Dr Tracey Pons (PhD)Tracey is the first registered Physiotherapy Pain Specialist in New Zealand. This designation was awarded in 2016. She works in private physiotherapy practice in Kaiapoi, North Canterbury. With the University of Otago, she was awarded with distinctions; a Post Graduate Diploma in Health Sciences endorsed in Musculoskeletal Management in 2008; later a Master of Health Sciences, in 2012. She was awarded her PhD in 2019.
Tracey has a passionate commitment to understanding persistent pain for the elderly. The elderly hold the baton from their past to share and hand onto us, the next generation, their valuable experiences. Tracey pursues in a clinical practice, and exploring with research how pain interacts with mental health; affects well-being; functional ability; and everyday decision making, in the context of persistent pain. For the elderly, there can be difficult challenges: they may wish to maintain independence, or not burden their extended family. In this modern world, regular support, or celebrations of milestones may be limited since extended family may be abroad or estranged. |
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Tracey seeks to encourage the collaboration of physiotherapists with the broader interdisciplinary team in the management of persistent pain. She currently chairs the Physiotherapy in Mental health specialist interest group with the New Zealand professional body; and is also actively involved with The International Organisation for Physiotherapy in Mental Health. Her work in clinical practice and research includes international level peer reviewed publications, keynote conference presentations, and numerous courses for continuing education and growth of the Physiotherapy profession to understand and manage persistent pain.
