While Associate Professor Amir Takla MACP does not describe his career as a juggling act, by most measures it would qualify as one. 

Between directing busy physiotherapy clinics in Melbourne, contributing to academia and travelling internationally with elite tennis players, Amir’s professional life spans multiple high-performance environments.

Underpinning it all is a deliberate approach to building a model that can function without his being physically present for four months of the year – or more. 

‘It is very much a balancing act but the balancing act comes with positives and negatives. 

'The positives are you can work in sport and at a very high level but in return, you need to have a clinic and colleagues who back you, support you and are skilled enough to be able to manage your complicated cases.’

Amir’s career was driven early on by a desire to work in sports physiotherapy but with a clinical depth that extended beyond performance environments. 

Associate Professor Amir Takla.

Rather than moving straight into private practice after graduating from the University of Melbourne in 1997, Amir chose to spend time in public health, deliberately exposing himself to complexity before he began to narrow his focus. 

‘I didn’t feel I was ready for private practice or, more importantly, orthopaedic sport. 

'I wanted to deal with complicated cases – difficult patients – because I thought I need to be able to manage that kind of stuff before [focusing on doing] an ankle sprain or a shoulder or an elbow.’

That early grounding would later prove critical as his career expanded into elite sport, where clinical decision-making is high-stakes and highly visible. 

It also shaped the way he built his private practice, Australian Physiotherapy in Richmond and East Melbourne, with a strong emphasis on advanced reasoning and structured assessment.

Key opportunities early in his career accelerated that trajectory, particularly his time at Prahran Sports Medicine and a subsequent role with Gymnastics Victoria. 

Both experiences exposed Amir to strong mentorship and allowed him to refine his clinical skills in shoulders and hips – areas that would be central to his later work. 

‘Colleagues there were happy to mentor and support, which was really good for me. 

'A lot of my colleagues didn’t get that kind of experience, unfortunately, but I was lucky enough to be in a position where I had people who were willing to guide me.’

By the early 2000s, the combination of experience and mentorship led Amir to a role at the Australian Open, marking the beginning of a longstanding involvement in professional tennis. 

Over the next two decades, Amir would work across the Association of Tennis Professionals and Women’s Tennis Association tours, recently travelling with current Women’s Tennis Association world number one women’s singles tennis player, Aryna Sabalenka.

He worked with many other big names in tennis, including Lleyton Hewitt and Sabine Lisicki.

It was also in the early 2000s that Amir became a dual APA titled physiotherapist, first as an APA Titled Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist (2001) and then as an APA Titled Sports and Exercise Physiotherapist (2007), having been a member of the
APA since 1998. 

He has co-developed rehabilitation protocols for the assessment and treatment of femoroacetabular impingement syndrome and is involved in postgraduate research at several universities in Australia.

Less risky business

For many clinicians, stepping away from their private practice work for extended periods to travel with elite athletes would pose a significant business risk. 

Amir has approached this differently, viewing time away not as a disruption but as something that can be accommodated through strong systems and capable people.

‘As they [staff] became more and more skilled, I was able to [extend the time]. Now I can go for three weeks and not be fearful about what’s going to happen to our patients. 

'We monitored outcomes, people got better and we were still able to produce outstanding outcomes.’

Central to this model is the development of shared clinical frameworks within his clinics, particularly in the assessment and management of chronic conditions. 

These systems allow for consistency of care regardless of which clinician is leading a patient’s treatment at any given time. 

‘All of my colleagues know our systems – our diagnostic criteria, algorithms, call it whatever you want to call it. 

'And we follow a guideline of what we’re doing when we’re examining hips, so if something doesn’t add up, what do we do? We know the algorithms and we follow them.’

While systems and people form the backbone of continuity of care, technology has become an essential enabler, allowing Amir to be involved while working remotely, even if he is on the other side of the world. 

Telehealth, in particular, has meant he can maintain oversight of complex cases and support his team in real time. 

‘The physios would call me on Zoom with the patient. We’d go through it piece by piece so that our patients got the best outcome every single time. 

'It was time-consuming and challenging for me but it also kept my clinical reasoning process up to scratch.’

This ongoing involvement has helped Amir avoid a common pitfall for clinicians working in elite sport – becoming disconnected from scaling their everyday practice. 

For Amir, maintaining both perspectives has been critical to sustaining his clinical edge.

‘I wasn’t just focused on sport and forgetting my other patients. I kept both parts working at the same time and that is crucial.’

Levelling the playing field

Amir’s entire approach is underpinned by a philosophy that rejects any hierarchy in patient care. 

Associate Professor Amir Takla treats women’s singles world number one tennis player Aryna Sabalenka.

Whether working with a grand slam champion or a local patient, he applies the same standards, expectations and level of attention. 

‘Every patient to me is Roger Federer. Every patient is Serena Williams, regardless. 

'A 60-year-old accountant with hip pain should be entitled to get the same care, support and backup as a 30-year-old number one tennis player.’

This mindset extends beyond clinical treatment to patient engagement, particularly in encouraging adherence and shared decision-making. 

Amir finds that framing rehabilitation in the same way he would for elite athletes makes patients more willing to commit to the process. 

‘They’re being brought into the decision-making process. 

'They know what’s expected of them and that’s why we’ve now got some of the fastest outcomes in hip anywhere.’

Despite the demands of his dual role, Amir does not frame his workload in terms of excess but in terms of variety. 

Rather than reducing his commitments, Amir has structured them in a way that allows different aspects of his work to offset each other. 

‘If I was treating patients 50 hours a week, every week for years, there’s no way I would have stayed a physio for 26 years, no chance. 

'So my happiness has come from being clinical, being involved in sport and teaching in academia.’

Spreading the load

This diversification is something Amir actively encourages in other physiotherapists, particularly those in leadership roles. 

In his view, maintaining engagement and longevity in the profession requires more than clinical competence. It requires variation and ongoing intellectual stimulation. 

At the same time, Amir cautions against moving too far away from clinical work, particularly for those drawn into business or administrative roles. 

Retaining hands-on experience, he says, is essential for maintaining credibility and adaptability. 

‘If you’re now non-clinical and in the world of business, that’s all good and fine. 

'What about if things change and you need to be clinical? So make sure that you have a bit of diversification.’

For physiotherapists who are looking to follow a similar path to Amir’s or who are juggling running a private practice with external interests, his advice is practical and candid: clinical skills are the foundation on which everything else is built. 

‘Make sure your skill set as a physio is good. That would be professional development, clinical practice and clinical mentorship.

'Make sure you are as good a physio as you can possibly be.’

Beyond that, the success of the kind of business model he employs depends heavily on clear communication and shared expectations within the practice. 

Without this, the pressures of uneven workloads and time away can quickly create tension. 

‘If you have an arrangement – whether financial or to do with running the day-to-day load – that’s clear from the beginning, then there’s no conflict between colleagues.’

While elite sport offers unique professional opportunities, Amir is frank about the realities and practicalities. There can be a lack of stability and non-clinical factors may influence appointments. 

‘You’re there for as long as the coach is happy. You’re there for as long as the management is still the same. 

'So just be aware that a change of coach could mean a change of the medical team.’

Having spent extended periods travelling overseas, Amir has also become more selective about how he engages with elite sport.

He is the father of two children and family considerations now play a larger role in shaping his decisions.

‘I was gone for 19 months straight once and that was probably the longest stint I’ve ever done. That was tough. I’m not doing that again. 

'Now that my kids are bigger, I don’t want to be away that long anymore.’

His current business model reflects that shift, favouring shorter, targeted engagements with elite athletes that allow him to remain involved without compromising his presence at home or in the clinics. 

Ultimately, his career is less about balancing demands and more about integrating them. 

Through a combination of strong systems, skilled colleagues and a clear clinical philosophy, Amir has forged a model that allows him to operate effectively across multiple domains without diluting the quality of care.

‘If it is the absolute best care that you can provide for the patient, then you’re on the right track. 

'But if you know there’s a better option and you’re not doing it, then you have to ask yourself why.’