Imagine if your next doctor visit lasted 60 minutes as opposed to the standard 10-15, if your health concerns were deeply listened to, test results decoded and a plan for wraparound care put in place…
This is where personalised healthcare clinic, Autonomy, comes in – offering a holistic approach to anyone looking to embrace the advancement of lifestyle medicine as a preventative measure against the diseases of modern life.
One of the key figures at the helm of Autonomy is co-founder Dr Ula Heywood, a woman dedicated to ensuring that modern healthcare providers be so much more than an ambulance at the bottom of a cliff. The inspiring professional began her career as an emergency medicine specialist in the public health system, including an exhilarating time flying as a Westpac Rescue Helicopter doctor, which she describes with a smile as being “a job I imagined I’d still be doing at 65, before the universe intervened”.
And intervened it most certainly did, in a most brutal fashion – when a tourist crossed to the wrong side of the road while driving and hit the doctor’s car head on. After nine months in recovery she was medically retired from her job with the Westpac Helicopter as the heavy lifting of patients was no longer an option.
“I quickly realised I also couldn’t fulfil some of my most important tasks in the emergency department, such as resuscitating and intubating people, which for a doctor is incredibly physical,” says Ula. “I felt like all the ‘fun’ had been taken away from me, but I knew I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life behind a desk.”
A growing passion for precision medicine was sparked however, when she connected with a sports scientist and geneticist working in the field of preventative health.
I have spent many years looking after very unhealthy and unhappy people, and knowing I can now make a real difference to their outcomes is so rewarding.
“They were focused on the reversal of type 2 diabetes using a ketogenic diet, high intensity interval training, and time restricted eating – and they were actually doing it,” she says. “It aligned with my concerns at the time that, too often, healthcare workers were simply functioning as the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff. I’d seen firsthand that a literal tsunami of chronic disease was overwhelming staff at hospitals everywhere, and drugs were being prescribed for disease symptoms as opposed to addressing the root cause of people’s illness. It was like putting a Band-Aid on a bullet wound, but being able to address a person’s lifestyle would just take too much time for the average health worker.”
This layer of frustration had been simmering within her for years, and when the opportunity to co-found Autonomy was presented in 2021 she saw that “there really was a way to do it, through preventative health and lifestyle medicine, and ways of healing people that aren’t currently available in the public health system”. Ula adds that she’s the first to admit “I would never have seen myself going down that road, but it has become my absolute passion”.
“I have spent many years looking after very unhealthy and unhappy people, and knowing I can now make a real difference to their outcomes is so rewarding,” continues the doctor. She calls the public health care system “more of a disease-care system, waiting until people get really sick before action is taken,” whereas at Autonomy, the focus isn’t on a disease symptom or single organ, but on the whole person.
The main driver is metabolic health — the body’s ability to efficiently convert food into energy while maintaining a healthy body composition and blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol levels. It reflects how well your body manages key metabolic processes to reduce the risk of chronic conditions such as Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke and dementia.
The team refers to what they do as “functional medicine 3.0” – a new generation of healthcare combining medical advances, habit science, and monitoring technology to tailor personal health programmes. For new patients, the Autonomy journey begins with a Discovery Consultation, a one-hour, medically-led deep dive with nurse-led testing, a 3-D body scan, and a doctor who listens. You’ll get a bird’s eye view of your metabolic health and what sort of action you might need to take to address any areas of real concern.
Many patients find that, for perhaps the first time, they can access the knowledge, tools, and medical guidance to take control of their health. Clarity, not confusion. A plan, not just a prescription. Then, with the right strategy, the right doctor, and the right coach in their corner, they are well-equipped to transform their health and look ahead to a future where they can play with their grandchildren, travel the world or keep up with their friends on the golf course – because everyone’s goals are unique.
