Management
Vice-Presidents
Michele is the Vice President of Clinical Reimbursement Services for Key Rehabilitation. With more than 27 years as a physical therapist, she manages operations for rehabilitation services, supports clinical programming and development, and is a passionate advocate for advancing quality care at the skilled nursing home communities she serves. Michele has an extensive background in orthopedics, geriatric rehabilitation, home health and acute care.
Always eager to share knowledge with colleagues in her field, she is a national trainer in a wide variety of rehabilitation topics, complex medical conditions and exercise training. She also works with skilled nursing facilities to impact Quality Measures (QM), the reduction of rehospitalizations, and GG accuracy for improving quality and reimbursement.
Michele enjoys traveling with her family, coaching and playing soccer, gardening and any water sport. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota’s physical therapy program and has a BA in sports medicine and biology from St. Olaf College.
Mike is our Executive Vice President and oversees Clinical and Regulatory Affairs. He has a wide variety of experience as a clinician, a manager, and an educator. Before becoming an OTR, Mike had worked in long term care in housekeeping and as an activities aide. In addition to his degree in occupational therapy, Mike has also earned a Certificate in Management Information Systems and a Master’s Degree in Human Services Administration. Mike works with us to assure that our clinical processes are effective, efficient, and smooth. This includes documentation, Medicare and PPS issues, clinical skill development, treatment approaches and outcomes, Intermediary and CMS relationships, Corporate and HIPAA compliance, Medical Reviews by MACs, and supervisory skill development. In addition, Mike coordinates our in-house training and webinar programs. Mike also oversees the operations of our GeroPsych division of Clinical Psychologists and Clinical Social Workers in providing mental health counseling services for residents referred by our skilled nursing facility clients.
Outside of work, Mike and his wife have two grown children and a granddaughter. He and his wife perform in an acoustic rock band together!
Marilyn is our Vice President of Nursing and Program Support Services. She has served in various healthcare leadership positions in post-acute care with a strong emphasis on clinical training, quality programming, education, and payment systems. Having worked directly with both multi-site profit and nonprofit post-acute providers, she was instrumental in advancing clinical training and programming, quality of care outcomes, and maximizing nursing facility reimbursement. Her areas of expertise include federal and state regulations, survey management, Medicare standards, Managed Care utilization, quality measures, MDS education, and training. Marilyn is certified in Wound Care, Resident Assessment Coordination, and Infection Control. In her role, she works with the supervisors and the therapists to understand the survey process and develop knowledgeable working relationships with the facility and nursing staff. In addition, Marilyn is available to educate both therapy and facility staff on new Post-Acute rules and regulations, fully capturing resident characteristics, restorative nursing, quality improvement, MDS knowledge, and consulting. Marilyn is licensed as an RN and earner her Masters of Science in Nursing from Saint Catherine University.
Marilyn and her husband thoroughly enjoy raising their three children, and in her spare time, she enjoys reading, running 5Ks, and volunteering at her church and children’s school.
Laura is our Vice President of Recruiting and Staffing. She has over 30 years experience in long term care. While receiving her Bachelor’s degree in Occupational Therapy, she worked as a CNA in nursing homes and hospitals. Since graduating from Creighton University in 1993, she has worked in a variety of settings including skilled nursing and assisted living facilities, pediatrics, hospitals, and adult developmentally disabled. Currently, Laura’s role is to assure that our staffing levels meet the needs of each patient and facility. She supervises the recruiting department including managing Key’s employee retention programs. She is also the primary contact for outside contract labor companies for the times that a little extra help is necessary.
In her spare time, she enjoys triathlon, hiking, traveling and spending time with her 2 grown sons. She and her husband reside in middle TN on a homestead with their 1 dog, 3 cats, 50+ egg laying chickens, and acres of vegetable gardens.
Gary is the Executive Vice President of Finance and Information Technology for Key Rehab. Gary graduated from Middle Tennessee University and has been working in the Information Technology field since 1998. He holds certifications in MCSE, Network Plus, and in A Plus. Gary joined Key Rehab in May 2002 and responsibilities include developing the network infrastructure, and managing the network security for Key as well as managing financial operations. Other duties include work as the project manager of software development and implementation including DOTS and Rehab Optima.
Gary has been married since 1998 and has two wonderful children.
Melissa Coester is Key Rehab’s Vice President of Operations for SE Kansas, Oklahoma and SW Missouri. Melissa graduated from Pittsburg State University with a B.S. in Biology with minors in Chemistry and Psychology. She then graduated from the PTA program at NEO in Miami OK in 1999. Melissa has worked with Key Rehab since that time beginning as a staff therapist after completing her clinicals. Melissa has a natural ability for leadership and rose quickly through the ranks of Key Rehab to her current position as Vice President. Melissa excels at working with her managers to develop comprehensive plans of care and is able to meet clinical and budgetary goals while achieving quality therapy services. She is process oriented, and works to strategically and methodically to develop staff to their optimal potential.
Melissa is a wife and mother of three beautiful children. She and her family live in rural SE Kansas in a location central to the territory that she oversees.
Shayla Thomas is Regional Vice President for Iowa. Shayla attended the University of Northern Iowa and finished her COTA training at Kirkwood Community College in Iowa. After graduation, she worked on a psychiatric unit as well as on a rehab unit in the hospital setting. When she relocated to Grinnell IA, she began working for Key Rehab. Shayla’s strengths are in working with residents with cognitive and psychiatric difficulties and teaching others these skills.
In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her amazing husband, four wonderful kids, and two dogs.
Jodi Foster is the Vice President of Operations of North Kansas and Northwest Missouri. She graduated with her Master's Degree in Physical Therapy from Wichita State University in 1999. She has been working with the geriatric population since February 2001 when she joined Key Rehab as a staff therapist in Topeka, KS. After 5 years in the Topeka region, Jodi transferred to the Kansas City area, where she still resides. Her office is centrally located in Olathe, Kansas. Jodi excels in utilizing her strengths of educating staff on caseload building, complete care plans, and program development while maintaining quality patient care. Her specialized skill set includes working with facilities to ensure seamless therapy department processes. In her free time, Jodi and her husband are raising their two sons and a crew of rescue dogs!
