By EMILY SPARACINO / Staff Writer

CHELSEA – AccelAbility Physical Therapy in Chelsea has undergone name and staff changes since first opening several years ago.

On Sept. 2, the South Shelby Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting at the AccelAbility office to recognize the business and its current name and staff members.

AccelAbility, formerly known as Accelerated, provides services including physical therapy, spine rehabilitation, lymphedema management, video running/gait analysis, muscular rehabilitation, occupational and hand therapy, sports and orthopedic rehabilitation, balance therapy, manual therapy and industrial rehabilitation.

“We specialize in preventive care,” office manager Krista Cahalane said. “We started reaching out to the senior citizens in the area. We started treating them, and they would tell their friends.”

Physical therapy assistant Halley Power said AccelAbility’s preventive care for elderly residents entails strengthening their muscles and working through balance activities to help prevent falls.

“We focus on strengthening core muscles,” Power said. “We work on their gait.”

Power said other aspects of preventive care include education to increase people’s safety at home, working on overall fitness and increasing endurance.

“Chelsea is an older community, and you do have a lot of senior citizens here,” Cahalane said. “We treat any injury, surgery … that has just been close to our heart lately because we’ve seen such a difference. We’re just glad they’re able to give us a chance.”

Along with Cahalane and Power, AccelAbility’s current staff includes Samantha Wheeler, physical therapist and clinic director, and Lauren Bingham, physical therapy tech.

The Chelsea office, located at 331 Chelsea Corners Way, Suite 101, is one of five AccelAbility locations in Alabama. Other locations are Trussville, Pelham, Moody and Homewood.

“We’re very proud,” Chelsea Mayor Earl Niven said. “We welcome you as a new member of our family.”