Team
The Elite Physio Team
Michael Post
Physiotherapist
Stephanie Rockett
Physiotherapist
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Non-Invasive Treatment
If you are looking for Specialist Physiotherapy Treatment or Clinical Pilates classes, please make a booking or call us on 0293873310.
On the spot rebates for Medicare and Private Health Insurance is available*
Alana is one of the team’s Pilates gurus. She originally trained in a large pilates physio clinic in Melbourne so has brought lots of experience in this area to Elite Spinal. She has a specific and holistic approach to Pilates when working with patients who have complex conditions, she ensures her patients are appropriately challenged.
After obtaining a back injury herself she became very passionate about helping her clients through all types of spinal pain and dysfunction. She has completed an extensive amount of postgraduate study in all things spine. She is very interested in lumbar spine issues, post op rehab, complex disc bulges and rib related thoracic conditions.
Alana uses a combination of manual therapy, dry needling and exercise based rehabilitation to achieve excellent patient outcomes.
When she isn’t fixing spines she enjoys getting outdoors and enjoying the coastal lifestyle of the eastern suburbs.
Ciara completed her Physiotherapy studies in Melbourne at La Trobe University with a Bachelor of Health Science and Masters in Physiotherapy Practice. After University, Ciara completed her Level 1 Watson Headache Course due to a keen interest in Headache and Migraine management as well as working in a Headache clinic in Melbourne.
Ciara has had experience in a wide variety of sports both playing and working. This includes years of high level rowing coaching, Head Physiotherapist of a local AFL team and pre-season work with the Melbourne Rebels women’s team. Through this experience Ciara has seen many serious Musculoskeletal injuries and has guided them through the full rehab process and return to sport.
As well as sport and headaches as areas of interest, Ciara has been involved in physical activity and management for those with Autism Spectrum Disorder which has included a lot of learning with communication and treatment techniques to achieve optimal outcomes for this population.
Ciara places a strong emphasis on education and understanding through diagrams, models and evidence to allow patients to not only improve physically but also be empowered, take charge and have control over their injuries.
Outside of Physiotherapy, Ciara is a keen swimmer and enjoys watching the AFL.
Lauren completed her physiotherapy studies in Brisbane, but that hasn’t stopped her from building up a big following. Lauren has completed post graduate studies in the areas of chronic pain, women’s health, sports physiotherapy, pilates, dry needling and taping. Lauren particularly enjoys treating persistent and chronic pain and working with peripheral joints. Lauren has a wholistic and goal-oriented approach and looks forward to working alongside you as you start to feel and move your very best.
Ricci completed her Doctor of Physiotherapy at Macquarie University and Bachelor of Human Movement studies at UTS. Throughout her studies she worked as an exercise physiologist in rehabilitation setting. Her passion for physiotherapy developed from being a competitive netball player, dancer, runner and overall love for exercise and movement.
Having worked in private practice and sport team coverage for 5 years, Ricci has a wide range of experience with acute and chronic injuries and enjoys using both exercise and manual therapy to see her patients achieve their goals.
Ricci has completed further studies in Dry needling, Spine, McKenzie Technique, Lyn Watson Shoulder Course as well as Level 2 Sports Physiotherapy.
Ricci has a passion for treating neck pain and headaches, as well as shoulder injuries. She looks forward to working along side with you.
Jackson is a very talented Physio from the beautiful countryside of Armidale. He was determined to fulfill his dream of becoming a Physiotherapist so moved to Newcastle to study and graduated with a bachelor of physiotherapy (honours)
From his own personal rehab journey he became fascinated by the spine and in particular the relationship between the spine and the neurological system.
His focus is everything spine! Specifically neck and headache treatment. Another key area he is interested in is disc bulges and referred pain. He endeavours to understand the whole picture and to guide and facilitate a holistic approach to help achieve his patients goals.
Jackson is fantastic with clients who have recurring pain as he really works hard to get to the root cause of the pain. He truly believes “movement is medicine” so he has a strong focus on exercise therapy.
He loves working with patients pre or post op surgery guiding them through every step of the rehab process.
When he isn’t fixing spines he enjoys snowboarding, strength training and keeping active.
Sari qualified from Trinity College Dublin with an honours degree in physiotherapy and completed a masters in sports and exercise medicine in Trinity College Dublin. She is a strength and conditioning expert through the NSCA and uses her sporting background to help clients achieve their sporting goals.
Sari has worked in orthopaedics, community outpatients, private practice and various sports teams including Gaelic football teams and rugby teams. Since arriving in Sydney Sari has continued to work with rugby union teams here. Sari has a vast amount of experience with post operative rehabilitation and with acute sporting injuries such as shoulder, hip and knee injuries.
Sari carried out research as part of her masters thesis on the impact of Pilates on Gaelic football player’s balance, strength and flexibility. She is passionate about using exercise and Pilates to prevent injuries and as a rehabilitation tool following injury.
Sari is a keen runner and has completed several marathons and Olympic distance triathlons as well as previously representing Ireland in modern pentathlon. She understands the demands of training and the importance of load management and strengthening to ensure peak performance.
Since graduating, Sari has completed post graduate training in hip and groin pathologies, dry needling, clinical Pilates and concussion
Sari has a keen interest in skiing and spent a season in the French Alps working with elite level and recreational skiers, teaching Pilates and providing sports massage to tired legs after a long day on the slopes.
B. Applied Sci (Exercise and Sport Science)
M (Phty) APAM
Georgina is an enthusiastic, passionate and caring Physiotherapist. Georgie has a Bachelor of Applied Science (Exercise & Sport Science) and a Masters in Physiotherapy. She has gained a wide variety of experience in both the private practice and public health sectors. In conjunction to this, has a strong exercise and movement background, as she a clinical Pilates Instructor, a qualified personal trainer (Cert III and IV in Fitness) and a CrossFit Level 1 Coach. She believes that movement is medicine and has the power to change lives. Georgina’s passion for Physiotherapy comes from managing her own chronic back and hip pain.
Georgina’s Physiotherapy treatments are diverse, evidence based, holistic and most importantly, goal orientated. She believes that there is an inextricable link between the mind and body, which is the key to achieving overall wellness. Further, she enjoys problem solving and clinical reasoning and is driven in progressing her patients from the treatment table, all the way back to a better quality of life, sport or the gym floor.
Georgina has additional training in advanced Dry Needling, Women’s and Pelvic Health, inclusive of pre-post-natal exercise. She is often utilises the Real Time Ultrasound within her treatments. She combines her strong exercise prescription and manual therapy skills to provide effective and long-term results.
When Georgina isn’t working, you can find her with her friends, reading or staying active by doing strength & conditioning in the gym, running or doing pilates.
Sherston is a Physiotherapist and an Accredited Exercise Physiologist.
She has a deep understanding of healthy movement and control, appreciating the importance of adopting correct breathing, postural and movement patterns in the prevention and treatment of injury and disease. She treats holistically and is passionate about finding the solution to the cause of your symptoms so you can reach your life and sporting goals regardless of age or ability.
Sherston treats all musculoskeletal conditions, but is most versed in all things spinal whether its pre-habilitation programs prior to surgery, rehabilitation post-surgery or managing complex spinal issues.
Her treatments include:
These combined, help people gain control of their healing and gives them an awareness of the way they move, enabling them to develop more appropriate movement patterns, ameliorating pain and discomfort and improve performance whether it be to walk the dog or run a marathon. Sherston takes Pilates classes; these helps segue people back into confident movement and structured exercise safely and confidently.
Sherston is a runner, swimmer, paddler and cyclist and loves endurance events. More recently she has started surfing. She has practised yoga for 25 years. Snow skiing and trekking are her holidays of choice.
Tiffany completed a Doctor of Physiotherapy at Macquarie University and a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Psychology and Physiology. She has completed post graduate training in the management of chronic pain.
Tiffany has extensive experience working in an integrated musculoskeletal rehabilitation and aged care clinic where she became passionate about treating individuals of all ages, backgrounds and stages of recovery. She believes that the patient should sit central to all decisions and be well informed and consulted throughout their treatment. Her aim is to apply individualised and evidence-based care to empower others in making healthy lifestyle choices.
As a headache sufferer herself, Tiffany has a particular interest in the management of headaches and the symptoms associated with them. She finds a holistic physiotherapy treatment plan improves not only headaches but overall energy levels too.
Keeping active has always been an important part of Tiffany’s life, she plays volleyball, tennis and was a professional Jazz & Hiphop dancer as a teenager. Having recently completed a yoga teacher training course, Tiffany enjoys learning and sharing the practice of yoga. She also enjoys travelling and being in nature.
Sharon completed a Masters of Physiotherapy at The University of Sydney and has a Bachelors of Science degree in exercise physiology from Simon Fraser University in Canada.
She is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA and enjoys seeing clients achieve sports specific goals through their strength training program.
Sharon has also taught pilates for many years and is passionate about safely improving movement in the spine. Through the course of her career Sharon has worked extensively with people that are recovering from surgery; as well as patients that have neurological disorders or pain, disc bulges, chronic pain and acute injuries.
She is trained in dry needling, myofascial trigger point release, spine mobilisations, as well as other modalities. As a movement expert she analyses the way people compensate when they perform functional movements and how this may generate pain after some time.
She is passionate about providing ways to relieve symptoms of pain and discomfort so that patients can return to their active lifestyles. Her current sports include weight training, aerial silks, paddle boarding and hiking.
Melissa completed her training in America, where she received her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Massachusetts General Hospital Institute of Health Professions. While living in America, she gained experience in a variety of settings, including traumatic brain injury, neurological and vestibular conditions and musculoskeletal injuries.
She moved to Australia seven years ago and has since become certified in pilates.
She is currently finishing up a course with Pinc and Steel International to become a cancer rehabilitation therapist, with a focus on providing therapy services for patients recovering from any type of cancer treatment or surgery. She is so excited to launch this program within Elite Spinal Physiotherapy in early 2020.
In addition to physiotherapy, she keeps busy driving her three young children around to various activities, spending time at the beach and dreaming of skiing.
Celia has been treating and caring for patients for over 30 years. After running her own successful practice in South Africa, she immigrated with her family to the sunny shores of Sydney. Celia worked in numerous practices across the Eastern Suburbs, before she joined the Sarah Keys Physiotherapist Centre, where she found her niche in treating backs. Celia regularly treats with her feet, using her bodyweight to feel for and encourage movement in the spinal joints.
Celia spent the last 16 years at Sarah Keys Physiotherapy and is accredited in all 4 stages of Sarah Keys Masterclass. Through her tenure she has trained numerous Physios in the specialised back methodology, and treated hundreds of patients, often curing their issues and preventing unwanted back surgery. After the closure of the city based clinic, Celia is now available to treat patients from her home practice in the Eastern suburbs.
When she is not helping people’s backs, Celia enjoys Yoga and Pilates, and incorporates exercises from both in her patient’s treatment plans. She also enjoys golf, and while her handicap is less impressive, Celia helps golfers improve their back so they can enhance their swing.
James adds a whole new dimension to what Elite Spinal has to offer. James is one of the few physios in Australia who are extensively trained in ConnectTherapy, designed by Canadian Physiotherapist Dr Linda-Joy Lee. ConnectTherapy looks at the relationships between different regions of the body and helps us to understand how symptoms in different areas are connected, or how symptoms can be caused by a different part of the body. It requires a whole-body assessment and treatment to identify these relationships and is often highly successful for people who haven’t had positive results with other approaches.
James graduated from The University of Wollongong with a Bachelor of Exercise Science, followed by a Masters of Physiotherapy from Sydney University, alongside Elisha & Brigitte. James’ interests include football, cycling, and running. He loves being active which motivates him to assist people through their rehabilitation, whether that is simply moving without pain or returning to elite-level sport.
James believes that every movement requires the whole body, and understanding how different parts of the body are interacting is crucial to getting you out of pain and moving well.
Charmaine completed her Masters of Physiotherapy at the University of Western Sydney. Charmaine has developed a diverse range of experience, working with a range of clientele with both acute and chronic injury rehabilitation.
Charmaine’s passion and drive to become a physiotherapist came from when she was a competitive gymnast competing at a state, national and international level. She attended Physiotherapy for injury management, prevention and to enhance her sporting performance.
She also has been actively involved with coaching gymnastics and acrobatic gymnastics in the Sutherland Shire area since 2001. She also has a background in Personal Training.
Charmaine is always looking to improve and develop as a Physiotherapist in finding new and diverse ways to treat her patients. She has done post-graduate study in Sports Physiotherapy, Dry needling, Muscle Energy Techniques and Connect Therapy.
In her spare time she enjoys rock climbing, dancing and gymnastics. And Pilates of course 🙂
Heather is an enthusiastic physiotherapist with a wealth of knowledge and experience in musculoskeletal physiotherapy and rehabilitation. Her physiotherapy background is mainly back and neck pain and sports injuries. Her experience ranges from occupational health for the police force to international dinghy sailing to ultra-distance and endurance events providing physiotherapy treatment and sports massage for athletes of all ages and levels. In Scotland she worked with club rugby union and international rugby 7s teams and since arriving in Sydney, she has also worked with a Premier Division AFL team.
Heather believes that providing a holistic approach to treatment is key to a successful recovery and appreciates the important role we as physiotherapists play in health promotion. Heather is constantly developing as a clinician and really enjoys a new challenge. She prides herself on providing the best evidence based treatment to ensure the best possible outcome for each individual. Since graduating from her Physio degree in Scotland, Heather has completed post graduate study in Sports Massage, Rehab Pilates, TMJ (jaw pain), Western Medical Acupuncture and dry needling.
Heather grew up skiing and spent a season working as a massage therapist and chalet host for a luxury holiday company in the French Alps. This experience has given her a keen eye for detail and she prides herself in providing the highest level of customer service.
She has a keen interest in jaw pain(temporomandibular joint disorders), having worked as a dental nurse while studying, she has completed expert training in this area.
B.Sc(Exsc)
M(Clin Ex Phys)
M(Phty) APAM
Physiotherapist Bondi Junction
Clinical Pilates Instructor
Brigitte graduated from Sydney University with a Masters of Physiotherapy. She has a strong exercise rehab base having previously completed a Bachelor of Exercise Science and Master of Clinical Exercise Physiology from Wollongong University. Her passion is physiotherapy for low back pain treating complex spinal, pelvic and postural related neck and shoulder pain. Throughout her career she has seen how integral a healthy spine can be in the prevention of injury to all other parts of the body. Her approach is to find and treat the dysfunctions in alignment and movement patterns of the body rather than focusing and treating only the painful site.
Brigitte has a strong interest in spinal surgery rehabilitation where she can combine her back pain physiotherapy skills and her clinical pilates skills.
B.Sc(Exsc)
M(Clin Ex Phys)
M(Phty) APAM
Physiotherapist Bondi Junction
Clinical Pilates Instructor
Watson Headache Level 1 Certified Practitioner
Elisha is the co founder of Elite Spinal Physiotherapy and Pilates. She holds Masters degrees in both Exercise Physiology and Physiotherapy and has also studied Clinical Pilates. Elisha’s passion for spinal and headache Physiotherapy is what drove her to launch the Elite Spinal Physiotherapy and Pilates clinic. After suffering with a neck injury from a car accident she was left with debilitating neck pain and cervicogenic headaches. She sort treatment from her peers and noticed a significant difference between general Physiotherapists and others that devote their studies to one area. This led her to complete extensive postgraduate study in both back/neck pain and headache treatment. Having experienced first hand how much having neck pain and headaches can affect your quality of life Elisha has devoted her career to helping others in this situation.
Elisha believes the only way to manage and resolve spinal pain is to restore the function in the spine. She does this through hands on manual therapy and then strengthens the client with a specific exercise program to ensure the dysfunction of the spine does not reoccur.
Elisha and her team work closely with many of Sydney’s top Neurosurgeons, Sports Physicians, Pain experts and General Practitioners working in conjunction to either prevent surgery or rehabilitate post surgery. She has spent many years developing post-operative protocols for all the different types of surgical procedures. She has watched many of the surgeries first hand to gain a deeper understanding.
She enjoys the challenge of helping clients with complex spinal dysfunction, cervicogenic headaches, disc bulges, inflammatory disorders and instabilities.
Nunzio has a skill set that fits perfectly with helping people manage pain. He teaches Mindfulness Meditation and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy which have been shown to help people manage pain. This works by learning to relate to the physical sensations differently, as well as managing the stress and low mood that often accompany painful conditions. In some cases, stress and low mood make pain worse, so the benefit can work in both directions.
Nunzio has a wealth of experience working in a broad range of settings across his career, so can offer help in pain management, all aspects of cancer psychological support as well as most aspects of general mental health. He has trained in a number of therapeutic approaches, so as well as well Mindfulness Based interventions, he can offer other psychological therapies including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Schema Therapy and Compassion Focussed Therapy.
Nunzio completed his Doctorate in Clinical and Community Psychology at Exeter University in the UK in 2008. After working in Portsmouth and London in the UK, he moved to Sydney in 2014. As well as working in private practice in Sydney, Nunzio has worked at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital Pain Management Centre and at the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse Hospital.
Nunzio operates under the business names Breathing Space Mindfulness and Breathing Space Psychology from the Elite rooms in Bondi Junction. He is very approachable, so feel free to contact him directly or speak to him if you see him around and are interested in how he might be able to help.
His contact details are:
0477 757 296
[email protected]
www.breathingspacemindfulness.com.au
www.breathingspacepsychology.com.au
Dr Charlotte S.H. Johnstone (MBChB, FANZCA, FPMANZCA) is a pain medicine expert and anaesthetist with 12 years of experience managing pain.
Dr Johnstone is a Senior Staff Specialist in Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. She is also an Examiner and Supervisor of Training at the Faculty of Pain Medicine Australia and New Zealand College of Anaesthetist (FPMANZCA), and is a Member of the FPMANZCA curriculum redesign committee. Dr Johnstone is a Conjoint Senior Lecturer at the University of New South Wales.
Dr Johnstone is highly skilled in most pain management procedures and she has an extra fellowship from the Faculty of Interventional Pain Practitioners.
Some of Dr Johnstone’s publications include:
Dr Johnstone advocates a multidisciplinary approach to chronic pain management and views pain as a whole person issue. She believes managing pain is a dynamic, positive and rewarding process.
Jordan is a wonderful Physiotherapist with a passion for all spine related disorders. He is particularly interested in treating the thoracic spine, neck pain and headaches. He also has a wealth of experience in treating lower back pain and SIJ dysfunction. He has a strong interest in golf and how improving the mechanics of the spine can optimise your performance on the golf course.
Jordan is one of those Physios that absolutely loves his work and thrives on helping people get better and achieve their goals. He enjoys assisting clients with their post-operative rehabilitation as he has a very reassuring personality.
With his dad being a Podiatrist, Jordan is very talented at assessing how the feet can be affecting the spine. Jordan has also completed post graduate training in dry needling, Pilates, shoulder rehabilitation and advanced lumbar spine and thoracic assessment.
