Physio Foundations

By Perraton.Physio

Welcome to the Physio Foundations podcast, a podcast about the foundational knowledge and skills that lie beneath expert clinical practice.

Hosted by Luke Perraton, PhD, physiotherapist and physiothe... more

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FAQs about Physio Foundations:

How many episodes does Physio Foundations have?

The podcast currently has 97 episodes available.

Physio Foundations episodes:

April 28, 2022Scot Morrison - Upgrade your manual muscle test. How to measure strength in clinical practice, minimise error and interpret your findings.
My guest this week is Scot Morrison. Scot is a board certified orthopaedic physical therapist and certified strength coach. In this conversation, Scot summarises six steps for measuring strength in clinical practice. You will learn the importance of accepting uncertainty in measurement, how to minimise error with a standardised testing routine and the importance of interpreting test findings to the person being tested.
This is a discussion aimed at health professionals. Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.
In this conversation:
0:00 About this episode
0:19 About Scot, welcome to Physio Foundations
1:39 Scot’s work so far – strength coaching, physical therapy, high performance, management, education and research
3:55 Why are you interested in measuring strength in the clinic?
6:00 What is strength, how do you define it?
7:10 The importance of being reliable when measuring strength
7:44 It’s better to say ‘I don’t know’ than to not know and guess
8:40 If strength matters, measure it properly
10:00 It’s your job to interpret strength testing results to that individual
10:40 Example of measuring knee extensor strength after ACL reconstruction
11:45 Step 1 – is this measure meaningful right now? Can you test strength without pain?
12:25 Step 2 - does the device measure in meaningful units (Newtons)
13:05 Step 3 – does the device have the ability to measure force at the rate you require?
13:30 Step 4 – set the test up properly. Proper fixation of the patient and device
15:45 Step 5 - The line of pull must be 90 degrees to the moment arm
16:15 Step 6 – Standardised approach to testing, warm up, instructions, 30 sec- 1 minute rest between efforts, standardised cueing, be consistent
19:15 Realise that there is uncertainty in measurement
21:03 Torque calculator on Scot’s website. Upgrade your manual muscle test
21:45 Why is it important to consider torque and body weight normalised torque?
24:45 Testing strength with a device doesn’t add more work and time
27:35 Limits of the Oxford scale. Can they lift their limb against gravity
28:12 What devices are most useful for measuring strength in the clinic?
31:45 Scot’s PhD – are we testing strength and are we testing it well. What is meaningful change?
35:20 Scot’s final thoughts. Realise we are dealing with uncertainty and need to make decisions under uncertainty
37:48 Scot Morrison PT is not the Australian PM! Angry Tweets from Australians… Funny.
39:11 Support this podcast by sharing it

Listen to Scot discuss strength assessment with Luke on the @MonashMRU podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/how-to-measure-strength-in-your-clinical-practice-with/id1549298610?i=1000558331646
Find out more about Scot here: physiopraxis.co/about
Scot’s Therapeutic Exercise database: physiopraxis.co/physiotherexdatabase
Scot’s torque calculator: physiopraxis.co/torque-calculation-app
Scot mentioned the TinDeq dynamometer: tindeq.com
He also mentioned the JLW dynamometer: https://jlwforce.com/products/praxis-3-500
He also mentioned dynamometer systems by Hawkin Dynamics https://www.hawkindynamics.com/
…and Vald Health: https://valdhealth.com/dynamo/
Scot and I have no conflicts of interest and receive no money or benefits from these companies, we are simply interested in equipment for measuring strength
Follow Scot on Twitter: twitter.com/scotmorrsn
Follow Scot on Instagram: instagram.com/physio_praxis
Follow and subscribe to Physio Foundations on your favourite podcast app.
Join the conversation in the YouTube comments or via social media @PerratonPhysio
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton
Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.
...more
41min
April 20, 2022Zuzana Perraton - career pathway and tips for practitioners getting started in clinical practice
This week on Physio Foundations I spoke to my wife and the other half of Perraton Physio, Zuzana Perraton! Zuzana spoke about her career pathway, how she identified opportunities for career development, tips for building rapport with patients and how to develop your own clinical evidence and expertise alongside your knowledge of research evidence. Enjoy, and please share the episode with a friend or on social media.
This is a discussion aimed at health professionals. Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.
In this conversation:
0:00 About Zuzana
1:45 Zuzana’s foundations
4:00 Who here wants to be a sports physio?
4:55 Don’t go straight into sports physio
6:56 Find people who will support you when you first graduate from university
8:45 Mentoring and support – two contrasting examples
9:25 Learn from other practitioners – watch, learn, listen and ask questions
13:56 Make sure physio isn’t the only thing you do
14:40 Ski instruction and physiotherapy – spark your professional interests with your life experience
17:45 Learn how to teach others – instruct, demonstrate, practice, feedback
21:13 Foundational knowledge and skills
22:10 Try to disprove your own diagnosis – be critical and reflective
24:45 Talk to people as you do an assessment – involve your patients and build rapport
27:40 If things aren’t improving, reassess, try something different, or refer on
30:05 Why are you interested in research?
30:20 Develop your own clinical evidence
37:06 Where to find Zuzana
38:45 Overconfidence and under confidence – work with your mentors
Read more about Zuzana here: https://www.sportsmedbiologic.com.au/zuzana-perraton.html
And here: https://www.perraton.physio/zuzana-perraton
Follow Zuzana on Instagram: @drZuzi
Follow Zuzana on Twitter: https://twitter.com/drzuzi
Follow and subscribe to Physio Foundations on your favourite podcast app.
Join the conversation in the YouTube comments or via social media @PerratonPhysio
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton

Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.
...more
43min
April 10, 2022Running - training loads, goal setting and managing injuries, with Dr Luke Nelson
This week’s Physio Foundations podcast is part 2 of my chat with Dr Luke Nelson. This episode is full of great tips for helping clients manage their running related injuries and approach their running in a healthy way.
This is a discussion aimed at health professionals. Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.
In this conversation:
0:00 Welcome back Luke
1:30 Listening to podcasts when running
6:15 Running goals
8:25 Align your personal and professional goals
9:10 What questions do you routinely ask runners?
10:45 Four questions to ask every runner
11:21 Training loads – tips for measuring load in the clinic
12:50 Education about training loads – consistency and progressive overload
15:15 Non-training stresses – diet, sleep, stress
18:10 A systematic, but personalised, approach
19:20 Previous injury is the strongest risk factor for future injury, so sort things out now
21:15 What role does strength and conditioning play in managing running injuries?
22:18 Nothing helps your running like running
23:45 Running with osteoarthritis
25:00 The body isn’t a car – stress the body and it gets stronger
31:30 General health, tissue health, mobility, shoes
33:45 Manual therapy, how it fits in to the management plan
Read more about Luke here: https://www.healthhp.com.au/meet-the-team
Follow Luke on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportschiroluke
Follow Luke on Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/sportschiroluke

Follow and subscribe to Physio Foundations on your favourite podcast app.
Join the conversation in the YouTube comments or via social media @PerratonPhysio
You can find a video version of this podcast on the Perraton Physio YouTube channel
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton

Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.
...more
39min
April 03, 2022Luke Nelson - Helping people with running-related injuries
This week on the Physio Foundations podcast I spoke to Dr Luke Nelson, AKA sports Chiro Luke, about the pathway he has been on from new grad practitioner, to highly experienced sports chiropractor and leader within his profession.
Luke is a sports chiropractor with a special interest in helping people manage running related injuries. He is an active member of the Australian sports rehab and sports medicine world and a strong advocate for evidence-based practice and collaboration between professional groups.
In part one of our conversation:
0:00 Welcome to Physio Foundations
2:50 Luke’s background and interests
4:40 Develop a thirst for knowledge
5:05 Sports chiro and sports physio – how are they similar?
8:30 The patient comes first
9:10 Interprofessional boundaries and working together to achieve the same things
12:41 What are the most important foundational knowledge and skills that practitioners should focus on?
13:30 Communication – look and listen more than you talk
16:40 Spend time observing other practitioners inside and outside your field
17:50 What got you interested in helping people with running injuries?
21:20 Career crossroads – pick who you want to work with
23:20 Do you have to be a runner to help runners?
24:58 Don’t be lazy – Keep the runner running
30:05 Running is mental – Keep people involved in some way when they are injured
Stay tuned for part 2 next week!
Read more about Luke: https://www.healthhp.com.au/meet-the-team
Follow Luke on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportschiroluke
Follow Luke on Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/sportschiroluke

Follow and subscribe to Physio Foundations on your favourite podcast app.
Join the conversation in the YouTube comments or via social media @PerratonPhysio
You can find a video version of this podcast on the Perraton Physio YouTube channel
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton

Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition
...more
33min
March 27, 2022Ebonie Rio - Part 2. Tendinopathy research and clinical practice gems
This week’s Physio Foundations is part 2 of my conversation with Dr Ebonie Rio from La Trobe University.
We talked about tendinopathy research; specifically, how to understand and apply research.
HINT– you can’t just read the abstract!
In this episode:
0:00 Dr Ebonie Rio - Welcome to part 2 of our conversation
2:10 Isometrics and TMS – you need to read and understand the paper before applying findings
3:30 Don’t just read the abstract
4:00 Isometrics and eccentrics – it’s not that simple. Research + clinical reasoning
4:55 Consider who was included in research – diagnostic criteria
8:10 Tendons are a spring. Anything static or slow won’t bother them
8:50 Misinterpretation of research happens when you don’t consider the diagnosis and the people who were included in the study
9:30 How has research changed tendinopathy practice?
10:30 Know your exercise prescription principles – don’t make Ebonie cry
11:20 Management of tendinopathy – understand load and relationship to symptoms
12:20 Rehab – don’t stop at strength
13:10 Where to read more and find useful resources
Read more about Ebonie: https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/erio

Find the follow or subscribe button on your podcast app.
What do you think? Join the conversation in the YouTube comments or via social media @PerratonPhysio
You can find a video version of this podcast on the Perraton Physio YouTube channel
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton

Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition
...more
17min
March 19, 2022Ebonie Rio – How to develop a career that you are passionate about. Essential knowledge and skills for clinicians.
This week on Physio Foundations I spoke with the one and only Ebonie Rio about her career pathway from physiotherapy student to being an internationally recognised practitioner, educator and researcher.
Ebonie is a sports physiotherapist, physiotherapy educator and a world-leading researcher with many highly cited and highly discussed papers in the areas of tendinopathy.
We discussed Ebonie’s career pathway, her mentors, the interesting people she has worked with, balancing clinical, research and teaching work with life outside work and what she thinks are the most important foundational knowledge and skills for physiotherapy practice.
In this episode:
0:00 Welcome and introduction to Ebonie
3:00 Ebonie – I’m a better clinician for doing teaching and research
3:58 How does working with dancers differ from working with other athletes?
5:00 Dancers are strong!
5:35 How did you first get interested in being a physio?
7:20 Strive for the career you are passionate about
9:40 Sometime just do the things you love, even if they aren’t a part of your plan
9:55 It’s not always all about the clinical skills
12:30 What are the most important foundational knowledge and skills for a physiotherapist?
13:35 Every day is a school day – keep learning new skills
15:15 What other foundational skills are needed – diagnosis, anatomy, physiology and understanding load
18:00 What led you to research?
19:00 If you are a researcher you can help many people
21:30 Leadership and mentoring
23:40 Don’t forget that there’s life outside work
Read more about Ebonie: https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/erio

Find the follow or subscribe button on your podcast app.
What do you think? Join the conversation in the YouTube comments or via social media @PerratonPhysio
You can find a video version of this podcast on the Perraton Physio YouTube channel
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton

Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition
...more
27min
March 14, 2022Tips for working in sports physiotherapy, with Mat Prior
This week’s Physio Foundations is part 2 of my conversation with Mat Prior, sports and exercise physiotherapist and lecturer at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia.
This week Mat and I spoke about his tips for breaking into, and succeeding, in sports physiotherapy.
We spoke about when doors open for you, and when you knock on doors to see if they will open. We spoke about Mat’s experiences working with adults, kids and people with disabilities in elite and recreational sport. Then we finished off our discussion talking about how Mat implements new research into his practice.
This was a great discussion, thanks Mat. Please let Mat and I know what you think and join the conversation in the YouTube comments or via social media @PerratonPhysio.
In this episode:
0:00 Welcome back Mat. About this episode
1:30 How do opportunities to work as a sports physio come about?
4:15 Proactive, or lucky? How do you land sports physio jobs?
5:25 What are the differences between working with adults, kids and people with disabilities
7:30 What are the challenges of working with adults with disabilities?
10:40 Develop broad skills as a physio
12:00 Tips for using exercise effectively in rehab – prepare people for the load they are returning to in sport
15:40 How does physio fit in with sports science, high performance and coaching?
18:25 How do you stay on top of research evidence?
22:50 Where can we continue this conversation?

Find out more about Mat here: https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/mat.prior
Body Fit Physiotherapy: https://www.bodyfit.life/
You can find a video version of this podcast on the Perraton Physio YouTube channel
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Find the follow or subscribe button on your podcast app.
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton

Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition
...more
24min
March 07, 2022Develop your clinical reasoning and patient outcomes will follow - with Mat Prior, physiotherapist
This week on Physio Foundations I spoke to Mat Prior, sports and exercise physiotherapist and lecturer at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, about the pathway from student to practitioner and then physiotherapy educator.
We spoke about the foundational knowledge and skills that Mat uses as a sports physiotherapist and the values instils in his students as a physio educator. This episode has has great tips for practitioners and physio students. Please let Mat and I know what you think and join the conversation in the YouTube comments or via social media @PerratonPhysio.
In this episode:
0:00 Welcome and introduction to Mat
3:00 Mat’s story – how he became interested in being a physio
4:30 Straight into private practice, or take a rotating role?
5:45 You don’t learn everything at university
7:00 How do you balance clinical work and teaching?
8:00 Never read the comments... Physiotherapy is broader than your special interest area
10:45 Develop good processes for your assessment and treatment and patient outcomes will follow
13:03 The learning zone and the performance zone
14:03 Traffic light system for clinical decisions
15:12 What are the most important foundational knowledge and skills for a physio?
15:45 Communication, yes, but also, clinical reasoning
16:20 Have a clear reason for why you do your assessments and treatments
17:30 Know your clinical patterns
20:50 Why now? A great question to consider with your diagnostic reasoning and history taking
23:18 Running and helping runners with injuries

Find out more about Mat here: https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/mat.prior

You can find a video version of this podcast on the Perraton Physio YouTube channel
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Find the follow or subscribe button on your podcast app.
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton

Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition
...more
29min
February 27, 2022Managing ACL injuries, with Randall Cooper and Mick Hughes
This week's episode of Physio Foundations is part 2 of the conversation with Randall Cooper, Mick Hughes and Zuzana Perraton. Check out part 1 first for a background on Mick, Randall and Zuzana and their perspectives on working as sports physiotherapists.
In this episode, Mick, Randall and Zuzana talk about how they apply their knowledge and skills to help people with their rehabilitation following ACL injuries.
In this episode:
0:00 About this episode - welcome back Mick, Randall and Zuzana
2:00 What are the most important knowledge and skills for managing ACL injuries?
3:05 The Melbourne ACL return to sport after injury guide
3:50 The second half of rehab after ACL reconstruction is the most important
4:30 Mick - measure horizontal hops, vertical jump height, strength
7:10 Mick - don't forget questionnaires, IKDC, ACL-RSI
8:15 Assess, don't guess. But avoid paralysis by analysis too
9:15 Zuzana - Ask people directly about their confidence, pain, progress and work/sport readiness
11:00 Learn.Physio. How did it start?
14:45 Randall - Online learning is valuable, but you still have to get your hands dirty
16:00 Mick - ACL injury is an evolving research area - keep reading!
18:15 Randall - Maintaining and protecting long term health is as important as return to sport
19:00 Check out the Journal Club podcast and Mick's 2-cents blog

Find out more about Mick, Randall and Learn Physio at learn.physio
Find out more about Zuzana
You can find a video version of this podcast on the Perraton Physio YouTube channel
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Find the follow or subscribe button on your podcast app.
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton

Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition
...more
20min
February 21, 2022How to be a sports physiotherapist, with Randall Cooper and Mick Hughes
In this week's episode, Zuzana and I talk to specialist sports and exercise physiotherapist Randall Cooper and APA sports and exercise physiotherapist Mick Hughes from learn.physio about the foundational knowledge and skills that helped them become leaders in the field of ACL injury and management.
We talk about the experiences that shaped their early careers, their pathway towards a career in sports physiotherapy, what motivated their special interests in ACL injuries and rehabilitation and the roles and responsibilities of a sports physio travelling and working with a team and with elite athletes.
Zuzana co-hosts the episode and talks about her own experiences travelling the world and working as a sports physio.
This episode is full of worldly and sage advice from three highly experienced practitioners and educators. Enjoy!
In this episode:
0:00 Introducing Randall and Mick
0:28 About Randall and Mick
3:12 Randall's foundations
7:35 Mick's foundations
10:00 Students - It's not all about the grades
10:58 Zuzana - Learn from your patients
11:55 Randall - What does a sports physio do?
14:28 Mick - Roles and responsibilities of a sports physio in a team
18:30 Zuzana - travelling and working in teams
20:50 Randall - Working in a team makes you accountable
21:50 Mick - Being accountable for athletes makes you reflect on your practice
22:35 Zuzana - Working in a sports team is a completely different experience from working in a clinic
25:55 The most important knowledge and skills for a sports physio
27:12 Randall - The most successful practitioners and the best communicators
27:50 Mick - Bring your personal experience and communication skills into your practice
31:00 Zuzana - Don't forget athlete's mental health. Keep them in some type of sport
33:10 Randall - The Winter Olympics!

Find out more about Mick, Randall and Learn Physio at learn.physio
Find out more about Zuzana
You can find a video version of this podcast on the Perraton Physio YouTube channel
For a list of episodes, transcripts and associated blogs, visit perraton.physio/physiofoundations
Find the follow or subscribe button on your podcast app.
Follow @PerratonPhysio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked In. Share this episode and tag me in @lukeperraton

Do you have a topic you would like me to cover on the podcast? Email me: [email protected]
Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition
...more
39min

FAQs about Physio Foundations:

How many episodes does Physio Foundations have?

The podcast currently has 97 episodes available.