Kate Roberts

Experience

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  New Zealand School of Acupuncture

  Jan 2004 - Mar 2023

  Lecturer and Clincial Supervisor

  Senior staff member teaching theory, practical and clinical papers. Involved in course development, delivery, assessment and moderation.Chair of the research sub committee

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  Bendy Buddha Ltd

  Jan 2011 - now

  Director

  Senior acupuncturistBusiness directorClinic manager

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  University of Otago

  Mar 2015 - Mar 2020

  PHD

  My doctoral research program utilized a mixed methods multiphase design: with both qualitative and quantitative inquiry. The convergent analysis of the various phases of the data provided a platform for the development of a communication and collaboration toolkit. Additionally a comprehensive and innovative approach to coding rigour and process allowed for a specialist and deep level of qualitative analysis to emerge. This detailed process ensured that the findings of this project would enable translation across many health care sectors. This has already been incorporated into current practice in the form of DHB clinical pathways, communication templates, education programs and strategies, strategic and policy documentation and educational opportunities. The tools developed as part of my research are considered to be practical and accessible by participants with immediate clinical utility.This project has the potential of improving healthcare outcomes through better inter professional communication and by contributing to better trans-cultural understandings on healthcare issues. The successful development of an implementation tool kit holds value within the health sector as its translation will be easy to adopt for many health sector relationships. The results of this thesis, whilst looking at the communication model between acupuncture and primary health care, will have easily generalizable findings for other necessary inter professional communication strategies. This is the first time that the role and potential of the relatively untapped resource base of complementary and alternative medicine within the health sector has been investigated within a New Zealand context. Show less

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  Acupuncture for Mental Health Clinical Group

  Jan 2017 - now

  Chair

  ​The Acupuncture for Mental Health clinical interest group (AMH) publicly promotes and advocates the use of acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine as a valid, safe and effective treatment modality for mental health care. The AMH team engage with all levels of mental health, including research, policy, education and hands on clinical practice.

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  Acupuncture New Zealand

  Aug 2017 - Aug 2019

  Executive Council Member

  Responsible for the joint executive management of a large professional body. Duties include; stakeholder engagement, budget management, project management, event planning, strategic planning, policy and governance documentation, submission writing, internal and external complaints procedures.

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  ACC

  Dec 2017 - Feb 2019

  ACC Acupuncture Expert Reference Group

  Participation to support the development and interpretation of the evidence-based review of the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for a range of musculoskeletal conditions.

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  Chinese Medicine Council of New Zealand

  Sept 2022 - now

  Professional Advisor

  Devlopment of regulatory documentation for the Chinese medicine profession and stakeholder engagement