Rebecca Dunphy
I am an Advanced Practice Physiotherapist, having studied BSc (Hons) Physiotherapy at Queen Margaret University In Edinburgh. Since qualifying as a Physiotherapist, I specialised in musculoskeletal rehabilitation, and developed a keen interest in public health, especially health promotion. Most current role is a First Contact Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist in Primary Care.
It was because of my interest in health promotion that I chose to study for a masters in public health with a particular focus on health promotion at the University of Glasgow. It was my masters research project that in turn sparked an interest in research and specifically in using exercise and education as tools in illness prevention.
Additionally, as part of my masters I studied socioeconomic determinants of health and have an interest in inequalities in health both here in the UK and globally. I currently am involved in a global health project in Malawi, supporting rural healthcare projects, working on the development of a maternity service in one of the poorest areas of Malawi. I have also been the lead Champion for global citizenship for NHS greater glasgow and clyde for the last 5 years, aiming to support global health partnerships within NHS GGC.
Finally, as a competitive runner and coach, I believe both theoretically and experientially in the benefits of exercise and the importance of movement and strength for health, and I love helping others to experience this for themselves.
This project allows me to combine my interests in a unique and exciting way. I will be considering how exercise and education can reduce multimorbidity in those who are awaiting joint replacement surgery. This is a particularly relevant topic given the recent increase in surgical wait times and the increasing complexity of surgery in multimorbid patients.
Project: The role of physical activity, exercise, and education based prehabilitation for people with multimorbidity awaiting joint replacement surgery
Primary Supervisor: Dr Andrew J Murphy (University of Dundee)
Secondary Supervisors: Prof Lesley A Colvin and Prof Jacqui Morris (University of Dundee) , Mr Graeme Nicol; Mr Andrew Suttie (NHS Tayside, Trauma and Orthopaedics)
