An unexpected medical diagnosis 13 years ago literally knocked Lisa Rock off her feet but did not leave her down and out.
Rock was working as vice president for a local ambulatory surgery center management company when she began losing feeling first in her hands and feet and then moving to her arms and legs. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and soon found herself in a wheelchair, paralyzed from the neck down, struggling with slurred speech and taking about 11 medications.
“The long and short of it was I couldn’t do my job,” she said. “I couldn’t even type a letter, much less hold a pen. My doctors told me to go on disability, but I didn’t want to do that, so I was in a real situation.”
As Rock’s treatment regimen began to take effect, a friend suggested she start her own company so she could work from home, doing what she had always done (managing the complexities of medical billing) but at her own pace. Rock took that advice and launched what is now National Medical Billing Services LLC.
“I started this company out of need,” said Rock, 54. “Not because I wanted to own a company but because I had to feed myself.”
Fast forward about a dozen years, and National Medical Billing Services now has more than 500 employees, including about 250 at its Chesterfield headquarters; 35 at its newly established office in Cuba, Missouri; about 20 spread in various locations around the country; and the remainder at its operations in Chennai, India. Rock declined to disclose revenue for the company but said revenue has grown by 1,000 percent over the past five years. National Medical Billing Services manages medical billing for about 200 clients in more than 40 states, most of which are ambulatory surgery centers.
Rock said she launched the company out of her bedroom, with a handful of employees “that almost volunteered.” When the company grew to about $3 million in revenue, Rock decided it was time to take the next step and start looking for a CEO to help lead the company to the next level. In April 2010, the company hired Nadir Samii as its chief executive officer, with Rock retaining the role of president. Click here to conitnue>
