Physiotherapists

Our physiotherapists are experts in spinal conditions.  They work collaboratively with our medical specialists, exercise physiologists and remedial massage therapists to help achieve the optimal outcome.  Our physiotherapists will assess you, diagnose your problem, and formulate a treatment plan which may include correcting biomechanical abnormalities, modifying your movement patterns, improving your posture and developing guidelines for return to normal activity.

Theres

Physiotherapist

Bachelor of  Exercise and Nutrition Science University of Queensland

Bachelor of Physiotherapy | Australian Catholic University 

Theres treats surgical and non-surgical patients who have complex spinal problems. Her role as a Physiotherapist at Backspace is to make educated clinical assessments and offer suitable treatment options for a range of back and neck conditions.  Together with the rest of the clinical rehabilitation team, Theres helps guide and support patients through their rehabilitation journey.   As a qualified Clinical Pilates instructor, Theres also develops and teaches goal-oriented Pilates programmes to incorporate with other treatment options.

Backspace is very fortunate to have such an experienced and dedicated healthcare professional as part of the team. 

Rebecca

Physiotherapist

Bachelor of Science | University of Queensland 

Masters of Physiotherapy Studies | University of Queensland 

Rebecca joins BackSpace with four years of clinical physiotherapy experience in private practice.  Her primary role at BackSpace is to care for patients who have undergone spine surgery.  Rebecca greets patients immediately after their procedure in the recovery area in hospital then closely monitors every patient’s rehabiliation after surgery as part of the clinical team at post-operative appointments in the clinic.  Rebecca really enjoys the team environment at BackSpace and the collaborative approach to care that helps us work towards better patient outcomes.  Clinical pilates is also an area of physiotherapy that is of particular interest to Rebecca as it allows patients to adopt an active approach to their rehabilitation.

Exercise physiologists

Our exercise physiologists specialize in clinical interventions which are exercise-based, provide education, advice and support.  There is a strong focus on achieving behavioural change.  They will look at your lifestyle and goals, and design an exercise programme taking into account the physiotherapy recommendations. They will prescribe the right exercises, show you how to do them and monitor your progress during your recovery.

    

Felicity

Exercise Physiologist

Bachelor of Clinical Exercise Physiology | Queensland University of Technology

Felicity is a founding clinician at Backspace and our senior Exercise Physiologist with 5 years of specialized experience in treating patients with back pain and rehabilitation after spine surgery or injury.  Outside of BackSpace, she also assists with managing her family’s gym and enjoys traveling overseas with friends and family.

    

Matthew

Exercise Physiologist

Bachelor of Clinical Exercise Physiology | Queensland University of Technology

Masters of Philosophy in Exercise Physiology | Queensland University of Technology (to be completed 2024)

Matt is an ESSA Accredited Exercise Physiologist with 15 years of experience delivering personal, group, corporate and community health services for diverse patient populations. He is skilled and experienced in multidisciplinary and multimodal rehabilitative and preventative settings.   Matt joins the Backspace clinical team with a commitment to delivering high quality, evidence-based, person-centred clinical care and outcomes to patients in musculoskeletal and chronic pain rehabilitation. 

 

Massage therapists

Our remedial massage therapists are trained to provide specialized treatment for all spinal conditions.  They will treat painful and tight areas with massage, stretching cupping, and dry needling, working collaboratively with our physiotherapists and exercise physiologists. They will decrease pain, release muscle tension and release tight tissues to decrease pain and speed up your recovery.

Julian

Remedial Massage Therapist

Diploma of Remedial Massage / Australian Natural Therapies Association

Bachelor of Psychological Science /  Queensland University of Technology (due to be completed 2025)

Julian has joined BackSpace with the highest praise for his skills as a Remedial Massage Therapist.  He specialises in assessment, treatment, and management of soft tissue injury, pain, and dysfunction of the musculoskeletal system. Having worked as a hands-on-therapist, clinical director and lecturer in areas of remedial massage and soft-tissue therapy, Julian is passionate about health and fitness viewed through a bio-psycho-social lens.  This passion has evolved into further study to obtain qualifications as a Clinical Psychologist.

Luan

Remedial Massage Therapist

Bachelor of Physiotherapy / Veiga de Almeida University, Rio de Janeiro

Diploma of Remedial Massage Therapy /  The Australian College of Eastern Medicine

Advanced Diploma of Myotherapy / Mastery Institute Australia (due to be completed in 2025)

Luan joins Backspace with an impressive knowlege of the human body, having practiced as a Physiotherapist for many years in his native Brasil.  His area of special interest is Orthopaedic trauma and sports injury rehabilitation.  Moving to Australia has meant that Luan must complete further studies to receive accreditation to practice as a Physiotherapist in Australia.   As he works towards this goal, he has obtained qualifications in Remedial Massage Therapy and completing additional studies in Myotherapy.  Luan’s knowledge and experience add to the already expert team of practitioners at Backspace who together possess extensive skills in helping patients with back and neck issues.

 

Mirko

Remedial Massage Therapist

Diploma of Remedial Massage Therapy /  Australian Learning Group

Clinical Pilates Instructor, Level 3 / Pilates Institute of Queensland

Backspace welcomes Mirko to the dedicated Backspace team of practitioners.   Mirko has extensive experience working in multi-disciplinary healthcare environments as a Remedial Massage Therapist and Clinical Pilates Instructor, working to achieve optimum results for his patients.  He is a passionate sportsman who enjoys marathons and an avid traveler.

 

Clinical Nurse

As part of medical professional team, our nurse is the liaison between our medical specialists and our allied health professionals.  She is involved in the assessment and management of your condition.

Calli

Clinical Nurse

Bachelor of Nursing | University of Sunshine Coast

Calli is responsible for the medical assessment and clinical management of patients presenting to Backspace with back and neck pain.  She liaises with the clinical rehabilitation team to help patients navigate their journey to wellness, ensuring they feel supported and comfortable during every step of the process.  Her role also involves communicating with all medical specialists and hospital health care professionals to ensure a smooth transition to whatever treatment patients require and in a timely manner. 
Calli is a perfect choice to perform this role, coming from 12 months of experience working with Dr Paul Licina as his Clinical Assistant where she gained valuable knowledge and experience helping patients with back and neck concerns.  

Administration Team

Kathleen

Clinic Coordinator

Bachelor of Nursing  | Australian Catholic University

Kathleen brings twelve years of diverse and patient-centric nursing experience to BackSpace.  The last 5 years have been spent working for Dr Paul Licina, Spine Surgeon as his Clinical Nurse.  In that role, Kathleen dealt with surgical patients and those suffering from chronic back pain.  The management of these patients under the guidance and expertise of Dr Licina, has meant that the spine knowledge acquired by Kathleen is very valuable for this administrative role. This expertise in all conditions of the spine, together with her compassion and kindness, means that patients will indeed be looked after and nurtured expertly through their rehabilitation process.

 

Florina joins BackSpace with over two years of experience as a Dental Assistant, a job she undertook whilst studying. Florina is currently completing a Bachelor of Exercise and Sports Science at the Australian Catholic University. Her role at BackSpace involves welcoming patients to the clinic, accommodating practitioner needs and maintaining the clinic, amongst other administrative duties. Her enthusiasm and friendly demeanour is uplifting for both patients and her co-workers, and allows for her to form meaningful connections. 

Florina

Clinic Assistant

Bachelor of Exercise and Sports Science  | Australian Catholic University

Florina joins BackSpace with over two years of experience as a Dental Assistant, a job she undertook whilst studying. Florina is currently completing a Bachelor of Exercise and Sports Science at the Australian Catholic University. Her role at BackSpace involves welcoming patients to the clinic, accommodating practitioner needs and maintaining the clinic, amongst other administrative duties. Her enthusiasm and friendly demeanour is uplifting for both patients and her co-workers, and allows for her to form meaningful connections. 

 

 

Natasha

Administrative Coordinator

Bachelor of Psychological Science | Bond University

Bachelor of Psychological Science (Honours) | Bond University (to be completed 2023)

Natasha is a founding team member of Backspace and responsible for the administrative processes that are so important in the clinical care of patients.  Her role involves the regular analysis of administrative processes to ensure that clinicians and management are able to perform their roles optimally.  Natasha also coordinates the clinical placements for university students who rotate through Backspace.  Another aspect of this task for Natasha is to ensure that Backspace’s philosophy of nurturing students of health sciences and encouraging professional development of its team members is maintained to the highest standard.  Natasha’s career goal is to become a practicing Clinical Psychologist in the field of Child Psychology after the completion of her Honours and Masters qualifications.  Natasha is also fascinated by the psychology of pain and how it can be applied in the management of pain in everyday life.  Her insight in this field makes her a valuable and treasured member of the Backspace team.

Research Team

Patrick

Clinical Research Coordinator

Bachelor of Exercise & Sports Science (Honours) | University of the Sunshine Coast (to be completed in 2023)

Masters of Clinical Exercise Physiology | Australian Catholic University (to be completed in 2024)

Patrick leads the research team at BackSpace and coordinates all the current research projects. He is currently working very hard to complete his studies and intends to gain acceptance into the post-graduate Bachelor of Medicine degree with a desire to become a doctor. His role involves liaising with medical professionals, allied health professionals, research participants, university research departments, and spinal implant companies. Another key aspect of Patrick’s role is the presentation of the team’s research at medical conferences around Australia and the world. This has led to wonderful travel and professional development opportunities.

Among other projects, Patrick heads the research team currently studying the Reactiv8 system which is an implantable neurostimulation system that uses a new rehabilitative therapy that stimulates the nerves of the muscle directly responsible for stabilising your lumbar spine. The therapy is designed to restore lumbar muscle control and aims to interrupt the back’s cycle of pain, degeneration, and loss of function.

 

Matthew

Clinical Researcher

Bachelor of Clinical Exercise Physiology | Queensland University of Technology

Masters of Philosophy in Exercise Physiology | Queensland University of Technology (to be completed 2024)

In addition to joining the Backspace team of treating clinicians, Matt has also dedicated his professional life to education and research in his field.  He currently holds a position as an academic Tutor and Assessor for Musculoskeletal, Neurological & Occupational Disorders, AEP Business Practice, and 4th Year Practicum at QUT.  Matt brings to the research team further studies in advanced research skills, critical evaluation of information and effective management of information and research data, and a special interest in returning patients to functional capacity post-orthopaedic surgery, as well as the neuroscience of pain.

 

Rachel

Clinical Researcher

Bachelor of Physiotherapy | University of Queensland (to be completed 2024)

Whilst Rachel is currently completing her studies in Physiotherapy, she is working hard to be accepted into a post-graduate degree of Bachelor of Medicine soon. Rachel is passionate about health and wellness and possesses an empathetic nature that is suited to the healthcare industry. She is also the very definition of a person who is competent at multi-tasking. These qualities are both valuable and necessary in Rachel’s role as part of the research team and the Backspace administration team.

Rachel is a member of the research team currently studying the Reactiv8 system which is an implantable neurostimulation system that uses a new rehabilitative therapy that stimulates the nerves of the muscle directly responsible for stabilising your lumbar spine. The therapy is designed to restore lumbar muscle control and aims to interrupt the back’s cycle of pain, degeneration, and loss of function.

 

Megan

Clinical Researcher

Bachelor of Biomedical Science | University of Queensland

Megan joined the research team with a keen interest in clinical research and the opportunities it provides for further medical study. She is passionate about healthcare and is working hard to secure a position in the post-graduate degree of Bachelor of Medicine in the near future. Apart from research, Megan performs varied administrative roles at BackSpace, as well as that of Clinical Assistant to Dr Paul Licina at SpinePlus. This gives Megan a deep understanding of back pain, surgical options and rehabilitation. Her knowledge of all aspects of a patient’s journey to wellness make her a valuable member of the research team.

 

Xanthe

Clinical Researcher

Bachelor of Laws (Honours) | University of Queensland

Bachelor of Exercise and Sports Science | Griffith University

Masters of Physiotherapy | University of Queensland (to be completed 2025)

After making a decision to change her career from Law and enter the health services sector, Xanthe has also completed a Bachelor of Exercise Science with the view toward completing a Masters in Physiotherapy. She has always been interested in human movement and injury rehabilitation. The satisfaction of helping people recover from injury and the learning opportunities that each person offers explains why Xanthe was drawn to clinical research.

Among other projects, Patrick heads the research team currently studying the Reactiv8 system which is an implantable neurostimulation system that uses a new rehabilitative therapy that stimulates the nerves of the muscle directly responsible for stabilising your lumbar spine. The therapy is designed to restore lumbar muscle control and aims to interrupt the back’s cycle of pain, degeneration, and loss of function.

Spine specialists

We are affiliated with SpinePlus, a group of medical specialists who treat spinal disorders. They include Dr Paul Licina, Spine Surgeon, Dr Brendan Moore, Specialist Pain Physician, Dr Ben Manion, Specialist Rehabilitation Physician, Dr Sami Ahmad, Specialist Pain Physician and Dr Angus Forbes, Occupational Specialist Physician.

         

 

 

Get your life back at BackSpace

Our BackSpace team have expertise in all conditions of the spine and
can facilitate the right treatment for your problem.

Contact us now Call 1300 222 577

BackSpace

Brisbane Private Hospital
Level 7, 259 Wickham Terrace, Brisbane, QLD 4000

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