Workshop presenter bios


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Conference workshops

This year’s workshops bring together an exceptional group of osteopaths from Australia and New Zealand, each recognised for their leadership, clinical depth, and commitment to advancing the profession. Across the weekend, attendees will have the opportunity to learn directly from practitioners who are helping test the boundaries of contemporary osteopathic practice whether through innovative clinical applications, emerging technologies, evidence‑informed approaches and patient‑focused care.

This is your chance to learn from the practitioners who are pushing the profession forward. Expect big ideas, practical takeaways, and the kind of inspiration that you can take straight into your clinic.

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Amy Lawson

Ageing well: A framework for osteopathic practice

B.Sc. UniMelb, B.Sc. VicMelb, MHthSci VicMelb, GradCert TertEd VicMelb

Amy is an osteopath, lecturer and RMIT University PhD candidate. Informed by her clinical work with older adults, her research explores the roles of allied health in falls prevention for community-dwelling older adults, with a focus on interprofessional collaborative care. Amy is also a lecturer in the Osteopathy program at Victoria University, where she promotes safe, equitable care of older adults and interprofessional education to improve practitioner and patient outcomes.

Holly Royal

Essentials of patient-led planning: Short, medium, and long-term osteopathic management

Holly Royal is a New Zealand registered osteopath with over a decade of experience as a clinical director and practice owner, having built and led a successful osteopathic practice for ten years prior to its sale in 2024. While no longer in active clinical practice, she remains professionally registered and continues to contribute to the advancement of osteopathic standards through governance, education, and professional development.

Holly is a former undergraduate lecturer and clinical preceptor and has spent nearly twelve years mentoring and upskilling practitioners, from new graduates to experienced clinicians, fostering reflective practice, structured clinical reasoning, and ethical long-term management planning within supportive, accountable practice environments.

She currently serves on the Osteopathic Council disciplinary committee and is a member of the Osteopaths New Zealand research committee. In recent years, she has transitioned further into business coaching and professional mentorship for osteopaths, supporting both hands-on and hands-off patient management strategies alongside sustainable business and operational frameworks.

Julie Fendall

Osteopathic management of paediatric hip conditions from infancy to adolescence

DO MOstSc(Paeds)

Julie is an experienced osteopath, educator and international presenter with more than 40 years in clinical practice. Graduating from the British School of Osteopathy in London, she later completed a Master’s Degree in Paediatrics at RMIT. Julie practises in Sydney, caring for newborns, infants, children and adolescents, also supporting women throughout pregnancy and the postnatal period.

Widely recognised for her work in paediatrics, pregnancy and women’s health, Julie teaches at postgraduate level throughout Australia, New Zealand and Europe. Her programmes explore the influences of intra-uterine development, birth and early neonatal care on musculoskeletal growth, neurological maturation, and overall health.

At this conference, Julie will present on orthopaedic considerations of the hip from newborn to adolescence, integrating developmental anatomy, clinical assessment and osteopathic management. Drawing on functional approaches including osteopathy in the cranial field, balanced ligamentous tension and myofascial release, she brings warmth, clarity and clinical precision to her teaching.

Paul Hermann

Understanding multifidus dysfunction and its role in mechanical back pain

B.Sc.(Cli.Sc.), M.H.Sc.(Osteo), M.Ex.Sc(S&C)

Paul is Australia’s first and only dual-titled Advanced Osteopath. Whilst studying osteopathy, Paul completed his Master’s project studying the ‘Effectiveness of Swiss Ball Training on Lower Back Stability’ before authoring his book ‘Effective Swiss Ball Training’. Paul’s thirst for knowledge and finding more ways for people to “feel good” led him to complete a Masters in Exercise Science.

As a lecturer in Exercise Science and Rehabilitation at RMIT and Victoria University and an international presenter, he has passed on his knowledge and experience to several thousand students, allied health practitioners, doctors, specialists, and surgeons. He is now also a consultant faculty educator for Mainstay Medical, sharing his knowledge of multifidus dysfunction and mechanical low back pain with leading surgeons and specialists around Australia.

Paul continues to share his passion through his work as a Sports and Exercise Rehabilitation Osteopath in the Stay Tuned clinics, through mentoring many practitioners, and travelling internationally to teach.

Luke McCarney PhD

Clinical introduction to myotonometry: An objective method to evaluate muscle stiffness

PhD, D.O.

Luke is an osteopath, teaching scholar and researcher at Southern Cross University. He completed his osteopathic studies, including his doctorate, at RMIT University. At RMIT, he developed an interest in anatomy, neuroscience and biomechanics, and complements his practice with these interests.

Luke's current research interests are in examination and diagnosis. His thesis, titled "The Interplay Between Muscle Pain and Stiffness", investigated how quantifiable measures of muscle stiffness related to participants' ratings of pain. This work used myotonometry to measure muscle stiffness. Expanding from this research, Luke is hoping to increase clinical awareness of these devices and engage with industry to undertake further research in this area.

At Southern Cross, Luke is currently teaching in the Osteopathic Science units. These units have a strong focus on functional anatomy, complementing his interests. Luke also assists with osteopathic technique, rehabilitation, and research units, fostering deeper conversation and critical thinking to help students develop important clinical skills.

Nick Penney PhD

Transforming low back pain care: Evidence-based digital solutions for practice growth

BSc (Hons) Ost Med PhD (Musculoskeletal Medicine) FRSM

Graduating from The British School of Osteopathy, Nick practiced in West Yorkshire for nine years, completed a sports medicine course, and served as the osteopath for the England men’s volleyball team. This led to invitations to speak at RMIT and to the profession in Victoria, at RMIT. Nick subsequently became President of the New Zealand Register of Osteopaths. During his presidency and practice in Auckland, Nick was part of the team that founded New Zealand's first osteopathic school at UNITEC and nearly achieved statutory regulation of osteopathy, but the government later changed its mind!

Nick's involvement in NZ guidelines for acute low back pain led him to pursue a PhD in Queensland and join the Australian Guidelines Group.
Nick returned to New Zealand to manage a multidisciplinary pain contract and he is now developing an app that combines objective low back pain assessment with self-help techniques, enabling a multidisciplinary approach for patients and practitioners without expanding the clinical team.

Tina Maio

Treating complex musculoskeletal pain with shockwave therapy

B.App Sc (P.E) B.Sc (Clin. Sc) M.H.Sc (Osteopathy)

Tina is an Australian qualified osteopath with a background in physical education who graduated from Victoria University in 1999. She works closely with elite and professional athletes at an international level, including Australia's leading golfers, with her current stable of players on the US PGA Tour, Nationwide Tour, European Tour, One Asia Tour, Japanese Tour and PGA and LPGA.

Tina’s experience includes working with triathlon, AFL, soccer and tennis, where she can help athletes and people from all walks of life achieve their personal best.

Tina is also a Functional Performance Specialist, recognised by NIKE and the Gray Institute, which encourages a holistic and logical approach to treatment. She has a particular interest in prescribing exercises to overcome injuries and to rectify imbalances caused by poor posture and bad habits.

Zac Lewis

Concussion science in practice: Live clinical assessment and decision-making

B.Clin.Sci.,M.Ost.Med

Zac Lewis is a registered osteopath (B.Clin.Sci., M.Ost.Med) with over a decade of clinical experience specialising in concussion management and neurological rehabilitation. His practice has spanned elite sport environments including professional ice hockey in Canada and New Zealand, where he developed expertise in acute concussion care and complex return-to-play decisions under pressure.

Zac is the founder of Concussion Education Australia and creator of the country's leading concussion CPD program for allied health professionals, an Osteopathy Australia endorsed course covering SCAT6, VOMS, BESS, and evidence-based management across the full recovery continuum. Over 500 clinicians have completed his training to date.

His clinical research focuses on developing and validating improved diagnostic and prognostic tools for concussion, and he is committed to translating emerging neuroscience into practical skills health professionals can apply immediately in clinic.