This year, we celebrated our 20th year at Advanced Neuro Rehab. It is a significant milestone for us and an opportunity to reflect on how we got here, while also sharing some insights into the future of neurological and vestibular physiotherapy.
It started with an idea.
Advanced Neuro Rehab began as an idea at the end of our four-year stint in the UK. In London, Nicole was working as Superintendent Physiotherapist at the Bobath Centre in East Finchley, and I was Clinical Specialist (Neurology) at St George’s Hospital, Tooting. We had both invested heavily in professional development early in our careers, specialising in neurology and vestibular rehabilitation.
Our passion was outpatient and community-based physiotherapy. With few suitable roles available for us on our return to Australia, we felt it was the right time to establish our own neurological and vestibular private practice in Adelaide.
Small beginnings.
In late 2005, Nicole flew home before me, pregnant with our daughter Charli (yes receptionist!). When I returned a month later, I designed our first logo on the plane (very ordinary I know) and arrived back in Australia just in time to see John Aloisi send the Socceroos to the World Cup finals for the first time in 32 years.
In January 2006, we rented a single room from a private musculoskeletal practice on Tynte Street, North Adelaide. I began seeing neurological and vestibular clients referred from neurologists, ENTs, and GPs including some patients we still support today. At that time, the practice was called James McLoughlin Neurophysiotherapy.
The following two years were busy. The practice grew steadily while I juggled three other roles: lecturing at Flinders University, coordinating the Multidisciplinary Multiple Sclerosis Service at The Repatriation General Hospital, and working as a clinical educator for UniSA physiotherapy students. Over time, my work consolidated into two core roles private practice and lecturing at Flinders University.
Growth and a change in name.
As referrals increased, we needed more space and moved to Abergeldie House on Portrush Road, Glen Osmond. While the space was larger, there was still no reception support — all bookings and administration were handled by Nicole via mobile phone while caring for our two young children.
To better support patients in Adelaide’s southern suburbs, we added consulting rooms in Brighton, across from Kingston Family Practice on Brighton Road, before later relocating to Griffith Rehabilitation Hospital at Hove.
Our next move was to Payneham Road, sharing premises with Jane O’Donaghue, who had just established her musculoskeletal practice, Physiosmart. This move finally provided administrative and reception support. Continued growth led to Eileen Ting joining the team — now one of our fantastic Senior Physiotherapists. In 2012, together with Physiosmart, we moved to larger premises at 296 Payneham Road. During this time, more people joined our team, including Kirsti Ilic as Practice Manager and Jaquie Martin as Receptionist. 
Our current Clinical Lead Physiotherapist, Liz Jemson-Ledger, also joined us during this period.
At this point, we changed our name to Advanced Neuro Rehab (ANR) to reflect our growing team and broader scope. This was a particularly busy and rewarding period, with in-clinic consultations, home visits, and hydrotherapy services.
The year prior, I had developed the Neurological Physiotherapy Master’s Programme at Flinders University — the first of its kind in Australia.
This allowed many Australian physiotherapists to gain postgraduate neurological qualifications, including seven of our own staff. It also enabled
our clinic to support multiple research projects, including my PhD, which I completed in 2015.
Adapting and evolving.
In 2017, the introduction of the NDIS significantly impacted many of our patients with neurological disability, and ANR became a registered NDIS provider. In 2019, we opened a third clinic on King William Road, Unley, and launched our successful FightBack exercise groups for people living with Parkinson’s disease and Multiple Sclerosis. Like everyone, 2020 brought major challenges with the COVID-19 pandemic. Alongside the health concerns faced by many of our patients, we needed to adapt quickly as a business. Having already provided telehealth services to rural and remote patients and health professionals across Australia, we were well placed to extend this support to our local community during this time.
New clinics.
In 2021, we relocated our main clinic to 283–285 Payneham Road, our current Royston Park location. Nicole once again led an enormous amount of work behind the scenes — skills that also helped relocate our two other clinics.
In April 2024, we opened our Christies Beach clinic at 98 Beach Road. This is a renovated space with a gym area and 5 treatment rooms which gives us room to grow.
In December 2025, we moved our Unley clinic to 131 Goodwood Road, Goodwood. We are proud to now offer three welcoming environments where both staff and patients feel supported.
So, what’s next?
With an exceptional team of neurological and vestibular physiotherapists and administrative staff across our three clinics in Adelaide, our focus remains on delivering high-quality, evidence-based care for all our patients. Advancing clinical practice in neurological and vestibular rehabilitation continues to be our core objective — combining the best available evidence with empathy, care, and a genuine commitment to each person’s rehab
journey.
Over the past two decades, we have built strong relationships with health professionals locally and internationally through our clinical work, education, and research. We look forward to continuing to keep Advanced Neuro Rehab at the forefront of best practice.
We have lived through — and helped shape — the evolution of community-based neurological physiotherapy, a role of increasing importance within healthcare. Throughout 2026, we look forward to sharing what we have learned, providing valuable insights for people living with neurological and vestibular conditions, and supporting health professionals and services to better understand the treatments and approaches we offer. From Migraine to Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease to Concussion, our experience and skills in helping people with many conditions continue to evolve.
Associate Professor James McLoughlin
Director, Advanced Neuro Rehab
