Dr. Minal Patel & Brijraj Bhuptani: The Future of Rehab: How Responsible AI Will Transform Physical Therapy Practice

In this episode of the Healthy Wealthy & Smart Podcast, Dr. Karen Litzy, PT, DPT, welcomes Dr. Minal Patel and Brijraj Bhuptani of Spry Therapeutics. We explore how AI is transforming clinical workflows, documentation, and patient care in physical therapy. We cut through the hype to understand what responsible AI integration really means for clinicians and practice owners.   Key topics   The origins of Spry and the real-world problems AI aims to solve in healthcare How AI-powered documentation like Spry's Scribe tool works in practice The importance of transparency, data security, and reliability in healthcare AI Balancing customization and standardization with AI tools The role of AI in addressing clinician burnout and administrative burden Future pathways: AI's potential to standardize workflows while respecting individual practice styles Practical steps for clinicians and practice owners to start exploring AI in their clinics Evolving perceptions of AI's impact on human interaction and empathy in therapy   Timestamps   00:00 - Introduction to AI in clinics and why it matters 02:16 - The story behind Spry's inception and industry pain points 04:44 - How COVID accelerated the need for smarter workflows 09:11 - Overcoming practice ownership inertia toward new technology 12:06 - The role of AI-powered documentation and clinician workflows 18:15 - How Spry's AI listens and transcribes in real-time during therapy 24:09 - Protecting note integrity and avoiding homogenized documentation 27:51 - The impact of admin overload on clinician burnout and patient trust 36:17 - Building trust in AI with transparency and data access 40:48 - The future of AI: opportunities and responsibilities for practice owners 43:20 - Responsible AI and industry responsibility for ethical tech deployment 47:40 - Clarifying probabilistic AI and ensuring reliable clinical outputs 48:43 - Lightning round: quick takes on practice management and AI mindset 55:09 - How to connect with the experts and learn more about Spry   Resources & Links Spry Brij Bhutani - LinkedIn Dr Minal Patel - LinkedIn AI-powered documentation in healthcare: a look at Spry's approach   More About Dr. Patel: Dr. Minal Patel PT, DPT, OCS is a seasoned Physical Therapist with over 17 years of clinical and non-clinical expertise. She has held pivotal roles within rehab organizations including leadership and innovation for both in-person and digital services. Dr. Patel holds a Doctor of Physical Therapy from Midwestern University, and is an Orthopedic Certified Specialist. As Director of Clinical Solutions at SPRY, Dr. Patel leads the development and implementation of innovative care strategies that bridge the gap between clinical excellence and operational efficiency. With a deep background in physical therapy and healthcare operations, Dr. Patel brings a clinician-first perspective to building solutions that streamline workflows, optimize patient outcomes, and enhance revenue cycle performance. At SPRY, Dr. Patel works closely with product, engineering, and customer success teams to ensure the platform supports the real-world needs of outpatient therapy practices. Their work focuses on translating clinical insight into scalable technology—empowering providers to deliver high-quality care while navigating complex payer and compliance environments. Prior to joining SPRY, Dr. Patel held leadership roles in multi-site rehab networks and has been instrumental in driving clinical innovation, EMR optimization, and value-based care initiatives. She is passionate about elevating the role of therapists in the broader healthcare ecosystem through data-driven, patient-centered tools. More About Brijraj: Brijraj (Vaghani) Bhuptani is co-founder and chief executive officer of SPRY Therapeutics, Inc., inventor of rehab therapy's first fully integrated, AI-powered EMR. As CEO, Brij drives company and product strategy as he leads the organization in the commercialization of rehab therapy's only AI-first software platform. Before SPRY, Brij co-founded and served as chief executive officer of Birds Eye Systems, the creator of major mass transit platform Ridlr. This enterprise was acquired by Ola, one of the world's largest ride-hailing companies, where Brij then served as chief technology officer. Prior to Birds Eye Systems, Brij applied his engineering background to solving some of the most pressing technology concerns facing large media and wireless firms, including Qualcomm and Sears India. For more information on SPRY, visit www.sprypt.com, and follow the company on LinkedIn Jane Sponsorship Information: Book a one-on-one demo here Mention the code LITZY1MO for a free month   Follow Dr. Karen Litzy on Social Media: Karen's Instagram Karen's LinkedIn   Subscribe to Healthy, Wealthy & Smart: YouTube Website Apple Podcast Spotify SoundCloud Stitcher iHeart Radio