About – Birkill Physios

Birkill Physiotherapists is a registered physiotherapy practice with a special interest in sports and orthopaedic injuries. Our practice has been helping patients since 2008.

Our mission is to help our patients become pain-free and moving better and faster than before. Each one of our team brings their own specials skills within the fields of sport and orthopaedic rehabilitation. We are proud to work together to ensure we are providing the best treatment possible to assist our patients on their path to recovery.

We are located at Sports Medical Centre, Loftus Park. We see both in-hospital patients and outpatients, and offer professional field-side medical and rehabilitation support at sports events and school sports days.

Meet the Birkill Physio Team

At Birkill Physio, our team is passionate about helping you move better, recover faster, and stay active. Each physiotherapist brings unique expertise and experience, allowing us to provide personalised, evidence-based care for every patient.

Genevieve Starke

Physiotherapist &
Yoga Instructor

Genna qualified as a physiotherapist in 2008 and became a certified yoga instructor in 2016. She is passionate about movement, wellbeing, and helping people stay active and pain-free. Her approach blends physiotherapy with mindful movement, making her especially effective in treating active individuals and those looking to improve mobility and lifestyle balance. Outside of work, Genna enjoys horse riding, recreational running, yoga, and being a proud mom to two young children.

Wei-Ming Lo

Sports Rehabilitation | Return-to-Sport

Wei has a strong interest in advanced rehabilitation and helping athletes safely return to sport. His focus areas include acceleration and deceleration mechanics, plyometrics, sports-specific training, and conditioning for return to performance. Wei enjoys guiding patients through the final stages of rehab, ensuring they regain confidence, strength, and optimal movement before returning to competition.

Leanne Pratt

Musculoskeletal & Sports Physiotherapy

Leanne has a strong clinical focus on musculoskeletal and sports physiotherapy, regularly treating ankle, knee, hip, back injuries, and muscle tears in active individuals and athletes. She has a particular interest in complex cases and emphasises load management and structured return-to-sport rehabilitation. Earlier in her career she worked in hospital settings treating ICU and post-operative patients across multiple surgical disciplines, which strengthened her diagnostic and clinical reasoning skills. She now works closely with orthopaedic surgeons to support patients through rehabilitation after procedures such as joint replacements and other orthopaedic surgeries

Michelle van der Spuy

Sports, Spinal & Orthopaedic Rehabilitation

Michelle qualified as a physiotherapist in 2021 and gained broad hospital experience across spinal surgery, orthopaedics, women’s health, ICU critical care, reconstructive surgery, and neurorehabilitation. This diverse background has built a strong clinical foundation for her work in rehabilitation. At Birkill Physio she enjoys treating sports injuries as well as spinal and orthopaedic conditions, and has a growing interest in temporomandibular joint (TMJ) treatment. Michelle is currently completing her Advanced Neuromusculoskeletal Course to further enhance her clinical expertise and patient care.

Deidre Birkill

Founder & Lead Physiotherapist

Deidre qualified as a physiotherapist in 2004 and is the founder of Birkill Physios. She holds postgraduate qualifications in Orthopaedic Manual Therapy (OMT) and Sports Physiotherapy, combining hands-on treatment with active rehabilitation to achieve lasting results.

Her approach focuses on identifying the root cause of injury and guiding patients through personalised rehabilitation that restores strength, movement, and confidence. As the founder of Birkill Physios, she is passionate about building a team that delivers high-quality, evidence-based care and helping patients stay active for life.

Outside of the clinic, she enjoys swimming, strength training, dancing, yoga, and spending time in nature and the quiet outdoors.

Interest areas

🦴 Orthopaedic & sports injury rehabilitation
💪 Strength, movement & injury prevention
🌿 Active lifestyle & long-term wellbeing

Georgina

Administation

Farah

Hi, I’m Farah! I’m a physiotherapist who loves helping people move better, feel stronger, and get back to doing what they love. I believe the best rehabilitation starts with taking the time to understand the person behind the injury and their goals, allowing me to create personalised, evidence-based treatment plans that make rehabilitation feel less intimidating and more empowering. I have a special interest in sports rehabilitation, orthopaedics, outpatient care, and paediatrics.

Outside the clinic, you’ll usually find me staying active, keeping up with the latest sporting events, listening to music, trying new places to eat, or getting a little too competitive over a game of 30 Seconds. I believe movement should be enjoyable, laughter is good medicine, and a little encouragement can go a long way.

Karina Ruest

Karina Ruest qualified as a physiotherapist in 2023 from Stellenbosch University in the Western Cape, South Africa. She has since gained valuable international experience working as a physiotherapist in the Austrian Alps.
Karina is passionate about treating neuromuscular conditions, with a special interest in sports injuries, as well as neck and back pain. She is registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) and holds certifications in both Level 1 and Level 2 Dry Needling. In addition, she is a qualified Clinical Pilates instructor.
Her treatment approach combines hands-on manipulative physiotherapy techniques with Pilates-based rehabilitation to create personalised treatment programmes tailored to each patient’s needs and goals.
Outside of practice, Karina enjoys staying active through running and gym training, and values spending quality time with family and friends.