vestibularPT.com

Colleen Sleik, PT, DPT, NCS is a Doctor of Physical Therapy, specializing in the treatment of patients with vestibular disorders. Dr. Sleik graduated from The College of St. Catherine with a Master of Physical Therapy. She earned a transitional Doctor of Physical Therapy degree through The University of St. Augustine, Florida, and completed the Competency-Based Vestibular Rehabilitation course through Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. Sleik is a board-certification Neurologic Clinical Specialist. She is a member of the Vestibular Disorders Association (VEDA) and the American Physical Therapy Association, including the Academy of Neurologic Physical Therapists and the Vestibular Special Interest Group. Dr. Sleik is a full-time clinician at Bellin Health in Iron Mountain, MI where 75-90% of her caseload consists of patients with vertigo, dizziness, or balance problems. Dr. Sleik's journey into the specialized care of vestibular patients began after evaluating a patient that she was unable to help. She needed to know more. She attended courses in vestibular rehab, accessed research to guide her treatment, and developed her skills in treating dizzy patients through years of practice. As a clinician, Dr. Sleik utilizes evidence-based treatment strategies to provide her patients with the best care available, while also providing them with strategies for long-term management of their condition. Dr. Sleik lives and works in a small, rural community in Michigan where it is not uncommon for patients to drive several hours to access her specialty vestibular rehabilitation services. This need inspired her to begin teaching vestibular rehabilitation continuing education courses, and she has been teaching national-level seminars in vestibular rehabilitation since 2015. Her goal is to increase clinicians’ knowledge and understanding of vestibular rehabilitation, ultimately improving access to knowledgeable clinicians providing quality care for patients with dizziness. Dr. Sleik is pleased to have this opportunity to share her passion for treating this special population and guiding your journey in providing specialty care in vestibular rehabilitation.

Jack Cervantes PT, DPT is a Doctor of Physical Therapy, currently working in the University of Wisconsin (UW) Hospital and Clinics Health System. He has recently completed the UW Hospital & Clinics and UnityPoint Health - Meriter Orthopaedic Physical Therapy Clinical Residency Program. Dr. Cervantes graduated from the Carroll University Doctor of Physical Therapy Program in 2022. Throughout his clinical experiences he completed rotations in the Outpatient Orthopedic, Inpatient General, Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Emergency Department (ED), and Outpatient Vestibular Setting. Dr. Cervantes has also completed a variety of continuing education courses including M1 Graston Certification, Running Rehabilitation, Cervical Manipulation Safety, and American Sign Language (ASL) for the Physical Therapist. He is also a member of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), including APTA Wisconsin and the Orthopaedic Special Interest Group. Dr. Cervantes’ interest in vestibular rehabilitation began following an intensive 8-week rotation treating patients with diagnoses varying from benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) and vestibular hypofunction to post-concussion syndrome and Meniere's disease. He has attended and assisted in the presentation of the continuing education course “Differential Diagnosis in Vestibular Rehabilitation” with Dr. Colleen Sleik PT, DPT, NCS at the 2022 Spring Conference held by APTA Wisconsin. This experience and continuing education opportunity opened the door to a whole new side of physical therapy. As a clinician, Dr. Cervantes utilizes evidence-based treatment approaches to provide his patients with the best care available, while also providing them with strategies for long-term management of their condition.

Zac Mestelle, PT, DPT, OCS is a Doctor of Physical Therapy and a residency-trained board certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist. Dr. Mestelle currently works at Bellin Health Titletown clinic where he treats a high volume of sports medicine patients. A large portion of this caseload includes rehab following ACL-R and other arthroscopic shoulder and knee surgeries. Additionally, he is also a member of Bellin’s throwing team which includes management of the injured thrower as well as performance based assessments. For the past three years Dr. Mestelle has led Bellin Health’s interdisciplinary concussion management team. This team includes physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech language pathologists and works intimately with the referring providers and school athletic trainers in order to provide optimal care for patients who have suffered a concussion. Dr. Mestelle graduated from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in 2017. It was on one of his terminal rotations where he initially gained exposure to evaluating and treating post-concussion patients as his clinical instructor was the lead physical therapist for the adolescent mild TBI team at Madonna Rehabilitation Hospitals. It was the challenge and uniqueness that comes with each post-concussion patient that led to Dr. Mestelle’s passion for treating these patients. Since then, he has worked diligently to gain a mastery in treating this specific patient population, through both formal continuing education courses as well as frequent review of the literature. Dr. Mestelle completed his Orthopedic Residency through Evidence in Motion and Bellin Health in 2020. While only a portion of patients with concussion require traditional orthopedic care, this residency helped Dr. Mestelle master the patient response model which has proven valuable for managing post-concussion patients. Dr. Mestelle’s purpose in teaching is to share the passion he has for this underserved patient population in an effort to improve patient outcomes and lead to a shorter and fuller recovery. He strives to instill the balance between high quality evidence-based information with pragmatic, experience, and application based information in order to provide a well-rounded learning experience.