DAVE BAKER – Clinical Director

Dave Baker

QUALIFICATIONS: BSc (Hons) Physiotherapy MCSP SRP  

Dave is one of the pioneers of physiotherapists performing ultrasound guided injections. With 20 years of clinical experience as a chartered physiotherapist specialising in musculoskeletal care, Dave is clinical director at Complete Physio Ltd, with extensive extended scope and advanced practice experience. Dave also holds a post as honorary lecturer at Brunel University teaching on post-graduate diagnostic ultrasound training program.

Dave is one of the few physiotherapists to complete his training to PG Certificate level as a musculoskeletal sonographer and combines this with his extension experience as an injection specialist.

Dave is Chairman of professional network and national clinical interest group Association for Chartered Physiotherapists with an interest in Orthopaedic Medicine and Injection Therapy (http://www.acpomit.co.uk/). Having recently been nominated by his professional body – The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (http://www.csp.org.uk/) Dave has accepted a 3 year appointment as Specialist Adviser to NICE’s Interventional Procedures Programme reviewing evidence of safety and cost effectiveness for a range of musculoskeletal injection procedures.

As one of the first physiotherapists in the world to be fully trained as an independent prescriber of medication Dave has represented his profession on national media. Dave also works as freelance lecturer and guest speaker and teaches at a number of higher education institutes on topics relating to pharmacology and medicines management (https://chewshealth.co.uk/tpmpsession42/).

Dave’s unique skills enable him to  assess, diagnose and treat musculoskeletal conditions with use of ultrasound guided injections and medications alongside his specialist physiotherapy skills. Dave is honorary lecturer at Brunel University and teaches ultrasound scanning and ultrasound guided injections nationally and internationally as part of the www.theultrasoundsite.co.uk established teaching faculty. Clinically Dave has performed over 1000 guided injections per year since 2007 for a wide range of musculoskeletal conditions and performs a number of advanced techniques including barbotage, hydrodistension and high volume procedures. Dave is one of the first physiotherapists in private practice to offer Platelet-rich Plasma injections for osteoarthritis and tendinopathies.

Dave’s experience from working in a range of settings e.g. sports teams, A&E injuries, and chronic musculoskeletal pain services has given him highly refined clinical assessment skills which coupled with ultrasound can provide a comprehensive diagnosis for planning treatments and performing guided injections. Dave says ‘We are extremely proud to offer our unique ‘one-stop-shop’ service to patients. Being able to fully clinically assess the patient and perform an ultrasound prior to injection allows us to make the most tailored decision regarding injection technique, drug selection and dosage in order to get the best possible treatment outcome’.

Publications

Noblet, T., Jadhakhanb, F., Bennett, A., McCrum, C., O’Shea, S., Hensman-Crook, A., Barratt, P., Regan, P., Ronan, L., Baker, D. and Rushton, A., 2022. A multi-site prospective, observational study of physiotherapist independent prescribing activity in musculoskeletal clinics across seven healthcare locations in England. Physiotherapy, 114, pp.e24-e25.

Smith, C.B., Baker, D., Botchu, R., Cairns, M., Chester, R., Dean, B., Mast, R. and Lewis, J., 2023. Corticosteroid injections for non-spinal musculoskeletal conditions: Consideration of local and systemic adverse drug reactions and side effects. New Zealand Journal of Physiotherapy, 51(3), pp.217-232.

Smith, M., Innes, S., Wildman, S. and Baker, D., 2023. A proposed framework for point of care musculoskeletal ultrasound and ultrasound image-guided interventions by physiotherapists: scope of practice, education and governance. The Ultrasound Journal, 15(1), pp.1-13.