Infrared Sauna now available. Book solo or with friends
Infrared Sauna now available. Book solo or with friends
The clear choice for chiropractic care on the Fleurieu Peninsula. A genuine part of this community.
McLaren Vale Chiropractic Centre has been serving the local community for many years. It is the kind of practice where patients bring their children, their parents, and eventually their grandchildren. Where the reception staff know your name before you reach the desk. Where a new patient from Aldinga might mention that her sister has been coming here for fifteen years.
Dr Kara Martelle grew up in Texas and crossed the Pacific to attend the New Zealand College of Chiropractic, one of the most respected chiropractic colleges in the world. She graduated in 2016 with the Academic Excellence Award, finishing first in her class. She spent several years working in practices across Australia before she and her husband Phil found their way to the Fleurieu Peninsula and decided this was where they wanted to put down roots.
“Living and working in the same community allows us to be part of the larger fabric of life here,” Dr Kara says. “We are active in local organisations and charities. We love being able to contribute to a healthier, happier community.” She sponsors the McLaren Vale Tennis Club. She and Phil fundraise for the Country Fire Service. They attend the same events and shop at the same local businesses as their patients.
Phil Martelle brings his own background to the practice. Fifteen years in the Australian Army, followed by an MBA. He manages the business side of the clinic with the same attention to detail and commitment to outcomes that shaped his earlier career. Appointments run on time, and the administrative side never becomes a source of friction.
Dr Kara graduated from New Zealand College of Chiropractic in 2016, finishing first in her class with the Academic Excellence Award. Originally from Texas, she practised across Australia before settling in the Fleurieu Peninsula with Phil. Her clinical focus is corrective care and long-term spinal health. Outside the clinic, she is active in local community organisations and has a genuine investment in McLaren Vale’s long-term wellbeing.
Phil spent 15 years in the Australian Army before completing an MBA and joining Dr Kara to run the practice. He manages the business side of the clinic — scheduling, operations, patient experience, and the behind-the-scenes work that keeps everything running. His military background shows up in the details: appointments run on time, the systems are reliable, and patients never feel like the administration is a problem they have to work around. He is also Dr Kara’s husband, which means the practice really is a family business in every sense.
Phil spent 15 years in the Australian Army before completing an MBA and joining Dr Kara to run the practice. He manages the business side of the clinic — scheduling, operations, patient experience, and the behind-the-scenes work that keeps everything running. His military background shows up in the details: appointments run on time, the systems are reliable, and patients never feel like the administration is a problem they have to work around. He is also Dr Kara’s husband, which means the practice really is a family business in every sense.
Kamila is the first person you see when you walk in and the last voice you hear when you call. She manages patient bookings, follows up on forms and referrals, and is the reason the front desk feels warm rather than clinical. Multiple patient reviews specifically mention her by name. “Phill and Camilla are always waiting at the desk with a smile as you walk through the door,” wrote one patient — and that is exactly what she brings to every shift. If you have a question before you book, she is the right person to call.
Not everyone comes in with the same goal. Some patients want to function normally again. Some want to get back to sport. Some are dealing with conditions that have been accumulating for years and are quietly affecting everything else in their life.
This is one patient’s story, shared from the About page of the existing clinic website. It is representative of what the team see regularly: people who arrive with a problem that has been limiting them in ways they have learned to work around, and who leave with a life that looks meaningfully different.
One patient began care with the simple goal of being able to walk from the parking lot to her office without pain. She was battling several health issues and facing the prospect of sitting on the sidelines while her husband enjoyed retirement. With regular care focused on spinal correction and relieving stress on the nervous system, she is now energetic and looking forward to actively enjoying retirement with her husband.
Patient story — McLaren Vale Chiropractic Centre
Dr Kara and Phil are part of McLaren Vale in the real sense. They live here, contribute here, and are accountable here. Here is what that looks like in practice.
Dr Kara is an active member of the MVBTA, the organisation that connects and supports McLaren Vale’s business community. Supporting local means showing up in the structures that make the town work.
The practice has an established history in McLaren Vale. Some patients have been coming since before Dr Kara took over. Their children come now. Their grandchildren are starting to come. That continuity is the strongest possible measure of community trust.
