Kath McPherson started professional life as a nurse (at Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney) before becoming a midwife and health visitor in Scotland later doing a psychology degree at the Open University and PhD at Edinburgh. She is currently Emeritus Professor at AUT having been Deputy Vice Chancellor there from 2019 to 2022 and Chief Executive of the Health Research Council of New Zealand from 2015-2019. Kath's own research interests are in rehabilitation particularly looking at how healthcare could be more humane and responsive to people's real world contexts. Not being ready for retirement when she finished being DVC, Kath now runs a consultancy supporting early career academics and providing research grant advice. She volunteers at the Citizen's Advice Bureau (a great organisation), and recently completed training in mediation.