As a qualified remedial massage therapist, Chris Parker describes his average working day as being, “eight hours of laughing with people, having a good time and talking about things that interest me in health and exercise.”

With the confidence of someone who is living his passion, Chris also says that the privilege of working with people who entrust him with their health and wellbeing leaves him feeling better at the end of the day to how he starts it. 

With a number of strings to his bow, Chris is also a qualified Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and meridian therapist, an accredited personal trainer, lecturer and trainer in remedial therapy and a soon-to-be-qualified Myotherapy practitioner. 

Chris’ passion for working in the field of health and bodywork was initially borne out of his interest in martial arts. After training in Aikido and Ju Jitsu for more than a decade, his intrigue in Eastern philosophy led him onto the path of study into both Eastern and Western remedial therapies.  

In his previous career Chris worked in the mining industry. In this role, he was exposed to the importance of critical intervention, education and ongoing support to benefit the health and wellbeing of construction and mining personnel. 

But his real passion for helping people was a little closer to home. “I could see that people in my family were being challenged physically and I wanted to help them,” Chris said. 

After initially training in TCM remedial therapy and Japanese-style acupuncture technique, Toyohari, Chris enrolled to study theHLT52015 Diploma of Remedial Massageat Endeavour College. 

“I wanted to expand on my knowledge, but I also needed to get a qualification that was going to be industry standard for employability. Endeavour’s Diploma of Remedial Massage was broadly recognised by both employers and professional associations,” Chris said. 

Enrolling as a mature age student, Chris said that industry recognition gave him the surety that he needed about the validity of his qualification. 

“The things that really set Endeavour apart is the quality of the lecturers and the learning materials. As my industry experience has grown and I’ve come into contact with other learning environments, I’ve found that Endeavour has a very high standard and most importantly, that the assessment package is really aligned with regulator’s requirements,” he said.

“The other standout for me was that I got to practice what I was learning in Endeavour’s Wellnation Clinics. This is a great environment to learn through hands-on time under the supervision of the Clinic managers and staff. The quality of the facilities and the staff that students and their clients engage with is of a really high quality and as a student, I felt very supported by the college and lucky to have this quality of clinical environment to learn in.”

“That opportunity to improve your clinical skills is second to none. One of the greatest challenges when you finish any qualification is whether your education reflects what’s going to be expected of you in the real world. Endeavour sets you up to the highest standard, so when I walked into a clinic and a meet a client for the first time, I felt confident,” he said.

After graduating with his Diploma in Remedial Massage, Chris easily found work in large clinics while at the same time setting up the space to see his own clients. 

“One of the greatest things about studying Remedial Massage is that it gives you access to the industry very early on – twelve months is not a long period of time to study in order to get your foot in the door. It also enables you to go and work with sporting teams, in other health environments, or partner with other professionals,” Chris said.

“One of the other great things Endeavour gave me was the skills to set up my own business. So, as I was out working for other people, I was able to establish my own small business and create a space where I can operate in the way I really enjoy and have my own relationships with people,” he said.

Parallel to running his own clinic, Chris has been lecturing and supervising in remedial therapy, but  still thirsty for more knowledge he decided to pathway into the Bachelor of Health Science (Myotherapy) course at Endeavour. 

“My knowledge base was getting broader but I reached a point where I had gone as far as I could go and I wanted to get more specific,” Chris said.

Working as a remedial massage therapist, Chris saw how studying Myotherapy could increase his scope of practice and with recognition of prior learning for his previous studies, he was able to continue working and building his clinical experience while at the same time expanding his knowledge and expertise. 

“Because Myotherapy covers neuroscience, exercise and nutrition – on top of human biology, musculoskeletal anatomy and pain management to name a few – my ability to assess people neurologically, not just in terms of their posture, has been a big advancement in how I engage with my clients,” he said.

Having already had the opportunity to work alongside other health practitioners including acupuncturists, chiropractors and physiotherapists during his clinic experience, Chris also says that studying Myotherapy has improved his ability to refer his clients to other specialists. 

“The college has been really great in helping me establish those networks and I definitely know a lot more nutritionists and naturopaths now than I did a few years ago,” he said. 

Future of Wellness

The Future of Wellness series features stories from current Endeavour students around the country. From where they started to where they are now to where they are headed, we celebrate their unique stories and perspectives.

Interested in reading more Future of Wellness stories? Head here for more.