Senior Physical Therapists

Evie Vlahakis is an accomplished PT who received her Bachelors Degree in Physical Therapy from SUNY at StonyBrook in 1989. Her career began on Long Island in a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Hospital by day and in an orthopedic outpatient facility on nights and weekends for two years. In 1991, she moved into Manhattan and her concentration shifted to working full time in a private practice Orthopedic and Sports Medicine centers for 10 years, along with home care and private patients in her spare time. As the practices grew, and start-up facilities sprouted, the practice was eventually acquired by a national health care company. Her promotions lead to the Area Administrator position, involving treating a full caseload of patients and management of 3 clinics. Also her interests expanded to lecturing and teaching for various professional organizations, health clubs, personal trainers in and around Manhattan and for Mercy College Graduate Program for Physical Therapy in Dobbs Ferry. She has taken multiple continuing education courses since 1989, too long to list here. After taking 4 years off for childrearing, she returned and joined our practice in 2005, attending to patients in the home care setting.

Ma. Michelle Q. Cruz graduated with a degree of Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy in 1998 from the University of the Philippines.  She pursued a degree of Doctor of Medicine and Surgery in 2002 from the University of Santo Tomas, also in her native Philippines.  She became licensed to practice as a physical therapist in her home country in 1999 (while in her second year of medical school) and to practice as a physician in 2003 after a year of internship.  Her experience in being both a physical therapist and physician spans from pediatrics to geriatrics, in various settings such as hospital-based rehabilitation and private facilities.  Aside from being a clinician and a clinical instructor, she also had experience teaching basic medical sciences (anatomy and physiology) to aspiring medical transcriptionists.  She moved to the United States in 2007, becoming registered to practice physical therapy in the State of New York in November of that same year.  Since then, she has gravitated towards out-patient orthopedics and geriatrics.  Her passion for continuing education is evident in her decision to return to school and complete her Doctorate in Physical Therapy (DPT) from Utica College in early 2011.