Clinic Lead – Clinical Pilates

After 15 years of intensive dance training and working as on osteopath, Kim was looking for a pro-active way to help people manage their conditions.   “Pilates was the perfect fit.”

Rather than “treat” conditions, Kim says Pilates improves movement and helps to relieve pain.  “I work to help people overcome their back and neck pain, manage restrictions with arthritis, rehabilitate joint injuries,  improve balance, build strength and increase bone mass in osteoporosis.  I also love keeping people strong throughout their pregnancies and beyond.”

According to Kim, clients are surprised at how easily a problem area can be identified. “We have elite athletes coming in who are very strong and fit but have pain or an injury. We can find a muscle not doing its job properly and they are surprised at how quickly that muscle tires and how we can progress exercises to keep Pilates continually challenging.”

“I love that my clients are very pro-active leading to great, long term results.  There is a huge variety in the people and conditions I see, keeping each class interesting.  I also love getting to know people and hearing about their lives.”

Kim has first-hand knowledge in the role pilates can play in pre and post-natal health but also has extensive experience treating and rehabilitating AFL and dance injuries.

Away from the clinic, Kim enjoys spending time with her three boys and getting involved in sports, activities, camping, and bushwalking.  She also loves walking her dogs.

After 15 years of international competitive Taekwondo, Adele sustained several injuries. “I was always so fascinated by how the human body functions and heals – seemingly myotherapy was the perfect fit.  An enthusiast about health, fitness and being the best version of yourself is a key factor”. 

Adele feels that analysing the main components of people’s everyday lifestyles and interests allows her to identify and provide specialised ways for a specific individual to help aid in strengthening, rehabilitating and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Adele enjoys working with people “to help get them back to the activities they love”.

Adele executes this through a “hands-on approach”, which includes trigger point therapy, dry needling, cupping, myofascial release and treatment of musculoskeletal pain and dysfunction. Adele is a firm believer on educating her clients about their condition and what their recovery process will entail to improve their ability to manage, maintain and overcome their injuries. 

Adele has worked with NICA (National Institute of Circus Australia) and amateur basketball, netball and football leagues across Melbourne. 

In Adele’s spare time, she loves to participate in pilates, rock climbing, hiking, baking and spending time with family and friends.

Studying dancing led to Tahlia Austin’s interest in Osteopathy. “The aches and pains that often led to dancers either pushing their bodies to the extreme or sitting out of dance practice drew me to learn more about the complexities of the human body and pursue my passion of helping people overcome their injuries.”

Tahlia has an holistic approach to treatment, treating the body as a whole and working alongside her patients to achieve optimal health outcomes. “To put it simply, I love Osteopathy because I love helping people achieve both their health and personal goals!”

Throughout her career, Tahlia has worked in a variety of settings including VAFA Premier League football teams, which has given her exposure to a wide variety of acute sporting injuries and from that, the ability to accurately diagnosis and apply effective evidence-based care. “I enjoyed sharing my knowledge on rehabilitation advice and working closely with athletes to get them back onto the field.”

While Tahlia enjoys treating patients from all ages and walks of life, she has developed a passion for working with pain – both acute and chronic. In particular; low back, neck pain and sports related injuries.

“I love working at CSSM as we have built a great team environment, and all strive to provide the best service of care for all our patients.”

Away from the clinic, you’ll find Tahlia outdoors with friends, most likely walking a few laps around the Tan over the weekend. You’ll also find her fuelling her Italian food addiction by going to restaurants around Richmond and South Yarra.

Daniel Skaer was drawn to study Osteopathy through his personal experiences with sporting injuries, a fascination with the science behind the human body and a passion for helping people achieve quality of life.

“The complexity in the human body won’t adapt to change unless you create a change,” he says. “Treating injuries for their causing agents can become a preventative rather than a band-aid approach.”

Daniel is a strong believer in Osteopathy’s philosophy of treating the body as a whole, rather than simply treating the dysfunctional region. “No two patients are the same, which is why it’s so important to work with each patient to create a tailored management plan, empowering them through education and support.”

He prides himself on his ability to communicate and comfort every individual that may find seeking an Osteopath daunting as well as educating patients to help them achieve their goals.

Daniel has a specific interest in chronic pain management, hypermobility dysfunctions and structural strength assistance and uses a range of techniques including soft tissue, manipulation and mobilisation techniques.

Daniel hopes to continue to develop his skillset and contribute to research. He is also currently completing a Diploma in Equine Osteopathy with the London College of Animal Osteopathy.

Away from the clinic, Daniel loves running, going to the gym, travelling, going for walks, working with equine athletes and spending time with friends and family.

Educated at the University of South Australia, Vaughan has gained a wide range of clinical experiences since completing his studies and moving to Melbourne in 1998. Sporting and family commitments helped to shape his core range of clinical interests.
Originally drawn to Podiatry after having his own knee pain cured by orthotic management, Vaughan values how much more enjoyment can be gained from sports when you have no pain associated with playing them. Likewise through watching his three children’s development, Vaughan is determined to minimise any pain associated within childhood development.

Vaughan’s philosophy regarding treatment is to address the cause of the pain biomechanically, and instill a treatment plan that will enhance every patient’s enjoyment of life’s endeavours.

Terence graduated from La Trobe University with a Bachelor of Podiatric Practice. These qualifications, together with an extensive history in sporting footwear retail, underpin Terry’s comprehensive knowledge of feet and footwear. This has given him a broad experience in determining the best footwear choices for each patient.

Terry firmly believes that healthy feet equal a healthy life. As a podiatrist, he has an understanding of the vast range of musculoskeletal injuries that occur in the foot and leg as well as the most appropriate and effective treatment approaches for each individual patient. By assessing the cause of pain and designing a treatment plan to prevent future problems, Terry is motivated to improve every patients’ quality of life.

Whilst knowledgeable in all types of podiatric care, Terry has a particular interest in sport related injuries and the relationship between foot mechanics and performance or injury.

An active sporting background developed a passion for biomechanics, giving Terry the understanding of how injury can impact performance and the importance of an individualised treatment and rehabilitation program.

In his down time, Terry can be found pounding the footpaths training for his next running adventure or playing basketball.  You won’t find him standing still!

Practice Principal & Senior Osteopath

Travis is an Osteopath and the founder of CSSM.

Travis chose osteopathy because he has always liked the hands-on approach to treatment. “That, together with the high level of study and knowledge in areas such as anatomy and movement, which is inherent within the osteopathy program, really excited me.  I had already done four years of study in health before commencing osteopathy and I had the opportunity to do other things.  But I chose to pursue osteopathy, and another five years of study because of the ability of the skills I learnt to help people in a meaningful way.”

Travis enjoys treating most injuries of the “active” person.  “One of the biggest areas of interest is treating teenagers.  There is a perception that kids and teenagers are just little adults – this is a massive misconception. Growing athletes have a unique set of needs.  We are seeing a lot of kids and teens suffering significant injuries from a young age.”  Recent studies have shown that in Australia, the highest increase in knee reconstruction surgery has occurred in teenagers between the ages of 12 and 16. “The impact of that on their future is scary.”

After working at a few other clinics, Travis found that health care suffered from a lack of direction and, CSSM was born. “Osteopathy was a relatively small profession with just a few hundred of us in Australia.  I saw the opportunity to bring osteo to the masses.”

Ever since, Travis has been keen to make osteopathy accessible as a health service that can deliver a patient focussed approach to care, giving meaningful evidence-based treatment and management to patients.

“We started as a one man show, and have grown to a team of over 20.  As part of this growth and expansion we have added a team of other modalities such as physio, podiatry, myotherapy and Pilates to the clinic – a centre of excellence for the management of musculoskeletal injury.”

Travis describes CSSM as an extension of his family. “I am just as passionate about our team and the community we treat as I am about few other things.  Doing what we do and doing it well, is my biggest objective.”

The CSSM philosophy is to provide a level of care that exceeds the norm and ensures the best outcome for patients.  “Our standard appointment is what most other clinics call an extended appointment. It is a source of amusement to us when we see other clinics promote their guarantees of extended care.  From our perspective, you do not need to guarantee it, if it is what is ingrained in you.”

Just as families continue to grow, Travis hopes CSSM will too and continue to serve the community. “As a larger clinic, we are able to offer more specialised services to our patients, such as our running gait analysis and pre-pointe assessments.  We hope to continue to grow this suite of programs (golfers and cyclists stay tuned).  From there, we also hope to spread our reach to other locations when the opportunity presents itself.”

When he’s not working within the Practice, Travis looks forward to catching up on some much needed sleep. “CSSM is all-consuming but nothing is more important than watching my kids do their thing and celebrating their achievements. If I get the time, I do enjoy hitting the trails with some mountain biking and trail running through the Dandenong’s. I love the solitude of being out there working up a sweat, lost in my own thoughts.”

After multiple injuries and different rehab experiences, Julia Meeuwissen found a love and appreciation of myotherapy.

“I like that myotherapy has a holistic approach that empowers and supports people to take responsibility for their own rehabilitation journey and to gain more confidence, trust and respect for their body and its innate capacity to heal and recover.”

With an interest in the human body, anatomy and biomechanics, Julia enjoys treating tendinopathies, tension headaches, neck pain and TMD.

“I have had all of these issues myself so can empathise and share techniques that have helped me. I’d like to further investigate optimal load management strategies for tendinopathies and posture as well as mind-body connection for stress related tension headaches, neck pain and TMD.”

As a myotherapist, Julia hopes to empower patients to live an active and healthy life knowing that injuries can be overcome and aches and pains are part of the journey.

Julia was attracted to the multimodal aspect of CSSM where each practitioner can learn from other modalities to ensure the best outcome for each patient.

“I like CSSM’s philosophy including best practice, patient education and exercise as an integral part of treatment.”

When she’s not working, Julia enjoys going for multiple day hikes, camping, and going to the beach as well as reading fiction, putting on incense and listening to records, or walking her dog Zephyr.