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Dear Colleagues
Welcome to the Winter 2023 newsletter.
It’s been a busy few months with the delivery of the Annual Education weekend and the AGM. The new Board is in place and our 2023 courses are fully underway with a mix of well attended face to face and online offerings, and, plenty more to come in the second half of the year.
I’d like to remind all members that you continue to get a significant discount off the listed price of all Part A-E courses. Continuing your MDT education (Associate Members) or re-taking a course (Full Members) is a great way to stay up to date with the latest MDT theory, practical and research material, and, collect MDT CPD points to help you maintain your listing on the Clinician Locator.
I also encourage you to consider submitting a case study for the newsletter. Our feedback shows case studies are one of the most widely read sections of the newsletter. Clinicians like reading about real life scenarios! Writing up a case study is a fantastic reflective learning opportunity, attracts MDT CPD points and AHPRA CPD time, and, helps others to learn from your experience. If you’ve got an idea for a case study, please get in touch via the Contact Us section of the website or by emailing: education@mckenzieinstituteaustralia.org
And as always, if you’re looking for more education from the convenience of your own home, you can access the MDT Case Manager, at any time.
Enjoy the coming cold weather and take care.
Mark Cheel
Chairperson / Faculty
P.S. If you’ve seen an interesting or challenging patient recently, we’d love to hear from you and help you put together a case study for a future newsletter. (Case studies published in the newsletter attract MDT CPD points.)
Our AGM was held on Saturday 13 May 2023. Thanks to all who attended. We bid farewell to retiring Directors Emily Armstrong and Peter Schoch. We thank them for their service. We are pleased to announce the following were elected as Directors of MIA:
As per the Constitution, each Director is elected from the conclusion of this year’s AGM until the conclusion of next year’s AGM; at which time they must retire from the Board but are eligible for re-election. Directors can serve up to five consecutive terms on the Board before being required to step down from the Board for at least one year.
Peter was on the Committee / Board of MIA from 2010-2023. He was Chairperson from 2012-2021. Since 2010 he also: established Barwon Health (Geelong) as a venue for the Part A-E courses, Credentialing Exam & Education Weekend, completed the Diploma in MDT, attained teaching Faculty status within MIA / MII, established and coordinates the Diploma MDT clinical placement venue in Geelong, established MIA & MII social media, edits the MIA newsletter, published several peer reviewed MDT case studies, been a co-author of contractile dysfunction research funded by the International Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy Research Foundation (IMDTRF), mentored numerous clinicians through to and beyond Credentialing, and, organised and / or presented at every Education Weekend since 2011. Peter will continue his active involvement with MIA via his Faculty roles.
What an amazing opportunity to be able to attend the recent ‘MDT and the Athlete masterclass’, presented by Greg Lynch.
This was the first time we had heard Greg speak and we were not disappointed. Greg was not only a very knowledgeable and experienced Sports Physiotherapist but also a very engaging and approachable presenter. It was great to hear about some of the latest research on tendinopathies and how this research can be applied using the MDT principles for patients ranging from the weekend warrior to the elite. The content definitely provided us with a deeper understanding of how MDT principles can be applied in the sport setting. We were challenged on our approach to return to sport/activity with many of us admitting our patients return to 80% of function and being discharged, only to present months later with a recurring injury.
The MDT quiz was fun as always, as was the practical sessions which saw participants have the opportunity to test their own athletic prowess (or not, as may be the case!). The breakout groups also provided us the opportunity to apply our newly found knowledge and were a fantastic way to hear other clinicians approaches and thoughts to treating a wide variety of case studies.
The venue was great and we were spoilt for choice for food and drinks whilst being able to take breaks in a lovely, green space. It was an added bonus being located in North Sydney and having access to walk/run along the waterfront and to the many restaurants to relax and unwind at the end of the day.
After a wonderful weekend, we feel empowered to return to work armed with newly found knowledge ready to tackle some of our more ‘challenging’ patients. Even if you don’t regularly work with ‘athletes’, we highly recommend this course for anyone who is interested in applying the principles of loading in safe and effective way to ensure the best possible outcome for their patients.
Carmen Burns & Emily Bradshaw
Cred. MDT
I was happy to finally be able to travel from Perth to Sydney to attend a face-to-face masterclass: MDT and The Athlete on the 25th & 26th March 2023 presented by Greg Lynch.
It was an awesome interactive presentation from Greg, jammed packed with relevant information on the application of MDT not only to high level athletes but also to the rehabilitation process of every patient.
Day 1 discussions included the challenges an MDT practitioner could face when dealing with athletes, the importance of going beyond the MDT assessment form, subjectively and objectively, to thoroughly investigate the needs of the athlete in relation to their sport and the application of MDT to acute trauma.
Objectively we were presented with a number of baseline tests that could be used to determine return to activity and sport. Some of these were pretty tough and only a handful of us were game enough to try them. These tests truly gave an indication of the high level an athlete needs to reach to return to their sport.
The application of everything we were learning was in the form of lots of case studies where we determined how we would assess the athlete, what tests were relevant for them and how we would programme a return to sport schedule for them.
Day 2, the focus was on the key principles of contractile dysfunction and the challenges of returning athletes with this problem to sport. We learnt how to apply 3 key focus points: education, load management and exercise prescription. Again this was a large practical component where we broke up into groups to prepare case studies. I found this interactive component very valuable in my learning and application of a return to sport programme to any patient that requires rehabilitation.
Greg was a great presenter, backing everything up with research and simplifying any difficult concepts, making it realistic to apply.
I would strongly recommend this masterclass to anyone involved in any form of rehabilitation as it provides valuable information for its application at any active level of a patient. It certainly pushed my way of thinking beyond my regular approach with skills that I could immediately bring back to my clinic.
Sandra Jefferies
Cred.MDT
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MRI is often used as a reference standard for trying to identify the source of a patient’s symptoms. However, the correlation between MRI findings and clinical symptoms is often quite poor. Body charts are frequently used to help document where a patient feels their symptoms. Recent literature suggests classic dermatome maps may not be as accurate as previously thought, as there may be considerable overlap between different dermatomal levels.
This study compared patients’ perception of pain location with MRI findings and the clinician’s subsequent interpretation of where the pain might be coming from.
Read the full article (MIA members only) - click here
Monitor the MIA website's Calendar of Events and follow us on social media for details of further courses, as they are released.
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Part C - Advanced Lumbar Spine & Extremities - Lower Limb |
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Part B - The Cervical & Thoracic Spine |
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Part A - The Lumbar Spine |
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Part D - Advanced Cervical and Thoracic Spine & Extremities - Upper Limb |
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Part B - The Cervical & Thoracic Spine |
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Part E - Advanced Extremities |
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Do you have something you’d like to share with other MDT trained clinicians? If so, please get in touch! Submissions to the newsletter are always welcome and contributions contribute to MDT CPD points for members. Tell us about an interesting clinical experience you’ve had, an article you’ve read or a case study that challenged you. Submissions can be emailed to: education@mckenzieinstituteaustralia.org