Why “Physio Clinician”?

Gday,

My name is Nick Ilic, I’m a registered Physiotherapist who is passionate about his Patients and his job, and I’m running a little experiment.

I am sometimes told by patients and other healthcare referrers (GPs, EPs etc.) that I “do things differently” to other Physios they’ve seen, but I sincerely hope not, because I’ve always thought what I do is simply what a “Good Physio” is meant to do.

What do I do during an appointment? You can read about a typical appointment by selecting here.

I’m disappointed for many Patients with pain and injury out there who’ve had previous low-quality experiences with Physiotherapy. Many of my patients who’ve seen other Physios report they simply don’t know what to expect anymore when seeing a Physiotherapist as they’ve had such different experiences every time.

Here are some real comments I’ve heard recently both in the clinic and outside of it in conversations with people who find out I’m a Physio:

“Hey, you’re a Physio right? Bloody hell you guys are expensive, I saw this guy near me and it cost me $130 and all I got was a thigh rub…. And he wanted me to come back again!”

“Are you a Physio? ….That’s great! I have the best Physio, they are so good, I’ve seen them every 2 weeks for the past 5 years because they are the best at getting into my glutes, they’ve started using dry needles now too!”

“I’ve tried Physiotherapy, they made me book in 4 times over the first 2 weeks, but it didn’t really work for me.”

To combat this I’ve decided to be up front and tell patients what to expect when they see me by creating “Physio Clinician Standards” on my website, and by working hard to meet those standards as much as possible, as often as possible, my Patients (and their referrers such as GPs, Surgeons etc) have been extremely satisfied and surprised at the quality of healthcare that results.

For the general public, it can be hard to ‘read between the lines’ whilst to trying to research the websites and staff bios from the many Physiotherapy clinics in their area. Which Physio has Rehab experience? Which does Reiki on all their Patients? Is the Physio who works in Elite Sport as good as the Physio who doesn’t? Is the one with more Instagram followers and funny posts better than the one without a social media account? Which Physio can I see on a weekly basis to do “physio massage” and release my “tight upper traps”?

For those Patients directly seeking what I list in my standards my use of this brand ‘Physio Clinician’ is a guarantee that when they choose to see me they will get those standards. They are the standards of a Clinician who uses Clinical Skills to provide patient-centred (healthcare customised to the Patient and their goals) and evidence-based (high quality evidence) healthcare services.

Patients not seeking that type of service can then be informed and then choose to see someone else, or another type of provider such as a Massage Therapist. Not only is it important to be up-front about Standards and Modus Operandi for the patient, but also for Referrers (such as GPs, Specialists, Exercise Physiologists etc.), many of whom also find it difficult to know which Physio does what and what they subscribe to.

Additionally, this rebrand will help answer the common question “does Nick see normal patients as well as tennis players?”, as I have previously worked under the brand ‘The Tennis Physio’, and the rebrand will have a website as a reference for previous patients to give to friends/family/colleagues as assistance when they try to communicate how I operate a little differently to what they’ve had in the past. Finally, this rebrand gives me a place to publish my non-tennis thoughts/opinions/experiences of clinical musculoskeletal healthcare so I can share them with whoever is interested, as well as my patients.

I look forward to the challenge of continuing to apply those standards every day as consistently as possible to contribute to a shifting of the public perception of Physiotherapy in a positive manner and away from old clichés, to improve Patient self-efficacy and also to meet my public health duty as a Healthcare Professional to help reduce healthcare burden.

Warm Regards,

Nick Ilic

Physio Clinician

Registered Physiotherapist

Healthcare Professional