Jean freely admits her research interests are not everyone's cup of tea, or idea of dinner party conversation. Nothing silences a group faster than “well, my master's research investigated painful sex after childbirth, and my PhD looked at pelvic floor muscle training for urinary incontinence”, which is her stock answer to the question “what is your research about?”
Jean completed her PhD in 2003, at the end of a three year Health Research Council Training Fellowship based in the Department of Women's and Children's Health.
Since then, Jean has returned to an academic position (a combination of research, teaching and service) and continued to progress, being promoted to Associate Professor in 2014.
While employed principally as an Associate Professor in Rehabilitation (Jean was originally a physiotherapist) at the University of Otago, Wellington, she remains passionate about continued research collaboration with staff in the Department of Women's and Children's Health and is delighted to supervise postgraduate students completing research in this area. Jean is no longer registered as a physiotherapist and does not hold a practising certificate.