5 MINUTES WITH INTERVIEW facilitating groups. I have also been How did you become involved status. Our interventions are for people involved in project work, recently with SMA? with acute, sub-acute or chronic medical assisting with the setup of a new conditions, injuries or disabilities. hydrotherapy group and have also As part of my exercise and sport science been involved in the development of degree, I was required to complete a I spend the bulk of my time consulting a program specific to oncology clients. placement with ‘apparently healthy’ one-on-one. Initially, this means an clientele. I arranged a placement at the assessment of the client and developing What is your favourite aspect Oakleigh Chargers Football Club (U18 a plan. As clients come with such different of your job? TAC Cup) and through this placement, histories and experiences, it’s hard to was asked to complete the course generalise what I do with my clients. It to become a Sports Trainer, which is rarely just one thing a client will come Being an Exercise Physiologist is I completed with SMA. I have been in with, so we need to consider all the extremely rewarding. It can sometimes a member since – and have just hit biopsychosocial aspects of their life and be hard to explain in words. I am so 10 years of membership! how it affects them. Some will need a few grateful that I have the opportunity toi one-on-one exercise sessions to learn an have a positive effect on the quality of What do you think the benefit exercise program with my support and life of my clients, and each client is so of being a SMA member providesencouragement, which will assist them different. I see clients that are super to be able to complete this independently. motivated and just need a guiding hand especially within your field? Others have different priorities and to make sure the exercise they are doing sometimes I will refer on before we is going to help, and I see clients that The accessibility to professional tackle exercise as an intervention. Some feel lost, but they leave my consult with development opportunities have been might be suitable for a group exercise positivity and a hopeful mindset. Formingthe most useful, but publications such asintervention, and at Link we facilitate rapport and a therapeutic alliance with Sport Health magazine have also been our own groups, plus refer into local clients is integral to being able to make important in keeping me up-to-date withgroups. I spend a couple of half-days per a true difference. I am part of a fantastic current research, and what is happeningweek facilitating different groups, and the multidisciplinary team, and a lot of our within SMA at state level and nationally. rest of the time on projects, professional clients will be seeing more than one development and making sure I’m on clinician, so working with other team Describe your role as an Exercisetop of everything! members to get the best out of our Physiologist at Link Health clients is amazing. Also – team lunches; How did you come to be in who doesn’t love team lunches! & Community? this role? What has been the highlight ofAn Exercise Physiologist is trained so your career? that they have the knowledge, skills As I mentioned earlier, I am only new and competencies to design, deliver to working at Link Health & Community. and evaluate safe and effective exercise I started at the same time as another There’s not one thing that completely interventions. Pathologies that we can Exercise Physiologist, and before we stands out for me as a highlight of my service include cardiovascular, metabolic,commenced, there were only two career, but something that I have been neurological, musculoskeletal, cancers, Exercise Physiologists, working out of very proud of is managing to juggle kidney, respiratory and mental health, two of the four Link sites. Now we have working full-time and raising a clever in addition to any other conditions for the exercise physiology services available and cheeky 2-year-old! which there is evidence that exercise canat all sites; increasing the accessibility to be of benefit and improve a client’s clinicalclients. I see real benefits in water-based VOLUME 36 • ISSUE 3 2018 5