Roger O'Toole is a physiotherapist with over 18 years experience, including post graduate training in advanced physiology and chronic pain management. Since 2004, Roger has focused his interest in chronic pain into headache and migraine treatment and management. This interest has involved taking on further study including completion of the level I foundation seminar and level II advanced seminar presented by the Watson Headache ® Institute. In 2013 Roger was among the first group of therapists to be a Watson Headache ® Certified Practitioner.
Roger has now acquired a unique and highly specific skill set which has culminated in the opening of a dedicated headache and migraine treatment centre in Melbourne. The Melbourne Headache Centre provides access to cutting edge manual therapy techniques, modified from traditional physiotherapy techniques, and renowned for its diagnostic accuracy and success rate in suitable clients. The clinic has now provided relief to thousands of sufferers with people travelling from all over regional Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, New South Wales, New Zealand, The Netherlands and USA to access treatment.
Having consulted for over 4000 hours with over 1000 clients, Roger is one of the most experienced practitioners in Australia in using the Watson Headache ® Approach. Roger's unique skill set and experience have seen him sought out by other therapists with an interest in headache and migraine. This sees Roger hosting clinicians from around Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, in his clinic to help them better understand the role of the neck in headache and migraine, with the hope that the Watson Headache ® Approach will continue to broaden its reach.
By invitation, Roger has assisted Dean Watson on the Watson Headache ® Institute Level 1 foundation course, and in 2016 was invited to the Inaugural Headache Symposium in Sydney to present a workshop on running a Headache Clinic, and to deliver the closing remarks. In 2020 Roger was invited to present on the role of manual therapy in treaitng recurrent nausea and vomiting syndromes, at the international conference in Rome 'Turning Primary Headache Upside Down', which due to COVID-19 became an online event.
With opportunities to become involved in research Roger is extremely excited about the near future for headache and migraine sufferers, and he continues to advocate for them with regular information sessions being run in healthcare clinics.
Zoe Denton graduated from the University of West England in 2008. Since that time her career has led her to a special interest in treating headache and migraine.
Zoe joined the Melbourne Headache Centre in 2017 with several years experience using the Watson Headache® Approach and has since undertaken further training on her pathway to achieve the status of a Certified Watson Headache® practitioner. In 2019 Zoe completed her Graduate Certificate in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy and in 2020 is undertaking her Masters.
Dylan Clifford - Level 2 Headache Consultant
Dylan graduated from the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand in 2012. He returned to Melbourne and spent the following seven years developing his physiotherapy skills in a large group private practice.
Dylan’s interest in headaches grew when trying to help his sister in-law, a chronic sufferer of daily persistent headache despite a history of failed surgeries, medications, specialists and therapies over many years. Though she had tried numerous physiotherapists, Dylan felt as a physiotherapist that he should be able to help her. To develop his knowledge and understanding of headache and migraine treatment, Dylan attended the Level 1 Watson Headache Institute Course. He personally saw the life changing effects the Watson Headache® Approach could have when his sister in law was assessed and treated by Dean Watson in front of the group. For the first time in years, his sister in law had a significant change in the intensity of her headache, something she had never had before.
Seeing the difference made to her quality of life since then and determined to refine his skills, Dylan focused on learning more about headache and migraine treatment by completing the Level 2 Watson Headache Institute Course. Looking help those who continue to suffer most, Dylan joined Melbourne Headache Centre in 2020.
Maria Schaffner - Level 2 Headache Consultant
After graduating as a physiotherapist in 2008 in Bern, Switzerland, Maria has worked in private clinics and travelled with a circus as a physiotherapist. Maria joined the Watson Headache Institute’s level I foundation seminar in Zurich, Switzerland in 2013. Inspired to learn more, Maria attended her level II advanced seminar in Den Haag, Netherlands in 2016. Maria sought a dedicated headache clinic to further her skills, and soon jumped at the chance to spend 5 months observing and training at the MHC in 2018. Impressed by her skills and passion to help people, Maria was offered a full-time position, joining our team mid-2019. In March 2020 Maria took leave to return home to be near family during the COVID-19 crisis and eagerly awaits a return to the clinic.
Kate Coleman - Practice Manager
Kate joined the Melbourne Headache Centre team in the middle of 2018. Whilst developing and managing the day to day operations of the clinic, Kate also spends time consulting with new patients over the phone and booking in treatments.
