Neuro Spark Rehab has been announced as a finalist in the 2023 Australian Women’s Small Business Champion Awards.
Recognised for its excellence in physiotherapy services, the neurological rehabilitation clinic is now in the running to win a top honour at the awards gala scheduled for September 23.
“So we are a neurological rehabilitation clinic,” Neuro Spark Rehab director and principal physiotherapist Anna Lucchesi said.
Providing services “after major car accidents, (for) those with Parkinson’s, a stroke or brain injury, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, dementia and conditions that affect your brain or nerves”, the clinic has been a boon for residents of Shepparton and its surrounding areas.
Opened in 2018 and having relocated to its current premises in 2020, Neuro Spark Rehab has a dedicated team of eight, offering physiotherapy and speech pathology services.
“We’re the only ones in the area that provide neurological and physiotherapy services privately as specifically as we do,” Ms Lucchesi said.
With the nearest similar clinic located in Bendigo, she said Neuro Spark Rehab had shouldered a significant responsibility.
“We have that responsibility to ensure that we provide the highest possible level of skills that we can because if we don’t, no-one will,” Ms Lucchesi said.
She also added that the clinic was not just a service; it’s a “community” where patients and their families can engage with the staff over a cuppa, discussing issues beyond their medical concerns.
Ms Lucchesi said being named a finalist had special meaning for her and her team.
“I guess being nominated for this award shows that we are on that path and that we are trying to achieve that vision that we had when we opened the clinic,” she said.
For Ms Lucchesi, the nomination “solidifies that we are achieving that vision in a way”.
The Australian Women’s Small Business Champion Awards, often described as the Logies of small business, will be hosted at the Western Sydney Conference Centre in Penrith, NSW.
The program recognises women across more than 60 industries, from physiotherapy to marketing services, showcasing the increasing economic and social contributions of women in small businesses.
Awards founder and managing director of Precedent Productions Steve Loe said the success of female-led small businesses in Australia was on the rise, particularly given the challenging economic climate.
Mr Loe mentioned the “remarkable” quality and quantity of this year’s entrants, adding that the selection of finalists had “by no means been an easy feat”.