RoMedical therapy has new name, owners

By Emily Ford

eford@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — RoMedical orthopedic and physical therapy has changed names and owners, but the practice’s doctors are still in Salisbury caring for patients, the practice manager said.

Now called Pinnacle Orthopedic Associates, the practice remains at the intersection of Mitchell Avenue and Lincolnton Road, Tracy Goins said. The orthopedics department is at 810 Mitchell Ave., and physical therapy is located at 1035 Lincolnton Road.

RoMedical served Salisbury for about 20 years, offering urgent care, orthopedics, sports medicine, pain management, podiatry and physical therapy.

The confusion began after RoMedical pulled out of Novant, which owns Rowan Regional Medical Center, and dropped urgent care from its practice. A story about the urgent care center closing and RoMedical dissolving led people to think the practice had closed, Goins said.

“We’re still here,” she said. “We didn’t go anywhere.”

Pinnacle retained RoMedical’s physicians, nurses and other staff when the practice left Novant and joined Health Management Associates, she said. In fact, the practice is growing and plans to open a satellite location at 1035 Dale Earnhardt Boulevard in Kannapolis in the next six months, Goins said.

Pinnacle also has offices in Statesville and Thomasville. Gary Blabon remains the top administrator, and Dr. Chip Comadoll is still the lead physician, Goins said.

RoMedical left Novant Nov. 1 for several reasons, she said.

“Most of all to be able to grow into the Statesville market,” Goins said. “For us to do that, we had to join a different health management group.”‘

As Pinnacle, the practice still supports Rowan Regional and actually has more cases at the hospital now than when it was with Novant, she said.

“We are working with Novant to help the community grow between here and Thomasville,” she said.

The former RoMedical urgent care clinic reopened Monday in the same location with a new name and owner.

Now called the Rowan Urgent Care Center, the clinic is owned and operated by the Schumacher Group, which also staffs and manages the emergency department at Rowan Regional.

Goins said Pinnacle continues to receive phone calls for urgent care from people confused about the changes. The Pinnacle phone number is 704-216-5633.

The phone number for the new urgent care center is 855-465-4068.

Contact reporter Emily Ford at 704-797-4264.