NEWS: MD Tom Heeley becomes associate lecturer at University of Derby

October 12, 2022 Martin Crowson

Optimum owner and MD Tom Heeley has become an associate lecturer at the University of Derby.

With more than a decade of experience in the sports therapy sector, Tom is looking forward to joining a thriving team amidst the university’s expanding sports facilities.

His position is part-time and he is working with Year 2 students on their sports rehab module for the 2022/23 academic year.

“I was thrilled to be considered and it is a great privilege to be involved with a university that is forward-thinking and very much on the up,” said Tom.

Nurturing new students

“It is a position that I have been interested in for while. I like the idea of supporting and nurturing new students and giving them the benefit of the experience that I have had over the last 10 years within clinic and professional sport.

“I can teach them some of the things that I wasn’t aware of when I started and hopefully give back some ideas so they can go on and become great therapists themselves.

“I am looking forward to passing on different experiences that I have had, different ways of working and different practices. But there’s so much more to being a sports therapist and working with sports teams closely with aspects of the role like: how to deal with managers, players, coaches and staff.

Rehab skills

“Within a clinic scenario, I can offer advice on traditional assessments and rehab skills as well as: when to refer a client for an MRI scan, when to send for an X-Ray and how to make that call, plus, where to look for costs, insurance purposes and other things that I didn’t learn at university.

“The sports facilities at the University of Derby look great and it sounds like they are looking to make more progress by expanding the sports centre and facilities to give more opportunities for students in the future.

“The chance to work for such a great university is something that I am very much looking forward to and I am privileged to have that chance.”

Tom’s work at the Optimum clinic in central Derby will remain unchanged.