APA members Simon Mathieson and Lilly Kochen, along with APA Sports and Exercise Physiotherapist Luke Blunden, and APA Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist Caitlin Farmer have since graduated from the program and will be mentored until June 2019 in order to maximise their learning and potential.

Caitlin Farmer says the HSLP has given her the opportunity to meet other leaders across the health spectrum. ‘We can learn together, discuss the various health issues that we face now and into the future, and build relationships that will assist in driving health forward,’ she says.

Simon Mathieson says that leadership in physiotherapy is essential to the continued success of our profession. ‘Personally, I applied to attend the course, as I wanted to increase the number of tools in my leadership toolbox and my confidence as a leader in challenging situations. The HSLP by Leadership Victoria provided a fantastic opportunity to learn about some key concepts in leadership and explore the topics with fellow health professionals from across allied health,’ he says.

Luke Blunden agrees and adds: ‘the HSLP built on existing leadership skills and increased the leadership tools available for me when I deal with staff and clients in the public and private settings that I work in.

I found that the concepts covered would also be quite useful while working in high functioning sporting teams while travelling as a sports physiotherapist.’