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Employee Bios

RPITherapy-244 (1) Employee Bios

Jonty Felsher

PT/ Owner
Jonty was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa, and moved to St. Louis in 1993. He received his Bachelor of Science (with honors) from the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg in 1990. Together with Jonathan Gordon, Jonty established RPI Therapy Services in 1997. Jonty has extensive training and experience in manual therapy techniques including manual intramuscular therapy (Trigger Point Dry Needling); Vestibular Rehabilitation and specializes in spinal, orthopedic and neurological problems. Outside of work, Jonty enjoys family time, working out, gardening, travel and community lay leadership involvement.
RPITherapy-25 Employee Bios

Jonathan Gordon

PT/ Owner
Jonathan was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa and moved to St. Louis in 1997. Jonathan graduated from the University of Cape Town in 1987 with his Bachelor of Science specializing in sports injuries and manual therapy. Together with Jonty Felsher, Jonathan established RPI Therapy Services in 1997. Jonathan has extensive post graduate training in manual therapy intramuscular therapy (Trigger Point Dry Needling); specializing in spinal, orthopedic and chronic pain conditions. Outside of work Jonathan enjoys spending time with his wife and seven children, working out, and participating in community organizations.
RPITherapy-28 (1) Employee Bios

Lila Porter

Director of Operations
serves as the Operations Manager for RPI Therapy since 2017. She has 18 years of experience in healthcare administration including accounts payable, accounts receivable, insurance credentialing, office management and staff development. She earned Bachelor’s degree in Communications from St. Louis University. In her spare time she enjoys traveling, camping, attending her daughters dance competitions and spending time with her family.
RPITherapy-3 (1) Employee Bios

Emily Novara

PTA Clayton, MO

Emily received her Associates of Applied Science degree in Physical Therapy from St. Louis College of Health Careers in 2017 and her Bachelor of Health Science from Maryville University in 2015. Emily enjoys working with patients to help them reach their goals by motivating and educating patients throughout their rehabilitation process. Emily is certified in the LSVT BIG program and is also the clinic manager at the Clayton office. In her spare time, Emily enjoys sewing, taking photographs, and spending time with family and friends.

RPITherapy-8 (1) Employee Bios

Inna Rakhmanova

DPT, Creve Coeur, MO
Inna was born in Russia. She graduated nursing college in 1998 and moved to the United States in 2000. Inna graduated with her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Maryville University in 2012. Prior to joining RPI in June of 2019, Inna worked in an outpatient multidisciplinary clinic for 3.5 years and in a school setting for 4 years. Outside of work she loves to spend as much time with family as she can. She is the mother of 3 children: 2 boys 19 and 18 years old and a 6 year old daughter. In her free time she enjoys cooking, baking and traveling to different places.
RPITherapy-24 (1) Employee Bios

Jennie Hible

HR Manager
Jennie joined RPI in July 2013. She has over 16 years of human resources experience including recruiting, performance management, career development, employee relations, benefits and compensation. She has spent the majority of her career working in health care and publishing. She earned her Health Administration degree from Eastern Illinois University. In her free time, Jennie volunteers with several animal rescue organizations and works as a glass artist.
RPITherapy-30 Employee Bios

Megan Henderson

OT, Clayton, MO
Megan was born and raised in Washington, MO. She received her Masters of Occupational Therapy degree from Saint Louis University in 2015. She has worked at RPI for 6 years, and she received her Certification of Hand Therapy specialization in 2020. In addition to treating patients at the Clayton location, she also supervises outpatient occupational therapy at both locations. She loves the challenge of her job, and especially enjoys all the interesting people she gets to know as they work towards recovery. Outside of work, she enjoys cooking, reading, gardening, and spending time with her husband and young daughter.
RPITherapy-5 Employee Bios

Jaime Heede

DPT, Creve Coeur, MO
Jaime received her Doctorate of Physical Therapy degree in May 2017 from Saint Louis University and is currently working at RPI’s Covenant House/Creve Coeur location. Jaime’s clinical expertise includes outpatient orthopedic care and home health care with certifications in LSVT BIG (Parkinson's Disease) and Kinesiotape application. Jaime is comfortable working with patients of all ages, abilities and backgrounds and strives to better the lives of all her patients by assisting them throughout their rehabilitation journey. Jaime is originally from Carmel, Indiana but is now a proud St. Louis resident and spends her free time exploring the region with family and friends. Jaime also enjoys traveling, baking, cycling and any activities with her Yellow Labrador Retriever.
RPITherapy-6 Employee Bios

Rachel Gross

OT, Creve Coeur, MO
Rachel graduated from Saint Louis University in 2019 with her Masters of Occupational Therapy. Rachel primarily works with patients with a variety of hand, elbow, and shoulder conditions. In addition to upper extremity rehabilitation, she also works with cognitive dysfunction and stroke rehabilitation. She loves working with patients to help them reach their full potential and get back to the activities that bring them joy. Outside of work Rachel enjoys spending time with family and friends, baking, and bike riding.
RPITherapy-23 Employee Bios

Jennifer Duffie

PT, Clayton, MO
Jennifer earned her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Rockhurst University in May 2019. Her clinical experience includes out-patient orthopedic and neuromuscular rehabilitation, and manual therapy including myofascial release, trigger point therapy, and functional dry needling. Jennifer is certified in LSVT BIG working with patients with Parkinson’s Disease in order to improve amplitude and velocity of movement. She is passionate about helping patients meet their goals and feel better! Outside of work, Jennifer enjoys decorating cookies, playing with her dog Lola, and spending time with friends and family.
Ally Employee Bios

Ally Walker

PT Clayton, MO

Ally is a physical therapist at RPI’s Clayton office. Ally received her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Rockhurst University in 2018. After working in an outpatient orthopedic clinic in Chicago for 3 years, Ally joined RPI in 2021. She specializes in treatment of Women’s Health conditions, such as pregnancy and postpartum related changes, pelvic organ prolapse, incontinence and bladder dysfunction, sexual dysfunction, and pelvic pain. Ally has her Level 2 certification in treatment of the female pelvic floor through Herman & Wallace Pelvic Rehabilitation Institute and is certified as a Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist.  In addition to treating women’s health conditions, Ally also enjoys seeing patients of all orthopedic backgrounds and developing individualized treatment plans to meet each patient’s personal needs. She is certified in Dry Needling and Kinesiotaping. Ally is trained in running gait analysis and has experience working with runners of all levels. Outside of work, Ally enjoys running, travel, and spending time with her husband and son.

Elisha Travis PT

Elisa Travis

PT, Clayton, MO

Elisa Travis, PT, has been in the field of Physical Therapy since 1993. She has worked in a variety of settings including acute care, pediatrics, inpatient orthopedic rehabilitation, homecare and women’s health.   Her passion is to educate women as well as healthcare professionals about the importance of prevention and treatment of pelvic dysfunction. She recently relocated from Cincinnati with her husband and 3 (of 9) of their children. 

Emily C - OT at Clayton Employee Bios

Emily Cler

OT, Clayton, MO

Emily joined RPI in 2023. She was born in a small town in central Illinois and moved to Saint Louis for college. She studied at Saint Louis University where she received her Master’s of Occupational Therapy. Following graduation, she worked in an acute care hospital as well as an inpatient rehabilitation hospital with a focus on spinal cord injuries and cerebral vascular accidents. After joining RPI, she couldn’t be happier and enjoys being part of a team in an environment that supports her growth as an OT. In her free time, Emily enjoys spending time with her husband and her dog.

Ashley-Crane

Ashley Crain, DPT

DPT
Ashley Crain works at RPI’s Clayton office. Ashley received her Doctor of Physical Therapy degree in May 2012 from Saint Louis University. She has over 8 years of outpatient experience, specializing in orthopedic conditions, sports rehabilitation, and women’s health physical therapy. Ashley has received her level 2 advanced training certification from the Herman & Wallace Institute for Women’s Health Rehabilitation. She has taken various continuing education courses in manual therapy, management of orthopedic spinal conditions, functional dry needling, and is a certified Sportsmetrics practitioner by Cincinnati Sports Medicine. Ashley enjoys working with patients of all ages and abilities, seeking to assist each individual patient through the rehabilitation process in order to achieve their personal goals. Ashley is a native of St. Louis and enjoys watching sports and playing soccer. She also enjoys spending time with her family and friends.
Scott-Uelsmann Employee Bios

Scott Uelsmann, LPTA

Creve Coeur – MO
Scott Uelsmann has worked in the Physical Therapy field for 14 years, with two years of contract therapy experience working in various therapy settings such as nursing homes, outpatient facilities, home health, sports medicine clinics, and hospitals. He has been with RPI for 10 years at the Covenant House facility in Creve Coeur. Scott was promoted to clinical manager of the Covenant House facility in 2007. He enjoys hanging out with family and friends, travel, coaching soccer and baseball, and watching sporting events.