About Us
Welcome to Forest Allied Health
Forest Allied Health provides a diverse range of home-based Occupational Therapy (OT), Physiotherapy and Exercise Physiology services in the Northern Sydney area including the Northern Beaches, North Shore, Hornsby area, Epping, Ryde and Hills District. Forest Allied Health provides home or community-based services for adults and young people so that you can be assessed within your home, work or leisure environment. To see the range of services provided please look at our Services page.
Operating within NDIS since 2017 as Forest Occupational Therapy, we are the same fantastic team just with a brand new name!
Forest Allied Health is committed to providing Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy and Exercise Physiology services that are person centred and goal driven. Your therapist will work with you to restore function, optimise safety and facilitate independence. We pride ourselves on providing comprehensive functional assessments and writing high quality reports to support applications for admission to the NDIS, applications for Assistive Technology, Supported Independent Living Funding, Specialist Disability Accommodation or to ensure appropriate supports are identified for NDIS Plans.
All our therapists are highly experienced, AHPRA registered and members of OT Australia.
Inquiries are welcome from individuals, family members and carers, GP’s, community care service providers, residential care facilities, support coordinators and other allied health or medical practitioners.
Our Therapists
Ilona Cook
Principal Occupational Therapist
Since graduating from The University of Sydney in 2000, Ilona has worked as an Occupational Therapist in a range of public and private hospitals, community-based services, aged care facilities, disability services and case management. Ilona established Forest Occupational Therapy in 2015 and has been working with NDIS Participants since 2017. At the commencement of 2021, with an expanding team of committed and talented therapists, Ilona was excited to launch Forest Allied Health.
Ilona is a dedicated and compassionate therapist who understands the needs and potential difficulties people may have due to either illness, disability, post surgery or a following a fall.
Ilona has a special interest in living skill development including cooking, budgeting, travel training and other daily activities.
In her free time Ilona enjoys relaxing with her husband, children and two adorable Whippets, camping, Pilates, binging TV series and going on adventures with Scouts.
Annarie Hildebrand
Occupational Therapist
Annarie has over 20 years’ experience working in a variety of clinical settings in adult disability and mental health. Annarie has worked both in Australia and the UK. She has extensive experience including working as a rehabilitation consultant and case manager within various insurance schemes, providing expert opinion and medico-legal reports, and within hospital and community settings. Annarie is an APHRA registered Occupational Therapist and is FIM accredited.
Annarie is passionate about facilitating and supporting individuals and families to reach their maximum potential and capacity to live independently and reach their goals. Annarie has a specialist interest in mental health and home modification and enjoys the challenge of finding creative solutions for complex problems and situations.
In her free time, Annarie enjoys printmaking, ceramics, cycling and camping with her husband and three children.
Sheraan De Souza
Sheraan is a Senior Occupational Therapist with over 25 years of experience, including 10 years in an adult inpatient mental health unit where she provided clinical care and led the occupational therapy team. She has worked extensively with adults and adolescents with mental health conditions, neurodivergence, cognitive challenges, and trauma-related backgrounds.
Sheraan adopts a strengths-based, recovery-oriented approach, using evidence-based interventions to support clients in achieving their meaningful goals and living their “life worth living.” She has expertise in working with NDIS participants, including conducting Functional Capacity Assessments, identifying appropriate supports and accommodation needs (SIL/SDA), and building functional skills for daily living.
Sheraan is also experienced in providing sensory assessments and supports clients to understand and apply their sensory profiles to enhance emotional regulation and increase engagement in daily activities.
Outside of work, Sheraan is a busy mum of two who enjoys creative pursuits such as jewelry making and cake decorating – and fitting in exercise when she can.
Lucy Acheson
Occupational Therapist
Cathy Ciesla
Occupational Therapist
Jowita Lee
Occupational Therapist
Julie McMurtry
Physiotherapist
Lauren Walker
Physiotherapist
Kirstin Hopkins
Occupational Therapist
Kirstin is an experienced Occupational Therapist with a special interest in Mental Health, who qualified in South Africa, before working in London and then settling in Sydney in 2009. Her experience includes acute inpatient, rehabilitation and community settings. Kirstin has worked in the private sector since 2019, providing OT services to NDIS participants with a psychosocial disability.
Kirstin works collaboratively and compassionately with her clients and their families/ carers, by supporting them to develop the skills they need to empower themselves, in order to live their best lives. Areas of experience include working with adults who have diagnoses of Schizophrenia, Mood disorders, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Anxiety. She is a passionate advocate for respectfully supporting Neurodivergent individuals and their unique functional and sensory support needs. Kirstin is committed to ongoing professional development, particularly values learning from those with a ‘lived experience’, and regularly engages in training, courses and conferences, to ensure adherence to current best practice.
Kirstin is able to assist NDIS participants and their families/ carers with identifying appropriate levels of support and accommodation needs, as well as building capacity with respect to functional and vocational skill development. Kirstin works to support positive engagement with all her clients, including the use of sensory approaches to support emotional regulation and enable enhanced participation in day-to-day and other meaningful activities.
Kirstin is a mum to two busy boys who keep her on her toes! Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family, appreciating nature and the beautiful outdoors.