RehabFirst Physical Therapy is an established privately owned physical therapy practice owned by Physical Therapists located on the west coast of Florida.

At RehabFirst Physical Therapy you’ll experience a different approach to physical therapy. One that uses hands on techniques and tailor made exercise programs delivered by expertly trained and licensed Physical Therapists who work one-on-one with you during your therapy sessions.

At RehabFirst Physical Therapy we not only practice physical therapy but we live and breathe it and which results in high patient satisfaction.

We believe you should “Try PT First”, because our goal is’nt just to help you find pain relief for now, it’s to insure your good health for a life time. As we have done for 1000’s of other area residents in the Manatee and Sarasota Counties.

Our Mission is to provide highly skilled Physical Therapy in a caring, comfortable and motivating environment. We treat our patients as unique individuals receiving one on one treatment which ensures efficient and effective care at a minimum cost.

Bradenton
Frank Dieckman, PT, MTC.

Frank graduated in 1995 from the “Amsterdam College for Allied Health Professionals”, in the Netherlands, with a bachelor’s degree in Physical Therapy with a specialization in sports medicine. He practiced Physical Therapy in the Netherlands for 1 year, combining his time between a private practice setting and the AFC Ajax Amsterdam soccer club with responsibilities for the A2 youth team, prior to emigrating to the United States in May of 1996.

The 1996 through 2001 period continued a focus in the sports medicine arena whilst progressing to the position of director of Bollettieri Sports Medicine Center on the IMG sports complex.

In 2001 Frank received a certification in Manual therapy from the University of St. Augustine indicating completion of a specialty track in spine and joint care rehabilitation.

Since 2001 Frank has started RehabFirst Physical Therapy with his wife, Melanie Scott. Specialty areas of interest include the rehabilitation of spine and joint injuries, balance rehabilitation and foot injuries.

Frank enjoys spending quality time with his wife and daughter, keeping up with friends, participating in water-sports and staying fit and healthy in body, soul and spirit.

Krysti Doerr, DPT.

Krysti graduated from the University of Florida in 2010 where she received her Doctoral graduate degree in Physical Therapy (DPT). Her Bachelor degree in Exercise Science is from Florida State University which proves to be an asset she utilizes to help provide care for her patients. She has experience treating a wide variety of musculoskeletal issues and enjoys seeing her patients improve and get back to their “normal” activities. She has been part of the RehabFirst Physical Therapy team since 2010 and continues to be excited to be a part of the RehabFirst team and looking forward to helping each patient who comes into the clinic.

Krysti was born in Florida and grew up locally. After completing her education she decided to move back to her hometown to be close to her family. She enjoys spending time with her family, going to the beach, and reading.

Liz Watson

Liz joined us in 2008 after she moved to Florida due to her husband’s recruitment by FPL after Hurricane Charlie.

She comes from a family of ten children and was raised and educated in Ontario, Canada. In her professional career in Ontario she worked for the largest Canadian Bank, in customer service, for 20 years and in the accounting department of a Canadian Ford dealership for 5 years.

She is a mother of two grown “hockey player” sons and is herself a big Ice Hockey fan.

Liz likes to meet all the people she comes in contact with as our receptionist. She likes to be the smiling face our patients and doctors offices deal with on a daily basis and she likes to help our patients, where able, with the ever more complicated insurance issues.

Ellenton

Melanie Scott, PT

Azalia Miranda, MPT, ATC

Azalia is the Clinic Director of our Ellenton facility. She graduated with a Bachelor degree in Athletic Training from the University of South Florida and went on to receive her Masters in Physical Therapy at the University of Florida.

Azalia’s educational foundation in the field of athlete injury and high-speed-traumatic-injury rehabilitation opened doors into avenues of rehabilitation of the general population. In other words, her Bachelor’s concentration was a solid foundation in furthering her education within the field of physical therapy. It has given her the opportunity and experience so as to be able to work with all ages and health statuses of patient populations.

As a bilingual therapist, she also utilizes her second language to further her communication during the care of any Spanish-speaking patients that she may treat in the clinic or surrounding facilities.

Azalia has been a vital part in the success of RehabFirst Physical Therapy. Her outlook on professional excellence and her commitment to patient care sets a prominent high mark. Azalia expresses her passion to assist the community in need of physical rehabilitation everywhere she goes and her personality often precedes her as outgoing, personable and thoughtful. 

In her personal life Azalia enjoys being a wife and athletic challenges of different types and she likes to “hang-out” with her extended family doing fun activities. She is also a big fan of sports in general supporting “local” teams such as USF and Gator College teams and Tampa-Bay Rays Baseball and Buccaneers Football.

Jeremiah Rosenkrans, DPT

 Jeremiah graduated with his Doctorate in Physical Therapy in 2008 from Gannon University in Erie, Pennsylvania. Prior to obtaining his Physical Therapy license he studied Sports Medicine at Indiana University of Pennsylvania where he received his BA in Athletic Training and Exercise Kinesiology. Jeremiah practiced physical therapy in Pennsylvania working at Meadville Sports Medicine for 1 year before deciding to leave the cold and head for Florida. Since his time in Bradenton, Jeremiah established the physical therapy department at Integrated Physical Medicine, working there for 2 years along with working with Manatee Memorial Hospital on an impatient basis. Jeremiah believes in the importance of utilizing manual therapy within his treatment plans and the establishment of individualized plans of care in which are designed to get the patients back into the game of life. He believes that providing care in a one on one environment allows for the patient and therapist to achieve optimal results in a highly motivated atmosphere.  Specialty areas for Jeremiah are orthopedic injuries, rehabilitation of the spine and joints, balance rehabilitation and Sports Medicine.

 Jeremiah enjoys spending time with his fiancée, dogs. He also enjoys working out and traveling and is an avid sports fan.

Judy Hafner, Medical Secretary

Judy has been with RehabFirst Physical Therapy at the Ellenton center since 2007. She enjoys interacting with our patients, helping the therapists when possible, and keeping the never-ending paperwork trail flowing.

She was born in Michigan as the youngest of 6 children, moved to Ohio at the age of 2. Judy grew-up there, married, had 3 sons and raised them, and worked for the Toledo Blade Newspaper (writing obituaries). She retired after 25 years with the newspaper and she and her husband realized their dream of moving to Florida in 2005.

When you meet Judy you meet a real animal lover; she has so far raised a squirrel, a possum, 4 raccoons and several pheasants.