HELEN TALAGA
MSc; HPC member; MCSP; AACP
Currently working as a Chartered Physiotherapist specialising in Neurological Rehabilitation, I qualified in 1990, from Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge. In 1993, I moved to Reading to work in the Rehabilitation Unit, the regional unit responsible for treating adults with complex neurological disability, such as Stroke, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease, Cerebral Palsy and Spinal Cord Injuries, where I became Superintendent Physiotherapist three years later.
Since gaining my basic qualifications, I have gone on to specialise by completing a number of post-graduate courses, such as the Basic and Advanced Bobath courses, and by learning a number of other skill-based techniques. I also undertook a Masters Degree in Neurorehabilitation at BrunelUniversity, shortly before taking a year off to have my first child.
On returning to the NHS in 1999, I worked in the Out-Patient Dept of the Rehabilitation Unit, later becoming a Clinical Specialist, requiring me to act as both a clinician and a source of information to other Neuro-Physiotherapists, both within the hospital and the wider community. This role has an extensive teaching commitment to junior physiotherapists and allows me to mentor other more experienced staff.
More recently, I have achieved a qualification in the Sarah Keys Method, which treats spinal pain and dysfunction and attained qualifications in Acupuncture.
I now mix my NHS role with a busy and fulfilling private caseload, working for the Howard Clinic based at Pulse 8 and within the client’s own home.
In addition, I am a member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapist’s special interest group (ACPIN), which I have lectured to locally, and I am actively involved in the running of a hydrotherapy group for the Parkinson’s Disease Society here at Pulse 8.
Married with two children, I live locally, and when time allows, I run to keep fit!
