Angie Savva WINS Practitioner of the Year at the Australian Traditional Medicine Society (ATMS) Natural Medicine Awards 2019!

I was absolutely thrilled and incredibly humbled to receive the award of “Practitioner of the Year” at last Saturdays’ Australian Traditional Medicine Society (ATMS) Natural Medicine Awards 2019. 

These awards were instigated in 2016 as a way to recognise the outstanding achivements of natural therapists demonstrating excellence in their field, as well as making significant contributions to the natural medicine profession.

​​ATMS is Australia’s natural leading natural medicine association, who have stated that ‘the calibre and volume of entries was impressive’, which makes me feel incredibly proud and privileged to be the recipient of this prestigious award.  

With honoured guest, Marcus Blackmore

​The ATMS Natural Medicine Awards cover three categories – Practitioner of the Year, Student of the Year, and Clinic of the Year. There were four finalists in each category that had been flown in from all over Australia.

It was wonderful to be in the room with such an amazing group of passionate, dedicated natural health practitioners, and I was lucky enough to be seated with two inspiring Chinese Medicine practitioners who were fascinating to talk to. There were naturopaths, massage therapists, herbalists, nutritionists and many others in the room.

At the Awards Gala, we were lucky enough to have uplifting and inspirational speeches from Professor Stephen Myers, a highly respected academic and passionate advocate of complementary medicine, and honoured special guest Marcus Blackmore. There was a very positive energy in the room as we were all united by a common goal of raising the profile and standard of complementary medicine in Australia for the benefit of all Australians.  

With honoured guest Marcus Blackmore, and Highly Commended Award winners Robert Gentile, Adam Tate and Jess Billiau

​​I was honoured just to be in the room and to be a finalist, but when it was revealed that I had indeed won the title of “Practitioner of the Year” it was so intensely exciting that I felt as though I was about to float up to the ceiling.

​Walking up to the stage was a bit of a surreal experience as I couldn’t quite feel my legs. I think this photo of me receiving my award is hilarous as you can tell by the expression on my face that I can’t quite believe it is happening!

Receiving my award from the President of the ATMS, Peter Berryman.

​Even though I wasn’t expecting to win, I had prepared a speech just in case. I didn’t get the opportunity to read it on the night, which is most likely for the best as I probably would have cried! But I would like to publish it below to give recognition to some of the people who have made this win possible. 
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Thank you so much!
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This is such an incredible honour and a thrill. It’s going to take a while for this to feel like this is really happening - this acknowledgement means so much to me.

It is such a privilege to be in a room with so many talented, dedicated practitioners and supporters of natural medicine. I’d like to extend another congratulations to my fellow finalists, I think you are all amazing and the world is a better place for all of you living your purpose.

Thank you ATMS, for organising these awards as a way to acknowledge members of the natural health industry, and for all you do to promote natural therapies in the wider community. I promise that winning this prestigious award will only reinforce my burning desire to be the absolute best practitioner I can be, every single day.

A special thank you to my handsome husband Julian, for always believing in me, and for his inexhaustable support, love and encouragement.

I’d also like to thank all the wonderful family, friends and colleagues that have been a part of my journey so far….truly none of us can do this alone, and I’m so grateful for all the support I have received from so many people in my life.

Finally, I’d like to dedicate this award to someone very special to me, without whom I both literally and figuratively wouldn’t be standing here, and that is my mum, Vicki Savva.

I would have loved for mum to be here with me tonight, but currently she is in the middle of battling cancer for the second time in her life, this time in her brain. The last few months have been very challenging for all of us as a family, but her continuing positivity, courage, and unwavering belief in the body’s ability to heal itself serves as a constant inspiration for me.

I’d like to honour mum for her contributions to my natural therapies career. Back in the 1970s, she trained as a naturopath and a massage therapist, and even though she chose to be a stay at home mum when my brother and I arrived, her respect and love for natural therapies was a constant influence in my life growing up, and we were exposed to all sorts of weird and wonderful things!

It was mum who first showed me the power of Chinese medicine, back in around 1990, when she had a condition that the doctors said could only be treated with surgery. She found a great Chinese Medicine practitioner to try treating it naturally first, and I have a very vivid memory of her telling me with pride, how disbelieving her doctors were, when after a few months of acupuncture and Chinese herbs, there was no longer any need for surgery.

It was my mum who took me to her acupuncturist straight away when at 19 years old, I injured my back the day before I was set to go on a backpacking trip around the world. I needed to be carried into the clinic, but after only one treatment I walked out of that room, got on the plane the next day, and took on the world.

And it has been my mum who has been my number one fan all through my long years of study to become a Chinese medicine practitioner, and through the many trials and tribulations I have faced over the last 10 years to build myself a sustainable practice doing what I love. Without her, this award would not have been possible, and so I accept this award in honour of her.

Thank you.