THAMES VALLEY CLINIC

Physiotherapy and Sports Injury Treatment

Telephone
0118 946 4626
1 Derby Road, Caversham,
Reading, RG4 5HE

ABOUT THE CLINIC

The Thames Valley Clinic was formed as a partnership in 1992. Carol Miles is the Practice Manager and Sue Hicks the Clinical Manager.

Carol has a business background in management and administration, whilst Sue is a nationally known physiotherapist with over 30 years experience. This background ensures the clinic runs efficiently and that the physiotherapy team is hand-picked by an expert, for their expertise. The clinic has no junior grade staff - all have at least five years' experience before joining us. All our clients benefit from being seen by experienced specialists.

The practice has six Chartered Physiotherapists - who are all Health Professions Council registered - each with a particular area of expertise, together with two remedial and sports massage therapists.

Over the years the clinic has built a strong reputation among GPs, Consultants and most importantly our clients, for exceptional quality in the treatment of all types of physical injuries and disabilities, for everyone of any age, from any walk of life.

Sue Hicks

As a teenager Sue was a member of the junior international hockey squad and remains a keen hockey goalie to this day. After time as a dancer (and declining an offer to join the Black and White Minstrels) she has been working as a professional physiotherapist since the 1970s. Her career since then has been wide-ranging and successful, including:

• Working in A&E and on surgical cases (e.g. total knee and hip replacements);
• Researching into splinting and casting materials and design for Orthopaedic Systems;

• Writing and lecturing on both upper and lower limb splintage design and fabrication;
• Designing adaptations and aids to daily living for patients with severe disabilities;
• Researching into the design of insoles for sports shoes for a well-known brand of sportswear.
• Researching (with the support of an Arthritis Research Campaign grant) into treatments for osteoarthritis of the knee.

Since the late 1980s Sue has been head of physiotherapy services in the area for in- and out-patients with rheumatological conditions (arthritis and connective tissue diseases), becoming acknowledged as the expert on these types of patients over the whole of the West Berkshire area.

More recently, she has also become an extended scope practitioner in this subject, working alongside the Consultant Rheumatologists in out-patient clinics at the Royal Berkshire Hospital. She is also now part of the team pioneering new treatments for patients with inflammatory arthritis - as seen on the BBC news (May 2009).

Sue's other claim to fame is that her gluteus maximus has been in the Oxford Textbook of Medicine, where she contributed to the chapter on non-surgical treatment of osteoarthritis (both in words and pictures).

Carol Miles

Carol always has been and remains a keen hockey player (though other sporting interests include yachting, squash and judo) and she is president of one of the local hockey clubs.

Aside from the fun things, Carol has been working in administration and management all her professional life. Before founding the Thames Valley Clinic with Sue in 1992, companies that have gained from her skills include Bank of America Finance, Yeoman CLF and the London Fiduciary Trust.

From working to meet the requirements of the Thames Valley Enterprise Scheme and so gain a grant to help with the clinic's formation, through the hectic early years and right up to the present day, ensuring the practice's smooth running and continuing development takes up most of Carol's energies! However, - on top of the clinic and the hockey club - she somehow finds time to be the Vice Chairman and Director of a local sports club too. In 2005 she won the Best Individual Senior Female Sports Award (WBC).

Carol's other claim to fame is that she's also let her gluteus maximus be photographed, this time for a (successful!) fundraising calendar. There are rumours that she's quite handy with an accordion.