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.
Kate works with surgical and non-surgical patients who have complex spinal problems. She helps guide and support them through their rehabilitation journey. Since qualifying, Kate spent 4 years working as a physiotherapist before taking on an exciting role as a medical sales representative for a spinal implant company for almost 10 years. Her contact with spine surgeons in this capacity inspired her to return to physiotherapy at BackSpace for the last two years. She loves overseas travel, especially to any ski destination! She also enjoys music, running, outdoor activities and food. She has two young girls and a cute French bulldog named Fred.
Alice’s role at BackSpace, is to care for patients immediately after surgery. These patients are closely monitored at Alice’s post-operative appointments in the clinic. She really enjoys the team environment at BackSpace and the collaborative approach to care that helps us work towards better patient outcomes. When she isn’t at work, Alice is usually playing social tennis or netball, or out visiting her family near Stanthorpe. She also loves to draw realistic graphite portraits and livestock from her rural upbringing.
Our exercise physiologists 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 prescribes exercise-based treatments for patients at BackSpace. Her interest in rehabilitation developed following a 15-year career as a gymnast. She graduated from QUT in 2016 and has worked at BackSpace since its opening in 2017. Outside of BackSpace, she also assists with managing her family’s gym and enjoys traveling overseas with friends and family.
Our remedial massage therapists will treat painful and tight areas with massage and stretching, based on the problems identified by the other therapists. They will decrease pain, release muscle tension and release tight tissues to decrease pain and speed up your recovery.
Shani is an experienced Remedial Massage Therapist, incorporating deep tissue massage, sports massage, trigger point therapy, thermos therapy, and myofascial release techniques . Her career in manual therapy started when she worked as a strength and conditioning coach in her native South Africa. After completing a Diploma in Remedial Massage in Brisbane, Shani worked in one of Brisbane’s leading remedial massage and myotherapy practices, where she treated professional athletes from the Wallabies, Qld Reds and Qld Ballet. Being born and raised in South Africa, Shani appreciates Brisbane’s outdoor lifestyle and the natural environment. She is outgoing, active and health-conscious but can be bribed with a donut for anything!
Luke is an experienced Remedial Massage Therapist, having worked in two of Brisbane’s leading practices for 8 years. He has joined BackSpace to further his clinical knowledge of musculoskeletal and neurological conditions and establish relationships with other allied health professionals who have a strong commitment to creating positive interventions for those spinal pain and conditions. Luke’s career goal is to ultimately work in the bionics field to support emerging technologies that focus on neurological conditions. In his spare time, Luke enjoys competing in ultra-marathons, participating in open water swimming competitions and is a self-confessed bad dancer.
Kathleen has been nursing for 12 years and has extensive experience as a Radiology Nurse assisting Radiologists with interventional procedures such as CT guided injections (nerve root blocks and facet joint injections and many more), biopsies, peripheral and central lines, and exercise stress tests. She accepted a nursing position as a Clinical Nurse for Spine Surgeon Dr Paul Licina in 2019 and feels she has found her true calling in the healthcare sector; treating people suffering from all types of spinal conditions. Kathleen’s role at BackSpace involves assessing patients’ conditions, liaising with the Spine Surgeon and Pain Specialists, and coordinating timely treatment plans. This type of nursing sub-specialization in the fields of Radiology and Spine Surgery is rare! BackSpace is fortunate to have such a caring and dedicated nursing professional as part of the team.
Bachelor of Science | QUT
Bachelor of Nutrition and Dietetics | Griffith University (due to graduate in 2023)
Grace joined BackSpace with years of sales and customer service experience. She is currently studying Nutrition and Dietetics at Griffith University with a plan to study medicine in the future. Grace’s extensive experience in varying industries, educational qualifications and her pursuit of a career in healthcare has helped shape the empathetic and caring person she is today. She is the proud stepmother to two beautiful teenage girls, a cat and dog and fiancé to a builder. Grace enjoys yoga and surfing when she steals a minute for herself but finding that minute can sometimes be a little difficult so she fills that void with food which makes her happy – especially cheeseburgers and banana bread.
Bachelor of Business (Marketing)Bachelor of Design (Interaction) | Queensland University of Technology
Scarlett is the Digital Communications Coordinator for Backspace. She is currently studying a dual degree at Queensland University of Technology. As an interaction designer, Scarlett feels it is crucial to maintain a future-thinking mindset within the creative process. As a forward-thinking designer, she feels human-centred design, connectedness and multidisciplinary collaboration are the three key components to consider when designing for our future. In her free time, Scarlett enjoys volunteering with local community groups and spending time with friends and family.
Clare completed her Bachelor of Clinical Exercise Physiology at the Queensland University of Technology in 2018. During Clare’s undergraduate degree and following her graduation, Clare was involved in the development and launch of BackSpace. During this time Clare’s research interests developed, which would see her undertaking a PhD in the spinal rehabilitation field. Clare’s particular interests are in combining behaviour change interventions and exercise after elective spine surgery. Clare assesses functional capacity and health-related quality of life outcomes in patients’ with anxiety, depression, and kinesiophobia prior to surgery. More recently, Clare has started investigating the applicability of functional assessments in patient’s with low back pain, with the objective to develop a functional testing battery that can be administered across different disciplines. She is passionate about exercise for its health benefits and social interaction.
Xanthe completed a Bachelor of Laws at the University of Qld in 2016. After making a decision to change her career and enter the health services sector, Xanthe has also completed a Bachelor of Exercise Science with the view towards 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.
Chelsea completed her Bachelor of Health Sciences in 2018 as part of the Provisional Entry pathway for the Doctor of Medicine Programme at the University of Queensland. She accepted a position to work with Spine Surgeon Dr Paul Licina in his administrative team, designing pathways and protocols for surgical patients. More recently, Chelsea has worked as a Clinical Assistant for Dr Licina, helping patients navigate the surgical journey. This involved the implementation of a data-derived triage process to direct patients with spine pathology to the appropriate clinician. Chelsea’s previous research has focused on fusion rates and patient-reported outcome measures for patients undergoing lumbar fusion surgery with three different bone graft materials. Chelsea’s experience, knowledge and education has proved valuable to the research being conducted at Backspace.
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.
