Alton Office PHOTO

Steve Schwegel, P.T. / Owner
Steve was born and raised in Alton, Illinois.  After attending parochial schools for elementary education, he graduated from Marquette High School in 1986.  He then attended St. Louis University receiving a Bachelor's Degree in Physical Therapy.  He has completed yearly Continuing Education courses.

He became interested in the field of Physical Therapy when he was a senior in High School and sustained several orthopedic injuries.  He underwent Physical Therapy at Alton Physical Therapy, P.C. with Bill Nash, P.T. and became very interested in the field.

His favorite aspect of this field is the relationship you develop with the patients throughout their rehabilitation.  He enjoys working with shoulders, knees and feet.  Special interests include isokinetic testing, orthotics, and sports injuries.  Other focuses include post operative care for rotator cuff tears, arthroscopies of knees and shoulders as well as ligament reconstruction.

Jenny Gargac, P.T.
Jenny is a 1994 graduate of Maryville University, St. Louis earning her Bachelor's of Science Degree in Physical Therapy.  Upon graduation, Jenny began working at Alton Physical Therapy.  In 1996 Jenny assisted in the development and implementation of the Aquatic Physical Therapy services that were initially offered at Beverly Farm Foundation in Godfrey, Il.  Jenny was the primary Aquatic Physical Therapist offering therapy to a variety of patient populations until APT began offering onsite Aquatic Physical Therapy services.  She currently holds licensure in the state of Illinois.

She is currently a part time employee at APT.  She is the Assistant Clinic Manager and has been a Clinical Instructor to many student Physical Therapists.

Brad Webb, P.T.
Brad Webb, Jerseyville Illinois, received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Physical Therapy in 1995 from the University of Illinois-Chicago following five years of active duty service in the United States Air Force.  After graduation, he relocated to Florence South Carolina where he served as Clinic Manager for three years at Lowe's Therapy.  While in South Carolina he was an instructor in the Physical Therapy Assistant Program at Florence-Darlington Technical College.  Brad joined APT in 1998.

Brad enjoys all aspects of Physical Therapy.  Through continuing education, he continues to further his knowledge of manual therapy. Cervical spine, headaches, orthopedics and sports rehabilitation are his primary interests.  Brad is a Clinical Coordinator for clinical education of Physical Therapy students at Alton Physical Therapy.

Barb Hayes, P.T.
Barb received her Bachelor's of Science degree in Physical Therapy from St Louis University in 1985. After graduation, Barb worked for the Alton Center of Sports Medicine and Physical Therapy and The Physical Rehabilitation Institute in Florissant where she gained tremendous experience working with sports related injuries. Barb has 15 years of experience at Riverbend Orthopedics as the Director of Physical Therapy.

Barb enjoys all aspects of outpatient physical therapy. She relishes the opportunity to make a positive impact on a patient’s life by improving their symptoms and building a lasting relationship.

Susan Goodman, P.T.A.
Susan was born and raised in Alton, IL. She graduated from Alton High School in 1975. Susan became interested in physical therapy after surviving 6 years of gymnastics. She attended Belleville Area College receiving an Associates Degree in Physical Therapy in 1977. After graduation, she worked at DePaul Hospital in Bridgeton for 4 years and Jerseyville Community Hospital for 1 year.

Susan joined Alton Physical Therapy in 1982- the first year the clinic opened. She has attended continuing education courses each year concentrating on orthopedic rehab. Susan has participated in community education with Back School for industry and Tuff Cuff Program for athletics. The most rewarding aspect of physical therapy for Susan is helping a patient reach their full functional potential after injury/surgery.

Lauren Phelps, P.T.A.
Lauren was born and raised in Bunker Hill, Illinois. She graduated from Bunker Hill High School as salutatorian of her class in 2007. Lauren then attended Southern Illinois University Edwardsville for one year for general education and fulfilling pre-requisites for the Physical Therapy Assistant program. She transferred to Southwestern Illinois College Belleville into the Physical Therapy Assistant program in which she held a 4.0 GPA throughout and earned her Associates of Applied Sciences Degree.

Lauren excitedly joined the Alton Physical Therapy staff in June 2010 soon after graduation. Lauren is also an instructor at Southwestern Illinois College in the PTA program helping students through the same program that she just finished. She enjoys working in the outpatient clinic and building meaningful relationships with her patients on their road to recovery. 

Miranda Taylor, PTA
 Miranda was born and raised in Alton, IL.  During her senior year in high school, she took an anatomy and physiology class that exposed her to the world of physical therapy.  After shadowing a PTA for several weeks as part of a research paper, she knew this was to be her career choice.  Miranda received her Associates in Applied Science from Southwestern Illinois College in 2006.  While doing a clinical rotation at Alton Physical Therapy’s Alton location, she fell in love with the staff and community relations of this company.

Miranda has been practicing physical therapy in Texas, Missouri, and now Illinois.  She has worked in acute care hospitals, skilled nursing/rehabilitation facilities, and now is giving outpatient therapy a try to broaden her knowledge of physical therapy.

Jerseyville Office PHOTO

Melody Watson, P.T. / Director of Physical Therapy
Melody received her Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy from Maryville University in St. Louis in 1989. Melody worked at St. Anthony's Health Center in Alton in acute rehabilitation and outpatient orthopedics until she joined Alton Physical Therapy. She became director of Physical Therapy for Alton Physical Therapy at Jersey Community Hospital in April 1996.

Through continuing education Melody has progressed her knowledge of a variety of diagnosis and treatment techniques. She enjoys treating a variety of patients with both orthopedic and neurological needs. Her primary interests are diabetic conditioning, wound care, Women's Health issues and low back pain.

Melody participates in community education with presentations on Women's Health, body mechanics and low back training and "Mr. Backbones" a program targeted to elementary children.

Debra Wittman, P.T.
Debra received her Master's in Physical Therapy degree at St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa in 1997. Prior to that she attended and graduated with honors at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana with a Bachelor's of Science Degree in Kinesiology. Debra began work with Alton Physical Therapy as a physical therapy aide in 1993. In 1993, Alton Physical Therapy obtained the professional service contract for Jersey community Hospital. Debra has been working at the hospital since that time, back in her own community where she was raised. She is the Assistant Director of the Physical Therapy department, and serves as the Clinical Educator for physical therapy students.

Living in a rural area, Debra enjoys evaluating and treating all types of patients with many varying diagnoses. Her special interests are orthopedic injuries chronic and acute; pediatrics, and manual therapy. Debra enjoys getting to know and interacting with her patients through the rehabilitation process. She is very involved in community education and sports injury prevention. Debra is the primary Lymphedema Therapist in the tri-county area. She currently holds Licensure in the state of Illinois.

Jacob Slusser, P.T.
Jake joined the staff of Alton Physical Therapy at Jersey Community Hospital after receiving his Master of Physical Therapy degree from Northern Illinois University in 2002.

He enjoys outpatient orthopedic physical therapy with his primary interests including athletic injuries and their prevention, low back pain, biomechanical evaluation of the foot/ankle, rehabilitation of injuries to the knee and shoulder, as well as postoperative care of the knee and shoulder.

Jake resides in Jerseyville where he is a member of the Jerseyville Kiwanis Club.

Christa Kelly, P.T.
Christa was born and raised in Jerseyville, Illinois.  It was Jerseyville Community Hospital where she found interest in Physical Therapy as an orthopedic injury patient during high school.

Christa is a 1996 graduate of Jerseyville Community High School and a 2000 graduate of Maryville University, St. Louis earning her Bachelor's of Science Degree in Physical Therapy.  She began working at clinical sites in hospitals and outpatient clinics and found love for outpatient rehabilitation.  She was initially drawn to Physical Therapy by the difference her own P.T. made in her life.  Working with people and a variety of injuries keeps her challenged and desiring to learn more every day.

Her special interests are Pre and Post Operative care of orthopedic injuries.  Overall she likes the variability of patient care and helping each person learn about and work toward their optimum level of recovery.

Sandy Hamby, P.T.A.
Sandy was born and raised in Jerseyville, IL.  She graduated from Belleville Area College in 1991 beginning her career with Alton Physical Therapy in 1992.

Sandy enjoys all aspects of physical therapy, especially working with orthopedic shoulder and knees, increasing their range of motion, strength, and returning them to normal functional activities. Sandy prides herself in helping patients feel comfortable as well as motivated during their rehabilitation process.

Staunton Office PHOTO

Michael Coalson, P.T. / Director of Physical Therapy
Mike has been a resident of Staunton Illinois his entire life. After graduation from Staunton High School, Mike attended Maryville University, St. Louis earning his Master of Physical Therapy degree in 2006.

Mike has participated in sports at both high school and college level, playing 4 years of baseball for Maryville University. His special interests include sports related and orthopedic injuries. However, Mike has experience working with numerous different types of neuromuscular related diseases.

He began his career working in outpatient rehab, specifically with work-related injuries. Mike then began working in both inpatient and outpatient rehab in the hospital setting in 2007. He joined Alton Physical Therapy in 2008 and is currently Director of Physical Therapy at Community Memorial Hospital in Staunton.

Kelly McCormick, P.T.
Kelly was born and raised in Alton, IL. She earned a Master of Physical Therapy degree from Maryville University of St. Louis in 2008 and graduated with honors. As a student, she completed one of several clinical rotations at Alton Physical Therapy and joined the team soon after graduation.

Kelly particularly enjoys treating orthopedic injuries and providing a relaxed environment to ease the rehabilitation process for her patients. She looks forward to contributing to the excellent reputation Alton Physical Therapy holds for outstanding patient care and building long-standing relationships with clients.

Janelle Franke, P.T.A.
Janelle received an Associates of Applied Science in Physical Therapy from Sanford Brown College in Hazelwood, MO in 1997. Upon graduation, Janelle began working as a Physical Therapist Assistant for Alton Physical Therapy. Initially, Janelle worked in our Jerseyville setting at the Wellness Center for almost 12 years. Over the last 2 years she has relocated to our Staunton office at Community Memorial Hospital.

Janelle was born and raised in Staunton. Her special interests include fall prevention with geriatric population. Overall, Janelle enjoys working with a variety of orthopedic and neurological conditions and returning them to their prior or desired level of care.

LeAnn Johns, P.T.A.
LeAnn is a 1978 graduate of Belleville Area College earning an Associates degree in Applied Science in Physical Therapy.

LeAnn has been employed with Alton Physical Therapy since 1982 as a licensed Physical Therapy Assistant. Through continuing education she has received training from Healing Arts Center in St. Louis, MO as a certified massage therapist. She has continued with courses on manual therapy, geriatrics, and orthopedic injuries.

LeAnn is the Clinical Instructor for Physical Therapist Assistant students.

Currently she is working at Community Memorial Hospital in Staunton. Special interests include manual therapy, fall prevention with geriatrics, and orthopedics.

Janet Bernhardt
Jan was born and raised in Litchfield, IL. After attending elementary education, she graduated from Litchfield High. She married and raised a family, then became interested in the medical field where she took classes in sociology and medical terminology.

Jan enjoys meeting and visiting with all types of people that she encounters through her position as a Customer Representative.