Dr Jon Ford

Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist, Clinical and Managing Director, Associate Professor of Physiotherapy

PhD, MPhysio, BAppSc(Physio), CredMDT

Clinics: Boronia, Dandenong 

In the early 90s whilst lecturing at The University of Melbourne Jon began developing evidence-based treatment models for people with back pain.  He subsequently established Spinal Management Clinics (part of the LifeCare group) which became one of the leading providers of physiotherapy and multi-disciplinary pain management programs in Australia.

In 2014 to enable a greater focus on improving clinical quality and research, Jon with the practitioners below, purchased and rebranded the clinics as Advance Healthcare.  Jon continues his academic work as the head of the LaTrobe University, Low Back Pain Research Team at The School of Physiotherapy.  Jon's clinical and research interest is the diagnosis and treatment of difficult and/or persistent low back pain.  He is also the Team Leader of the Boronia multi-disciplinary Pain Management program.  Jon speaks fluent German.

Dr Prem Chopra

Consultant Psychiatrist

MBBS, MSc, MP, MD, FRANZCP, AFRACMA

Clinics: Bundoora, Boronia

Dr Prem Chopra graduated from The University of Melbourne in 1993 and completed postgraduate training at St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne. His subspecialty interests include: Chronic pain management, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Transcultural mental health, Refugee mental health, and Integrative medicine. He has been actively involved in teaching, research and has numerous scientific publications. He also consults at the Barbara Walker Centre for Pain Management at St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne and at Foundation House. 

Dr Navid Hamedani

Pain Medicine Fellow

MD, FRACGP, FAMAC

Clinics: Boronia, Dandenong

Dr Hamedani has a keen interest in the management of patients with persistent pain conditions and is familiar with the impact of pain on patients, their family and ability to work. This has been a key motivation for his training in the subspecialty of pain medicine, with the ultimate goal of providing a better quality of life for his patients. 

Dr Hamedani has previously worked at MetroSouth Persistent Pain Management Service in Brisbane and as a senior lecturer at the University of Queensland Medical School. He has completed training in pain medicine in public and private pain centres, working with pain rehabilitation and intervention teams to ensure that his patients receive high quality holistic care for acute and/or chronic pain problems.

Aidan Rich

APA Sports Physiotherapist

BPhysio, MSportsPhysio

Clinic: Boronia

Aidan's post-graduate qualifications in Sports Medicine enable him to educate the patient regarding the nature of their diagnosis, as well as empower them with the best methods to return to their normal level of function as soon as possible. This is achieved with a Sports Medicine model, a rehabilitation focus and adjunctive methods such as joint mobilisation, massage and shockwave therapy for specific situations.

Aidan has a particular interest in hip, groin and tendon pain. Additionally, he enjoys treating injuries in runners and triathletes as this is where his own sporting interests lie.

Working across two multidisciplinary clinics, Aidan has experience working with a wide variety of medical professionals, such as sports physicians, podiatrists and orthopaedic surgeons. This enables him to stay up to date with the latest treatment modalities and innovations to enable patients to recover as quickly as possible and prevent further injuries.

Dr Luke Surkitt

APA Pain Physiotherapist

PhD, BPhysio, Cred MDT, APAM

Clinics: Boronia, Dandenong

Luke commenced working as a physiotherapist for our group in 1997. Since then, he has developed experience in treating a wide variety of musculoskeletal conditions with a particular interest in acute and chronic spinal pain. Luke has completed a PhD on the treatment of low back pain using the McKenzie approach. He is the author or co-author of several research articles on low back pain published in physiotherapy and medical journals. Luke is a Credentialed McKenzie practitioner and has also achieved the title of APA Pain Physiotherapist.

Luke is a member of the multidisciplinary Network Pain Management team at Advance Healthcare Boronia (Team Leader) and Dandenong. He also works part-time at La Trobe University teaching evidence-based practice and research skills to final year physiotherapy students as well as post-graduate students in the Masters of Musculoskeletal and Sports Physiotherapy programs.

Scott Cameron

Podiatrist

BAppSci(Pod), MAPodA, FAAPSM

Clinic: Boronia

Scott is a Clinical Podiatrist who has had a keen interest in Musculoskeletal medicine for over 20 years.  Scott enjoys working with people of all ages with foot or leg pain, and since graduating from Lincoln Institute of Health Science, has worked mainly in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, in private practice.  Scott's interest in gait analysis for all ages, encouraged his involvement that uses gait analysis assessment as part of it's footwear assessment process.

Charlotte Huerta

Physiotherapist

BSc(Hons) Physiotherapy

Clinic: Boronia

Charlotte qualified as a physiotherapist in 2001 at the University of Southampton in the UK.  Since completing her training Charlotte has gained experience working in large hospitals in the South of England where she developed her skills in treating a wide range of musculoskeletal conditions.  Over time she developed an interest in persistent pain and started to specialise in treating persistent pain conditions as part of a multi-disciplinary team. Charlotte commenced working at Advance Healthcare in 2015.

Scott Bednarz

Physiotherapist

BPhysio

Clinic: Boronia

Scott graduated from Monash University with a Bachelor of Physiotherapy in 2013 and has been treating patients in a private practice setting since. Over this time he has developed a keen interest in pain science and the treatment of persistent low back pain, which is why he is very excited to be part of the team at Advance Healthcare.

Scott enjoys working with his patients to help them set and achieve challenging and rewarding goals. He also enjoys teaching and mentoring and is keen to develop this to one day work at a University level.

Outside of the clinic Scott enjoys playing guitar and piano, as well as teaching his dog, Ollie, new tricks. Scott is also a keen traveler and is slowly ticking places of his list.

Joon Choi

Clinical Psychologist

BSc(Hons), MSc, PgDipClPs

Clinics: St Albans, Boronia, Bundoora

Joon completed his Clinical Psychology training in New Zealand and has wide-ranging experience working in Health, Forensic, and Community settings across a number of different population groups.  This has involved clinical roles in assessment and therapy, both as a lead clinician and as part of a wider multi-disciplinary team.  Joon has a strong adherence to evidence-based practice in psychological assessment and treatment, based on a firm grounding in Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT).  Joon prioritises client engagement with strong interpersonal skills, guided by an underlying commitment to responsive and empathic practice.

Joanna Paterson

Clinical Psychologist

BA(Hons), MPsych(Clin)

Clinics: Boronia, Dandenong

Joanna is a registered psychologist and has experience working in hospital settings as well as in private practice.  Joanna has an interest in persistent pain and adjustment issues, and uses a variety of evidence based therapies to help her clients achieve their therapy goals. Therapy modalities may include Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Schema Therapy, and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT).

Joanna has sound clinical skills in the assessment and treatment of a variety of concerns, including mood and anxiety disorders, adjustment disorder, pain, trauma, grief, and personality disorder.

Joanna has a warm and empathetic style and strives to provide clients with a safe and non-judgemental space in which to explore their thoughts and concerns.

Kirsten Stower

Physiotherapist

BPhysio, APAM

Clinics: Dandenong, Boronia

Kirsten graduated in 2010 with a Bachelor of Physiotherapy from the University of Queensland. Since then she has worked in private practice in both Australia and England, where she has treated a variety of patients, including those with acute sporting injuries and persistent pain.

Kirsten believes in a holistic approach to patient care, placing great importance on active rehabilitation and education towards long-term self-management. Kirsten enjoys working within a multidisciplinary team to assist patients with persistent pain in developing the necessary skills to empower them to achieve optimal health and happiness. In order to ensure her patients receive the best evidence-based treatment, Kirsten commenced her Master of Science in Medicine (Pain Management) at the University of Sydney in 2017.

Alongside persistent pain, Kirsten has an interest in treating patients with shoulder, knee or running injuries.

When Kirsten isn’t at the clinic she enjoys hiking in the Dandenong ranges, wakeboarding, running and practicing yoga.