Juliette Leach
MSc PGDip (rheum)
Juliette was diagnosed with an arthritis called Axial Spondlyarthropathy (AS) at physiotherapy school in 1983 and naturally this is when her interest in rheumatology began. As with all types arthritis, exercise is an essential part of AS management.
Over a short period of time, Juliette noticed a dramatic improvement in her pain and stiffness with exercise and she was able to reduce her arthritis medication. Inspired by this, she started up her own business, ArthritisFirst in 2008 to help others with mobility problems and to encourage them to exercise. On January 11th she will be starting a new exercise class at her new home in St Mawes, Cornwall. Patients who attend experience a variety of diagnoses including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid Arthritis, multiple Sclerosis and stroke. She will also visit you in the comfort of your own home to assess your joints and give you tailor-made exercise advice should you need it.
Brief History
After working in rheumatology departments at a variety of hospitals, Juliette completed a Master’s degree in advanced rheumatology practice in 1994. With this extra knowledge, she was able to create rheumatology practitioner posts at both Southampton and Salisbury Hospitals, working alongside the rheumatology consultants caring for patients who needed regular follow-up appointments.
Her physiotherapy role continued as Physiotherapy Advisor to The National Ankylosing Spondylitis Society (NASS) and she ran courses for Health Professionals on AS management.
To encourage exercise amongst AS patients, Juliette set up and ran evening classes for them at both Salisbury and Bognor Hospitals. She also assisted in making an exercise DVD called ‘Back to Action’ which is available at www.nass.co.uk.
Juliette is the author of a rheumatology chapter in two editions of Tidy’s physiotherapy, an essential course book for physiotherapy undergraduates.
In 2001, she started a physiotherapy steering group called AStretch which runs conferences and courses for health professionals managing AS.
Please do not hesitate to contact Juliette for further information.