From a feeling of hopeful uncertainty to the anticipation of soon obtaining a green card for permanent status, Sharmaine Santiago has experienced it all, and is grateful for the help Consonus Rehab gave along the way.

Sharmaine, now the rehab director at Marquis Plum Ridge in Klamath Falls, Ore., was born and raised in the Philippines, where she obtained a degree in physical therapy and had been working for several years. With possibilities for career growth limited in her country, she decided to pursue opportunities in the United States.

I arrived in the US with hopeful uncertainty, but after more than three years of working with Consonus, I can say that I am very blessed to be where I am right now.

So in 2017, Sharmaine applied through an agency in the Philippines that had a history of sending therapists to Consonus Healthcare, and had an interview with Lori Taylor, the Consonus Area Director responsible for Plum Ridge. The interview went better than Sharmaine expected and Consonus immediately started the process of applying for an H1B work visa on her behalf. She was accepted on the first try, and started her three-year contract with Consonus in 2017.

“Consonus Healthcare has helped me grow so much throughout the years,” Sharmaine says. “They have given me more opportunities for growth than I have ever thought possible.” In early 2019 she was promoted to Assistant Director of Rehabilitation at Plum Ridge, and just a few months later was named Rehab Director. Recognizing her value, growth and potential, Consonus soon began the application process for her green card, and she expects to receive it in the very near future.

“I arrived in the US with hopeful uncertainty,” says Sharmaine, “but after more than three years of working with Consonus, I can say that I am very blessed to be where I am right now.”