Melissa has been working as an independent practitioner since 2017 and has developed  expertise in neuro-rehabilitation, working with people who also have musculoskeletal injuries, conditions or pain that is having an impact on their lives.    Melissa believes in a holistic approach to enable people to optimise their physical function and to be confident in the management of their symptoms.  She works with people in their own homes, outdoors, in sport’s centres and other activity based facilities. She is passionate about supporting people to enjoy being physically active and is qualified to teach Pilates, Nordic Walking, modified yoga and adapted Tai Chi.  She frequently uses a combination of these whole body approaches alongside personalised exercises and manual therapy to optimise outcomes and enable people to achieve their goals. A patient centred approach is at the core of her physiotherapy practice.

Melissa has been actively involved in research in collaboration with University of Bristol and University of West of England. Most recently, she was the research lead to develop and refine a Nordic Walking Programme for people with inflammatory rheumatic diseases.  She presented the findings of this research at several conferences, including the Public Health England Annual Conference and was invited to deliver a session on supporting people to be physically active at the British Society of Rheumatology Conference in 2021. She is a member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy and  British Society of Rheumatology. Melissa is committed to  continuing her professional development through relevant courses, reading, podcasts and peer review and working.