What's been described as a 'life changing' student placement program is helping support current and former service men and women. Uni SA's 'WAVES' program pairs up physiology students with military personnel and first responders and has shown to greatly improve both physical and psychological health in participants, earning itself a funding boost to continue its crucial work.
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00:00Dave's life turned upside down when he was diagnosed with cancer in 2017.
00:07I made a pact with myself that if I got through the treatment and things went in the right
00:13direction that I would make an all-out effort to try and get myself fitter.
00:18He's now doing that with the help of the younger generation as part of the WAVES program.
00:23Run by third-year students from UniSA, the program is open to first responders and service
00:28people, offering them a physical exercise and recovery strategy.
00:31They basically run the show, so they program exercises for the participants, they test
00:37participants, they take them into the gym and actually put them through the program.
00:42But it's not just beneficial for the participants, with students getting a crucial head start
00:46to their careers in physical therapy.
00:48I think it is so valuable for everyone that steps forward, from a student, from a participant,
00:53from a staff level, like it's so valuable, you get some really good connections.
00:57WAVES is supported by military and emergency services health charity MESHA, which just
01:02handed over another $275,000 to expand the program's support to families.
01:08Even overseas this is seen as a gold standard project and I know internationally people
01:14are looking to this program.
01:16Karen May hopes WAVES will inspire other programs like it to fill the ever-growing need for
01:20physical and mental support across the country.
01:23There have been veterans that have moved here, literally, to access this program.
01:27So it would be lovely to see other universities looking at how they might embrace or whether
01:32government can support funding this kind of initiative in the future.
01:36To conclude his two years with the program, Dave ran the New York Marathon last November,
01:41a feat he says he wouldn't have been able to achieve without WAVES.
01:44My colleagues at work have told them about the program and they've seen the difference
01:50it's made in my life.
01:52It has been life changing for me.