, Iowa. “It’s a small town that’s kind of a suburb of a suburb of west De Moines,” he said. “I graduated high school from there in 2012; went to Iowa State University in Ames where I got my bachelor’s degree in kinesiology (movement science) and health; and then attended the University of Iowa in Iowa City for Physical Therapy school, graduating from there with my Doctorate in Physical Therapy in December of 2018.”

There were a number of reasons for choosing BBGH as his first career. “This was basically the exact setting I was hoping for,” he said. “I very much enjoy outpatient/orthopedic physical therapy, which BBGH has a lot of. BBGH also has some in-patient clinicals, which helps me keep my skills in that area. Coming to a smaller hospital really allows you to work with a wide variety of patients which helps me become a well-rounded Physical Therapist. At larger hospitals you tend to become specialized in just one area. I really didn’t want that. I also love sports, and we work closely with high school athletes here. That’s awesome. I have to practice two years as a Physical Therapist before I can seek a specialty certification in Orthopedics. I plan to do so when I’ve got those two years under my belt.”

Another reason for coming to BBGH is the fact that his parents are originally from Rapid City. “I have a fair amount of family still up there, which is fairly close,” Lucas said. “That made me more comfortable moving out here. My fiancée, Chelsea, was able to join BBGH as well on the Operations team, so that makes it doubly nice. We plan to get married soon back in Iowa. I’m also a big Denver Broncos fan, so being able to take a relatively short drive to go to some home games will be nice.”

As far as what Lucas hopes to bring to the Rehab & Wellness Center, he said, “I’ve got a positive attitude; I’m a good communicator; and a critical thinker. All of those are important in my chosen field of practice. And I see those same attributes in the Rehab team here at BBGH. The whole crew is awesome. I’ve gotten to know them well since I’ve been here. They’ve been extremely helpful and it’s a well-run department. We work together very well and I want to add to that.”

The Rehab & Wellness Center manager Tim Devlin, PT, DPT, SCS, is thrilled to have Lucas join the team. “We are excited that Lucas as well as Chelsea decided to join our amazing team here at BBGH,” he said. “As a new Doctor of Physical Therapy, Lucas is ready to start seeing patients and our Rehab and Wellness team is looking forward to working alongside him. We knew when we hired him he was smart and passionate about physical therapy and we are already seeing this as he has started to see patients in our facility.  Lucas is looking forward to helping our Physical Therapy team with our local sports rehab coverage throughout the year.”

Box Butte General Hospital is an equal opportunity provider and employer.