I have been engaged in the study or practice of Chinese medicine in one form or another for half my life now. After spending a year studying Mandarin at Shanghai University as part of my Chinese Studies degree with University College Cork I enrolled in Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, eventually obtaining an advanced certificate in Acupuncture and Tuina. A few years later I got my Masters of Science in Chinese Herbal Medicine from the University of Westminster.

My relationship with Chinese / East Asian medicine is multi-faceted and always evolving. As a practitioner my focus is on chronic conditions, mental-emotional manifestations of illness and respiratory conditions both chronic and acute. I am a part-time lecturer and masters supervisor with the Northern College of Acupuncture in York. As student liaison officer for the UK - Taiwan Academy of Traditional Medicine I bring qualified acupuncturists and herbalists to Taiwan to study with and observe the great doctors there in both private clinics and public hospitals.

As consultant practitioner with Herbprime Chinese medicine suppliers I assist with the testing and marketing of their innovative and environmentally-friendly products and clinical equipment. In this capacity I have also visited Taiwan to photograph and film Sun Ten Pharmaceuticals, who produce world-class herbal medicines grown and processed to the highest quality. These are the herbs I prescribe in my own clinic.

Lately my focus has been on the need for secure and sustainable herbal medicine supply chains to ensure the vital role I believe herbal medicine will play in global health in the near future, as well as the people working on the frontlines of these issues. On a smaller scale, in my clinical work I am fascinated by the roles of ritual and environment on the health of individuals and finding ways to incorporate this into practice.