Team members

Pallavi Anand is a senior clinical research coordinator. She has extensive medical training and experience and in particular has been working on pediatric neuromuscular clinical trials for over 15 years. She has helped run a number of pivotal clinical trials for now approved therapeutics for neuromuscular diseases and is particularly skilled in the management of trials for Spinal muscular atrophy.

Michelle Brown is our research nurse. With over 15 years of nursing experience, including extensive pediatric and research nursing experience, she is skilled in the care of our research participants, including administration of investigational products.

Lauren is our Registered Medical Assistant who has been with the department for  4 years and in healthcare for the last 7 years. As a mother of a son who has an ultra-rare disease, she is passionate about caring for our patients and their families to her fullest ability. She is currently working on her Bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences and is continuously working to learn more about the diseases that we treat in our clinics. When she is not working or at school, Lauren volunteers with various local organizations (helping children and families, of course), crocheting, baking or spending time with her family and pets.

Natalie Goedeker is our pediatric nurse practitioner. She has over 10 years of nursing experience and is trained in the unique needs of children with neuromuscular diseases. Focusing on pediatric care, she specializes in the administration of advanced therapeutics for neuromuscular disease and helps monitor participants in our clinical trials. She has a Master's in Nursing from St. Louis University and currently is working on her doctorate.

Toni is a physical therapist who serves as one of our neuromuscular team’s clinical evaluators. She is a graduate of St. Louis University’s School of Physical Therapy. Toni has over 40 years of experience of providing treatment and evaluation services to the pediatric population in inpatient, outpatient and acute and rehabilitation settings; she has specialized in caring for children with neurological disorders for the last several decades. Her current role includes evaluating participants in our clinical trials.

Jennifer Ketchum is a precertification coordinator. She primarily works with our clinic patients with Spinal muscular atrophy to obtain pre-service authorizations for gene therapy and other therapeutics. She is a dedicated member of our team and works with our accomplished high cost drug team, which has successfully been among the first in the country to procure newly approved advanced therapeutics for our patients.

Renatta Knox is a physician scientist with a focus on neuromuscular disorders which affect children.  She completed a pediatric neuromuscular fellowship at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and The Ohio State University and a Gene Therapy fellowship at Nationwide Children’s Hospital.  Her research focuses on early onset facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy and congenital muscle disease.  Her long-term goals are to develop diagnostic tools and innovative therapies to treat early onset muscle disorders prenatally and postnatally.  Health equity is at the forefront of her clinical and research practices.

Julie is one of our clinic physical therapists. She graduated from Mizzou in 1992 with a BS in PT and completed the doctorate portion of my physical therapy degree in 2016 through an online program at the College of St Scholastica in Duluth, Minnesota.

Diane Mwonga is a clinical research coordinator. She recently graduated with a Bachelor of Science and minor in Spanish from Emory University. Mwonga has a wide range of experience and skills, including pre-clinical lab research. She is gaining new skills and experience while preparing for her ultimate goal of becoming a physician. In her free time, Mwonga enjoys traveling and getting to meet new people.

Leslie Rodick is our clinical nurse coordinator. She graduated from the University of Missouri and has over 15 years of nursing experience. She currently coordinates our multidisciplinary clinic, providing an opportunity for patients to see multiple specialties in one visit, minimizing trips to the hospital. Leslie provides quality communication, follow up and support for our patients and their families. She is available to help with any needs that may arise.

Jessie is our Research Physical Therapist and Clinical Research Specialist.  She has over 23 years of combined physical therapy and research experience that includes advanced training in treating patients with spine and movement dysfunction.  Along with performing physical therapy assessments for our research patients, Jessie also serves as a research coordinator for various neuromuscle trials for both adult and pediatric patients.

Abby is one of our clinic physical therapists. She works with both pediatric and adult patients with neuromuscular disorders. Her role is to help patients maintain function and navigate any physical changes they may experience. Abby also helps facilitate communication with local therapists to provide comprehensive and appropriate care for each individual. Abby is well versed in clinical outcome measures and is a clinical evaluator for adult research as well.