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.

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

Alicia firmly believes that healthy feet equal a healthy life. As a podiatrist, she 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, Alicia is motivated to improve every patients’ quality of life.

When not at CSSM, Alicia works in Monash Health, in an acute podiatry setting with a clinical focus on wound assessment and treatment as well as managing lower limb diabetic complications.

Whilst knowledgeable in all types of podiatric care, Alicia 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 Alicia the understanding of how injury can impact performance and the importance of an individualised treatment and rehabilitation program.

In her down time, Alicia can be found pounding the footpaths training for her next running adventure or playing Aussie Rules, netball or punching out a Pilates class with her friends.  You won’t find her standing still!

Senior Pilates Instructor

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.

Myotherapist & Remedial Massage

17 years of dance training, 12 years of tennis and 7 years of competitive rock climbing fuelled Kelsey’s interest in sport and associated injuries. “I’d always been interested in health and fitness and Myotherapy was a great transition from Personal Training into the treatment and rehabilitation of a lot of the issues I saw in the gym. It came with a stronger understanding of the human body.”

While sport is her passion, Kelsey believes that creating solid foundations of strength and rehabilitation are key components in maintaining a healthy lifestyle, whether you work in an office or as an elite athlete. “Having participated in a fair few sports over the years it’s given me a better understanding of the demands the body can be put through, the movements required to succeed and the difficult task of taking time away from the sport you love when injured.”

Kelsey employs a hands-on approach when treating muscular pains and joint dysfunction, complementing treatment outcomes with modalities such as cupping, dry needling, trigger point therapy, and taping. “Shoulder joint issues really fascinate me because they can be unpredictable and complex. I really enjoy the process of breaking down why the injury has occurred in the first place and rehabilitating the joint structures.”

Kelsey believes we never stop learning and is currently studying physiotherapy. “I’m keen to incorporate my myotherapy knowledge into what I’m learning as a student physiotherapist. I don’t want to abandon my myotherapy roots, but use them to better my outlook and understanding of treatment and rehabilitation.”

Away from work, Kelsey is an avid participator in rock climbing and has competed in both state and national events. “I can also be a great couch potato when I need some down time and enjoy meeting up with friends.”

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.”

Senior Osteopath

Alice initially studied nursing before her interests diverted to Osteopathy. “I quickly realised that nursing wasn’t for me, but I enjoyed healthcare. I did a bit of investigating and found that osteopathy gave me the opportunity to work autonomously, stay in health care and chat all day!”

Studying, performing and competing as a ballet dancer from a very early age has given Alice a unique perspective and keen interest in dance and other sports related injuries and rehabilitation.

“I have a strong interest in Women’s Health particularly pregnancy and post-partum related back and pelvic pain which formed the focus of my Master’s Project. The management of headaches is something that I also have a keen interest in, it can be life changing to get headaches under control.”

Away from CSSM, Alice sits on the Occupational Health leadership committee for Osteopathy Australia. “I feel that I’m doing my part to promote Osteopathy in Australia, and to develop the profession moving forwards. My hope for Osteopaths is that there will be a broad range of job prospects and that the community will see more osteopaths outside of private practice such as in  sporting clubs, hospitals and workplaces. It’s a fabulous profession. Watch this space!”

After 15 years of international competitive Taekwondo, I 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.

An enthusiastic sportsperson, Monique played soccer for 16 years at premier league division as a goal keeper but has now traded in her gloves for her love of Pilates. As a nationally qualified Myotherapist, Remedial Massage Therapist and Pilates instructor; Monique understands the importance of both injury prevention and rehabilitation from a practitioner and patient point of view. ” I love trying to understand how the human body moves and works and I love helping people experience over-all good health and well-being.”

Combining assessment with evidence based treatment plans to strengthen the body using exercises, Monique is able to formulate the right approach to overcome a range of ailments including acute injuries, chronic pain management and general maintenance.

As a myotherapist, Monique is often asked how it differs to remedial massage. Most people know that remedial massage is one component in a myotherapist’s training, however fewer people realise that myotherapists are Independent Allied Health Practitioners, who treat many of the same conditions regularly seen in community settings by osteopaths and physiotherapists. “Myotherapists, like remedial massage therapists, are highly skilled in the use of massage to reduce tension and pain in the body’s muscles, ligaments, tendons and fascia. However, this is where a remedial therapists skills stop. Myotherapists also utilise a wide range of additional manual therapy techniques including. joint mobilisation, muscle energy techniques, myofascial manipulation and release, positional release techniques and assisted PNF stretching.”

Monique understands that treatment doesn’t have to be about ‘no pain no gain’ – massage doesn’t have to be painful to work well. “So much of helping an individual can be achieved just through touch but I also like that we have multiple methods in our tool box to help our clients correct movement imbalances and treat musculoskeletal function problems.”

Monique has a special interest in the management and rehabilitation of hypermobility, chronic pain and pelvic dysfunctions. She enjoys treating clients of all ages and athletic ability, especially elite athletes, weekend warriors and kids who are honing their skills on their way to elite level performance.

Clinical Pilates is one of Monique’s secret weapons to help all her clients return to their activities of daily living and sport.

She is also passionate about the use of dry needling to assist with local muscular pain and improving function through trigger points. Using a fine filament needle inserted into the center of a myofascial trigger point, blood pools around the needle triggering the contracted muscle fibers to relax by providing those fibers with fresh oxygen and nutrients, as well as by flushing away any additional acidic chemicals. This, in turn, leads to the decompression of the local blood and nerve supply. “I use dry needling to aid in releasing myofascial trigger points (muscle knots in any part of the body) that’s often too painful for the client to release using manual therapy techniques.” 

When not working, Monique likes to hone her Pilates skills, spend time with her long fur child Hugo (the dachshund) and watching EPL at 2am with her partner.

Nicole always knew she wanted to work in health care.

“I was involved in competitive dancing and acrobatic gymnastics from a very young age and was injured quite often growing up. I found that I had the best outcomes when seeing an osteopath. My osteopath gave me the confidence and education I needed to help me get back into training much quicker, and improve my performance.”

“I also noticed that other family members who were suffering from a range of conditions including chronic lower back pain found amazing results from osteopaths, which really improved the quality of their life.”

An RMIT graduate with Distinction in December 2019, Nicole is also a qualified pilates instructor and has previously worked at the RMIT health clinic and Coburg and Manningham football clubs as a sports trainer.

“I love that as osteopaths, we can help our patients to overcome challenges, achieve their goals and return to the activities they love doing the most.  I also love that we help our patients understand their pain through education, therefore empowering and motivating them to take the steps necessary to become healthier and happier.”

With an interest in treating athletes, Nicole enjoys helping her clients get back into training and competing post injury as well as treating the lower limb, including lower back and pelvic pain.

“I would love to learn more about injury prevention and improving sporting performance especially in dancers and gymnasts in the future, and I am also interested in learning more about pre/post-natal treatment, and how I can incorporate pilates into the rehabilitation and management of these patients.”

As part of a multidisciplinary clinic, Nicole is looking forward to developing as an osteopath. “I love that we can consult with one another to help patients achieve better outcomes and allow them to reach their goals quicker.”

On weekends, you’ll find Nicole at Inverloch where she enjoys spending time at the beach with friends and family. She loves taking pilates classes and playing tennis as well as taking her pet groodle called Bear on long walks. In the future, Nicole hopes to continue her love of travelling with a visit to South Africa.