Celebrating 20 Years with Founder and CEO Pam Feinberg-Rivkin

This year marks Feinberg Consulting’s 20th anniversary. In honor of this remarkable milestone, we sat down with Pam Feinberg-Rivkin, Founder, and CEO, as she reflects on the past 20 years of the company’s growth, success, and hope she has provided to over 2,000 families facing challenging life events and transitions.

This year we celebrate Feinberg Consulting’s 20th anniversary! What thoughts and emotions come to mind when you think about that?

Pam: I’m overwhelmed with gratitude for these amazing past 20 years of my life that I’ve dedicated to this business which has now grown into 3 divisions. We started out with catastrophic case management, followed by Bridgeway Senior Services for older adults, and most recently our Addiction and Mental Health division.. It is wonderful to continually deepen the work we do with clients and their families to promote physical, mental, and spiritual healing.

Let’s talk about your experiences leading up to the start of Feinberg Consulting. What led you to develop the company and notice the need for these services?
Pam: As a nurse, I was drawn to working with people with catastrophic injuries. I saw the complexity of the injuries and the complexities of their needs for coordinating medical treatment, psychiatric treatment, supporting their mental health, and providing medical equipment to function in everyday life.

In what different ways have you grown Feinberg Consulting in the past 20 years?
Pam: With Catastrophic Services, which began in 1996, I started out with 10 clients and began to continually receive referrals from many different resources. People were noticing the work that we did, and we saw the benefits and rewards from our clients through their healing. Then, in 2013, we developed the Bridgeway division, which supports families through geriatric care management and professional home care. In 2014 we saw the need for addiction services, which led to the development of Addiction & Mental Health Services.

What are some of the highlights of the past 20 years in business? Are there any client stories that stand out as wonderful reflections of your time in business?
Pam: Well, my first client is one for sure. He is still with us after an MVA (motor vehicle accident) and sustaining a brain injury and spinal cord injury 20 years ago. He continually has received amazing, supportive services.

The first client I started working with who struggled with addiction was in Florida in 2010. That was the beginning of providing case management services for addiction and working with addiction treatment centers in South Florida.

Other highlights that come to mind were the many times we’ve grown over the years, requiring additional space. Particularly the time I moved from my house to an office. I worked at home until we had about 50 clients and we had staff coming into the house—case managers—and it felt disruptive. I needed space to go and be with people in a peaceful and positive environment. Then there were the times we expanded our office space—actually twice we expanded office space at our old office—until we moved over 2 years ago to the beautiful space we are now in.

Another wonderful highlight from over the years is being acknowledged from different organizations—the Brain Injury Association, providers, clients and families, and the ability for people to know that we are a professional and ethical company.

What were some of the most valuable lessons you have learned along the way?
Pam: Patience. Use of my intuition. I have learned to not respond to someone or something without having a deeper understanding of why things are as they are. I have also learned to take time for myself because of the stressful environment working with a lot of people with health, addiction, and catastrophic injuries. Another important value is to be with my family, and enjoy life outside of the work—don’t let my work consume me.

Where do you draw inspiration from?
Pam: I draw inspiration from a lot of inspirational books, conferences, seminars, readings, and Gratitude Training.

Has there been a specific book that made a profound impact on you?
Pam: A lot of books. Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth, The Four Agreements, Energy Leadership, Crucial Conversations, and Daring Greatly to name a few.

Thinking of the future now, what are you looking forward to the most?
Pam: I’m looking forward to deepening my relationships with everyone around me. It really deepens my spirituality to everyday life: where I work, who I work with, how I can heal, and how I can help others heal. And to continue to expand the addiction services, to get people to have education and prevention resources. Supporting people in getting help and letting them know that they are not a failure, and to not feel shame for what has happened to them. We are here to help families with great certainty that life can be different and to understand that there is help out there, and there’s hope.

What are some of your interests outside of work?
Pam: Family, yoga, reading, golf, traveling, exploring new things, Gratitude, and being in services to others.