16- Anniken Chadwick on Building a Trauma-Informed, Values-Driven Physio Clinic
Building a physiotherapy clinic that protects and empowers both clients and clinicians requires more than good intentions. It requires structure, clarity, and leadership that is willing to do the hard work.
In this episode of Health of Business, Danielle Boyd speaks with Anniken Chadwick, founder of The Cheerful Pelvis, about how she built one of Canada’s most thoughtful pelvic health clinics using trauma-informed care, employee-based models, and outcome-driven systems.
Connect with Anniken: https://www.annikenchadwick.com/
The Cheerful Pelvis: https://www.thecheerfulpelvis.com/
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What we cover in this episode:
Why burnout is driven more by emotional weight than workload
How clinician self-awareness improves patient outcomes
The Cheerful Pelvis client-clinician matching system
Protecting new grads with tiered caseloads and mentorship
Weekly in-services and consistent feedback culture
Using policies as support, not control
Commissioned employee models and outcome-based compensation
Why tracking discharge outcomes beats productivity metrics
Leadership mistakes and lessons learned the hard way
How tiered pricing protects staff and empowers clients
What defines a truly healthy business
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction and why this conversation matters
02:55 Danielle’s business pivot and why business literacy matters in physio
06:05 Anniken’s journey from the NHS to Canadian private practice
12:30 Solo practice, waitlists, and opening a clinic just before COVID
15:45 Why “The Cheerful Pelvis” name matters and centering emotion in care
18:40 Trauma, emotions, and the unseen weight clinicians carry
21:30 What actually causes burnout in physiotherapy
28:00 Client–clinician matching and why it improves outcomes
31:45 Protecting new grads and supporting learning curves
35:30 Hiring for values instead of autonomy
41:10 Weekly in-services, mentorship, and feedback culture
47:00 Using policies as support, not control
49:15 Who supports the clinic owner and leadership coaching
53:30 Commissioned employee models and compensation philosophy
59:00 Tracking outcomes instead of productivity metrics
01:05:30 Leadership mistakes and hard-earned lessons
01:10:45 Tiered clinicians, pricing transparency, and client choice
01:16:00 What Anniken is most proud of as a clinic owner
01:18:00 Coaching other clinics and clinicians
01:22:40 Advice for opening a values-driven clinic
01:25:50 What defines a healthy business
01:27:00 How to connect with Anniken Chadwick
Keywords:
healthcare, pelvic health, burnout, client experience, education, clinic management, emotional awareness, team building, physiotherapy, wellness, team cohesion, clinician support, leadership, compensation models, client outcomes, clinic ownership, mentorship, healthcare, business strategy, professional development
trauma-informed physiotherapy clinic,values-driven healthcare business,client-centered physiotherapy care,physiotherapy clinic ownership,employee-based physio clinic,burnout prevention in physiotherapy,healthcare leadership and clinic culture,pelvic health physiotherapy leadership,sustainable physiotherapy practice,women in healthcare leadership