Meet Our Team
Matthew Wheatcroft
Proactive Chiropractic Care Owner & Chiropractor
Growing up in New Zealand, Matt pursued sport from a young age and it was on his journey to become a professional cyclist that he discovered chiropractic. Whilst battling a persistent injury that months of rehabilitation and countless specialists were unable to get to the bottom of, it was by chance that he stumbled across chiropractic. The results were so profound, not only was he able to ride injury free, but he won a national title two days later despite a lack of training. This allowed him to continue chasing his cycling dreams, racing throughout Australasia and Europe.
In 2014, Matt turned his focus to training as a chiropractor himself, motivated to help people experience the benefits of chiropractic care that he had witnessed for himself. Studying for five years at AUT and the New Zealand College of Chiropractic in Auckland, Matt graduated with distinction, attaining the gold award for overall excellence, as well as the business award.
In 2021, Matt returned to New Zealand, after living in the Netherlands for three years. Here he worked in and managed a busy clinic in Rotterdam and was able to hone his chiropractic skills, and gain experience in helping a wide variety of people. Matt incorporates a love for human function and performance with a passion for chiropractic and enjoys continually learning what helps people become and stay healthy. Outside of the practice, Matt loves spending time with his wife Julia, their baby girl Lena and Hugo the dog.
Learn more about Matt’s personal journey with chiropractic care.
Serena Dalton
Chiropractor
Serena grew up in Canada and decided to make the move to New Zealand to study at the New Zealand College of Chiropractic. It’s not surprising she was drawn to become a chiropractor, as she has always been passionate about all things health and loves witnessing people on their individual health journeys. Growing up Serena wanted to be a doctor or physiotherapist to help people, she wanted others to experience that health is so much more than not being sick.
Chiropractic care initially made an impact on Serena’s life after she sustained an injury while strength training at the gym. She then continued to receive regular care because it improved so many other areas of her life. After seeing the effects of chiropractic on her own life, a new career path was set, as she seeks to help others that are scared or frustrated dealing with their own struggles. Serena wants to help you achieve a better quality of life and enjoys working with all ages, from young babies, pregnant women, working professionals, families, athletes and anything in between.
People always say to find a job that you love so you never have to work a day in your life, and as a chiropractor, Serena truly loves what she gets to do every day. When she’s not at work, Serena lives a pretty active life and it's common to find her at the gym or enjoying one of the many outdoor pursuits she loves. That list includes; snowboarding, kitesurfing, hiking, camping, cycling, running, swimming and spearfishing!
Thomas Maurer
Chiropractor
Tom was born in Austria, grew up in Canada, and hasn’t looked back since deciding to make the trek over to New Zealand to study at the New Zealand College of Chiropractic.
As an avid athlete when he was younger, he competed at elite levels in soccer and boxing leaving him with many accolades but also many injuries. Tom had a long road recovering from multiple severe injuries. Chiropractic care played a huge part in his recovery and still keeps him feeling and performing at his best today. Tom loves empowering people through their own health journeys and showing people that their bodies are amazing and designed to heal.
Tom has always had a passion for health and helping people reach their optimal potential. He absolutely loves working as a chiropractor and enjoys helping people from all walks of life, whether it’s families, kids, athletes, or weekend warriors. Tom loves to learn and is constantly adding to his knowledge of ways to improve your health.
Tom has lived and worked in Canterbury for the last 2 years and calls it home. He loves getting outdoors for walks as well as other activities like trail runs, skiing, and his current obsession with bouldering.
Shayna Innes
Chiropractic Assistant
When you walk through the front door of Proactive Chiropractic, chances are you will be met at the front desk by our lovely chiropractic assistant, Shayna. Living in Rolleston with her husband and three children, Shayna’s journey with our practice began as a patient herself and we were lucky enough to have her join the team. As a youngster, Shayna’s parents would often take her and her siblings to see a chiropractor if they were injured and she has sporadically seen one as an adult. However, after experiencing ongoing issues with her hip, Shayna saw Dr. Matt here at Proactive and has experienced for herself the benefits of regular adjustments and ongoing chiropractic care.
Working at Proactive Chiropractic heralds a new chapter for Shayna. She spent over 20 years working in a variety of different pharmacy settings including supplying medications to rest homes all over Canterbury, a pharmacy looking after head injury patients and more recently in the mental health sector. After a family member was diagnosed with terminal cancer, Shayna’s priorities shifted and it led her down a path to discover what more was out there and ultimately embarking on a new career with us at Proactive.
Shayna embraces a pretty active lifestyle outside of work and values showing up as the best version of herself daily not only for herself but for the people she cares about., She is an avid runner, enjoys going to the gym and going on bush walks. Most of all, she is at her happiest when she is spending time with her husband, kids and fur babies.
Lauren McCall
Chiropractic Assistant
Lauren is one of Proactive’s friendly chiropractic assistants and she also began her experience with us as a patient herself and has quickly become a valuable member of our team. Born in Christchurch but raised in the always sunny Nelson, Lauren returned south to begin her studies at the University of Canterbury. She is working towards a double degree in Law and Arts, and is discovering a passion for criminal and family law.
Four operations after breaking her ankle at 13, often saw Lauren limping when she was walking and frequent use of crutches and moon boots left her with a sore back. This led her to see Matt here at Proactive and she found a great deal of improvement in dealing with these past injuries and surgeries and gaining better balance and sleep. In seeing the positive impact of chiropractic care in her own life, Lauren wants everyone who walks through our doors to benefit from regular adjustments and see improvements in their own lives.
When she isn’t studying hard towards her qualifications or working at Proactive, Lauren is passionate about maintaining her mental strength. She lost her dad to leukaemia when she was 17 and his positivity and mental strength during his treatment (which spanned 10 years), was a huge inspiration to her. She prioritises her mental wellness through volunteer work (the organisation Canteen is a huge part of her life), eating well and mindfulness exercises like meditation and karate.
Rhiannon Tuatini
Chiropractic Assistant
Bright and bubbly Rhi is one of our chiropractic assistants and she thrives on serving her community and ensuring everyone who walks through our doors has an excellent experience. Rhi grew up as an army kid, so has lived all over the country and even spent a three years in Sydney, but 16 years ago her family moved to Rolleston and she’s still here and loving it!
Rhi has always had a calling to help people and be a teacher, which has led her down various paths over the years, alongside embracing her different passions. She is a qualified scuba diving instructor, has studied and qualified as a personal trainer, and most recently as a barista and co-owner at Coffee Culture.
Now working as part of the Proactive team, it's really important to Rhi that people feel seen and heard, cared about and respected. Especially when it comes to our bodies when we can feel most vulnerable. She wants people to know that she understands how they might feel and that we are here to look after them and support them 110%.
Rhi is a busy mum of two little boys and she loves spending time with her gorgeous wee family. Wellness is a huge focus in Rhi’s life, with exercise and going to the gym being an important part of her day-to-day as it has helped her with both her physical and mental health after having her children. She’s also a big proponent of food being the best medicine and loves to cook and nourish her family with healthy, yummy kai on the daily.
Georgia Trathen
Chiropractic Assistant
Friendly Georgia is one of the first people you’ll meet in your journey at Proactive Chiropractic, working as one of our chiropractic assistants. Originally from sunny Nelson, she moved to Rolleston two years ago and after 12 years studying and working in the hospitality industry she is excited to be embarking on a new chapter.
No stranger to hard work, after studying Professional Cookery at NMIT in Nelson, Georgia opened her own cafe with her mum at just 20 years old. Blackbird Eatery specialised in gluten-free, dairy-free, refined sugar-free and healthy food options, one of the first cafes in Nelson to do so. On top of this, Georgia also ran a cake sidekick, Blackbird Cakery, to indulge in her love of baking and she created all kinds of cakes from birthdays to large weddings. After making the move to Rolleston and managing a busy cafe, she decided it was time for a change and looking for an opportunity for growth and somewhere to make a meaningful impact, she has found her place at Proactive.
Georgia is relatively new to chiropractic care herself but she has already noticed a difference in her sleeping patterns and mobility and she is enjoying hearing about the benefits from our team and our patients. She wants everyone who comes through our doors to experience not only relief from physical discomfort but to achieve a sense of empowerment and wellbeing as they embark on this step in their health journey.
Outside of work, Georgia loves spending time with her two fur kids, Nala, a six year old Rottweiler and Ned, a four year old German Shorthaired Pointer and her partner Brodie, adventuring on different walks and exploring the Canterbury region. She loves discovering new food spots around town and can often be found in the kitchen or out at food markets shopping on the weekends. Plus a round of golf with Brodie and a good dose of pilates and saunas.
Emma Fisken
Chiropractic Assistant
We definitely love recruiting our patients as team members at Proactive and Emma is another one of our chiropractic assistants whose journey started with us as a patient. Emma has recently completed her studies and earned her degree in sport and exercise science, a natural fit given her passion for strength and conditioning. She is incredibly active and loves gym work and training and was previously a long distance runner and grew up playing hockey.
Emma describes her personal experience with chiropractic as life changing, after experiencing extreme lower back pain for several months it was impacting her ability to continue with her active hobbies and lifestyle. It was her mum that suggested seeing a chiropractor and Emma hasn’t looked back since! She wants everyone who comes to Proactive to share in this kind of impact that chiropractic care can have on your overall health and wellbeing.
In her spare time, Emma is an avid reader and one of the main things she loves to do outside of work. She’s also a big fan of camping and tramping, and a highlight for her in 2023 was walking one of New Zealand’s great walks, the Paparoa Track, with her dad.
Lisa Harmonie
Chiropractic Assistant
Lisa is another member of the amazing team here at Proactive Chiropractic, working as one of our vital chiropractic assistants. Born in Dunedin and raised in Nelson, Lisa decided to move to Christchurch after finishing high school for a fresh, exciting start with new opportunities. As an avid volleyball player one of the big draw cards for her move was to pursue her sport and she currently plays for Pioneer Volleyball Club.
Her first experience with chiropractic was a few visits during her childhood and since then she has always been interested in it, especially as she is passionate about natural and holistic health. Since starting as a chiropractic assistant at Proactive and getting regular adjustments herself Lisa has noticed incredible positive changes in herself and her body. In particular she has experienced a significant change in her sporting performance including faster reaction times and better coordination.
Lisa wants all of our Proactive patients to feel immediately light and full of life when they come into our practice and be surrounded by positivity and warmth. She wants them to feel comfortable, welcomed and most importantly put a smile on their face and help them get the most out of their chiropractic care. For Lisa she sees health and well-being as multifaceted and feels her best when her mental, physical, and spiritual health are all positive and aligned, and she wants our patients to experience this also.
Outside of work, volleyball is of course one of Lisa’s greatest passions and she is a summer lover through and through, happily spending hours paddling at the beach or river. She has a big love of cooking and baking, with chocolate banana bread an absolute favourite. She loves discovering new food places and trying new cuisines and spending time with her family and friends fills her cup.
Julia Rutherford
Communications and Operations
Working behind the scenes and occasionally at the front desk is Julia who handles all things communications, marketing and operations that go into the every day here at Proactive Chiropractic Care. Born and bred in Christchurch, this one-eyed Cantabrian is very happy to be back living in the mainland after 10 years spent in Auckland and overseas in the Netherlands. Julia was first introduced to chiropractic to see if care could help her with the headaches she had been experiencing after having viral meningitis. Since then she has been getting regular adjustments to stay on top of these and maintain her general health.
Over the last 10 years, Julia has worked in marketing roles across a variety of industries including; media, retail, destination marketing and international education. Since moving home to New Zealand after almost three years in the Netherlands, she has been enjoying the challenge of establishing Proactive Chiropractic Care with Matt and also re-establishing life here in Christchurch.
Julia is an avid baker in her spare time - there is always a new cookie recipe she is trying out. She is obsessed with her daughter Lena and dog Hugo and loves spending her weekends with them and her husband Matt out on a walk somewhere up the Port Hills or along the beach.