Our Staff

Bruce Wihongi was born and raised in New Zealand, one of five children, loved by Mum and Dad, Raywynne and Patariki Wihongi. He played a variety of sports in his youth, and generally had a heck of a lot of fun. 

Having started off heading down a Mechanical Engineering path, Bruce took 2 years off to travel through Europe and Asia. Upon his return to New Zealand he changed his mind about career choices and ended up going to and graduating from Physiotherapy school in Auckland, New Zealand.

With a shortage of PTs in the USA in the early 1990’s an opportunity to travel overseas again beckoned and Bruce landed in Detroit on July 4th, 1993, supposedly for 2 years only and then back to New Zealand to settle down.

However life throws “curve balls” at you and here he still is. He has three children, 2 of whom graduated from MSU, all of whom have moved away. They are fully immersed in their own careers and live in Grand Rapids, Chicago, and Nashville. 

Bruce has been in the Milford/Highland area since May of 1999 when he opened a clinic for Excel Rehabilitation. In 2013 they were bought out by ATI and Bruce remained there until October 2016. Tired of working for a large corporation, he opened Kiwi PT in June 2017 and started another chapter in life. 

He has developed his own style of treatment, taking on board techniques from different PT gurus, and being open to learning new innovations in the PT world, as well as using common sense and the vast experience he has gained from treating all manner of patients and conditions over the past 30 years. 

In his own words, “I have been blessed along my journey with aroha (love) and help from many wonderful people. I am lucky to have a group of fantastic and caring people to work with everyday and am extremely grateful to the local community for supporting us through thick and thin.”

Josette received her Doctorate degree of Physical Therapy in 2016 from Oakland University. She had a passion to serve individuals suffering with pelvic floor condition and became certified in pelvic floor therapy in 2017. She treats a variety of pelvic floor conditions for both men and women, 18 and up, including conditions such as urinary incontinence, prolapse, pelvic pain, tailbone pain, postpartum, diastasis recti, post prostatectomy and more.

Along with providing manual biofeedback for pelvic floor muscle training and relaxation, she provides extension education on the anatomy and physiology of these conditions to patients so they can fully understand their condition and feel empowered in their care. Individualized home exercise programs are given and ultimately each patient will leave with a much better understanding of how they can manage their symptoms independently. Other treatments may include muscle energy techniques, myofascial release, modalities including estim, and muscle re-education.

 

Chelsea has been with us at Kiwi PT since July of 2018. Chelsea married her husband Matt in 2011 and they live in Fenton with their two children, Lucy and Callen. She is a proud fire wife, dedicated cheer mom, and lover of yoga, gym time, and living an active lifestyle.

Chelsea brings years of experience in customer service, insurance verification, explanation of benefits, and medical billing. She is passionate about helping patients navigate the healthcare process with clarity, compassion, and professionalism.