After graduating from the University of Aberdeen Medical School in 1996, I pursued training in various surgical specialties, anaesthesia and critical care medicine, before embarking on a career in Emergency Medicine (EM). My EM training was broad and involved working in 8 different Departments in the UK and New Zealand. I undertook Higher Specialist Training in Yorkshire, completing CCT in EM and Paediatric EM in 2007. I worked in a consultant role at Leeds General Infirmary and St James's University Hospital before taking up my current position in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and the Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital in September 2008.

At the core, I am a 'jobbing' clinician who very much enjoys the variety and camraderie that comes with working in Emergency Medicine. Though too often 'accidentally at work', outside hospital I am fully occupied with my family and church, enjoy golf and hill-walking, and harbour a closit interests in Ornithology. 

Throughout my clinical training I maintained and inquisitive mind and sought to answer questions. Consequently, I instigated and participated in a number of research projects trying to answer clinically relevant questions that faced me on a day to day basis. Some of these were seen through to publication but I did not have the opportunity to pursue formal academic training.

As a consultant, I have continued to question practice and seek to find the best ways to care for patients. The award of a 3-year NHS Research Scotland (NRS) Clinical Research Fellowship in my early years as a consultant allowed me for the first time to explore the academic world with more purpose and to develop as a researcher. I saw this in 4 strands: to develop my own research skills and collaboartion with others; to become a point of contact and facilitator for any students or trainees wishing to participate in research, to embed research in the Emergency Departments in Aberdeen through participation in Portfolio research studies; and to develop my own projects and ideas to a level where they could become viable for funding.

At the end of the fellowship, I was able to continue with these activities, while continuing in my clinical role through continued NRS support via 'Support for Research' monies.

While I remain interested in many aspects of Emergency Medicine and have now been PI on a wide variety of interventional and diagnostic multicentre studies, my main interest has become around the utility of point-of-care diagnostic testing to improve outcomes in the Emergency Department and also in the pre-hospital setting.

I was awarded a PhD in 2025 - thesis entitled 'Improving the Pre-Hospital Diagnosis of Myocadial Infaarction' and am partaking in an increasing number of collaboarations with researchers within the UK, and internationally.