Clinical Expertise and Special Interests
Kristen treats a wide variety of diagnoses and patient populations including athletes and pre- and post-operative patients. She has her Manual Therapy Certification and values the use of manual skills to help patients with knee, shoulder and neck pain. She loves working with a variety of age groups throughout the day and helping people get back to the activities that are important to them.
Educational Foundation
Doctor of Physical Therapy: Northwestern University
Bachelor of Arts: Psychology, St. Olaf College
Certifications
Manual Therapy Certification
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Kristen Musser's background and training?
Kristen Musser is a physical therapist at Neuroscience Group's Neenah location. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, and her Doctor of Physical Therapy from Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois — one of the country's leading research universities with a highly regarded PT program. Her psychology undergraduate background gives her a foundation in human behavior and communication that informs how she builds relationships with patients across a wide range of ages and backgrounds. She holds a Manual Therapy Certification, reflecting post-graduate training in hands-on manual therapy techniques beyond entry-level DPT education, and has particular clinical expertise in treating knee, shoulder, and neck pain across diverse patient populations including athletes and pre- and post-operative patients.
What certifications or licenses does Kristen Musser hold?
Kristen holds a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) from Northwestern University and is licensed as a physical therapist in Wisconsin. She holds a Manual Therapy Certification, a post-graduate credential reflecting advanced training in manual therapy techniques and assessment. The manual therapy certification reflects her belief that skilled hands-on treatment makes a genuine clinical difference for the patients she works with, and she pursued it deliberately to deepen her ability to help patients with musculoskeletal pain and dysfunction.
What does Kristen Musser do at Neuroscience Group?
Kristen is a physical therapist at Neuroscience Group's Neenah location, providing evaluation and individualized treatment for a wide range of diagnoses and patient populations. Her practice spans athletes managing sports-related injuries, patients preparing for or recovering from surgery, and everyone in between — she actively enjoys working with people across many different age groups and activity levels within the same day. She uses manual therapy as a core component of her treatment approach, complemented by therapeutic exercise and patient education, to address pain and restore function in ways that connect directly to what each patient wants to get back to doing.
What conditions does Kristen Musser treat or help rehabilitate?
Kristen has particular clinical interest in knee, shoulder, and neck pain, and her manual therapy certification gives her advanced hands-on skills for addressing musculoskeletal dysfunction across these regions. Her experience with athletes means she is well-suited to patients with sports-related injuries requiring return-to-sport rehabilitation, and her pre- and post-operative experience makes her a natural fit for patients in NG's spine surgery and neurosurgery programs who need physical therapy before or after a procedure. More broadly, she treats a wide variety of musculoskeletal, nerve, and orthopedic conditions across patient populations of all ages and activity levels.
What is Kristen's approach to patient care?
Kristen chose physical therapy specifically because she knew she could spend meaningful, quality time with patients and build real relationships — not a transactional clinical interaction, but an ongoing therapeutic partnership that evolves as the patient progresses. She pursued her Manual Therapy Certification because she genuinely believes that skilled hands-on treatment makes a difference that exercise alone cannot replicate, and she brings that conviction to every patient encounter. Her goal is to help people get back to the activities that matter most to them, whether that is a sport, a hobby, a daily routine, or simply freedom from pain. Her psychology background also informs how she listens to and communicates with patients, making the therapeutic relationship itself part of the treatment.
“I chose to become a Physical Therapist because I knew I wanted to help people. I knew I could spend a lot of quality time with patients and really build relationships with them. I chose to get my Manual Therapy Certification because I believe hands-on therapy can truly make a difference.”