The fitness industry and the exercise physiology industries were rocked this week with a stunning conviction of a man who defrauded Medicare claiming that he was an Accredited Exercise Physiologist.

Close to half a million dollars was claimed over a 5 year period by the man. His Provider Number with Medicare was provided after he forged a Certificate from the governing body which is Exercise and Sport Science Australia (ESSA). The certificate included a forged signature from a retired president and even had the old name of the governing body which was AAESS (Australian Association of Exercise and Sport Science). You can read the full article from the Sydney Morning Herald here.

Needless to say, these events and the resulting 2 year conviction of the man have the potential to cast a shadow over our industry. So today I wanted to take the opportunity to remind you what kind of exercise professionals you get at Longevity.

1. Each Professional in our team has a minimum bachelor degree health and/or exercise science.

The minimum standard for personal trainers working one-on-one with clients in the industry is a Certificate IV in Fitness. This course can be completed online, across several weekends or at TAFE.

Our personal trainers have spent a minimum of 3 years studying in their field at University AND they have their Certificate IV AS WELL. Some have postgraduate and Master qualifications.

Our Exercise physiologists have studied a minimum of 4 years at University and are required to be accredited with ESSA. They are registered with Medicare, Private Health Funds and WorkCover NSW.

“This makes Longevity one of the most qualified exercise professional teams working in a gym setting anywhere in Australia.”

2. Our Team Have Comprehensive Insurance Cover

The team at Longevity have comprehensive insurance cover including professional indemnity and public liability. This is not only a conditional requirement of their employment with Longevity but an industry standard that is compulsory with their professional accreditation.

3. First Aid and CPR Qualifications

Our team are required as a condition of their employment and their professional accreditation to have current First Aid and CPR Qualifications.

4. We are committed to Professional Development

Every week, the Longevity team sit down for 2 hours to further our skills as exercise professionals. As the founder of Longevity I have always seen this as the MOST IMPORTANT 2 hours of the week. It allows us to discuss openly client challenges, specific health conditions, and evidence-based exercise prescription. This TEAM approach is unique to Longevity and it provides for better client outcomes as well as more highly educated and informed staff.

5. We Refer to Our Network to Enhance Client Outcomes

There are many gung-ho personal trainers who become overzealous in treating their clients outside of their scope of practice. Writing diet plans, providing massages, rehabilitating injuries without a diagnosis or liaising with the treating doctor.  We encourage our staff strongly to develop skills in nutrition, psychology, diagnostics, pathology, chiropractic, osteopathic, massage therapy and related health fields but we NEVER step outside of our scope of practice.

That is why we have developed a network of allied health professionals that we can not only refer you to for specialised help but can provide a supportive health team around you. It is a patient-centric approach that is rare in our medical system. Many of our partners provide discounts to our regular clients. Make sure you ask your trainer or Exercise Physiologist for more details.

“We aim to be the exercise expert in relation to your health and understand that a collaborative approach with other health professionals is the best way to achieve overall health”

6. Our Credibility is Linked to the Vision of the Business

Our vision is to change Australia’s attitude to life, death and disease through exercise. It is simply not possible to do this without the support of our respective professional bodies. We take our commitment to professional standards very seriously and we make this commitment knowing that our clients health should always be our first priority.

 

By Jarrat Wood

B Sc (Health and Sport Science)

Cert IV Personal Trainer

L1 Athletics Coach

Founder of Longevity