Debra Betts

With a background in neonatal intensive care nursing Debra entered into the study of Traditional Chinese Medicine in London, graduating in 1989 from the British College of Acupuncture.

Returning to New Zealand she started a private practice promoting acupuncture for women’s health issues, with a focus on teaching support people acupressure techniques that could be used for pain relief in labour.

In 1994 she was offered a teaching position with the New Zealand School of Acupuncture as a clinical supervisor where she continues to lecture on traditional Chinese medicine theory for first and third year students.

In 1997 she developed and ran her first specialised acupuncture course for midwives on the practical use of acupuncture for midwifery practice. Following the expanding range of pregnancy related conditions being successfully integrated into midwifery practice, further courses were developed.

In 1999 she published her first article in The Journal of Chinese Medicine to encourage the use of acupressure in labour. This was followed by further articles on treating obstetric conditions and led to her book The Essential Guide to Acupuncture in Pregnancy & Childbirth.

Her ongoing work with midwives led to the publication of a research paper on the use of prebirth acupuncture in the journal Medical Acupuncture May 2006.

In 2006 she was a guest lecturer on Obstetrics for the University of Western Sydney’s post graduate Masters Programme in Australia and at the Integrated Acupuncture Seminar for Obstetrics in London.

She currently resides with her husband and three children in Wellington, New Zealand.

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