Professor Elizabeth Halcomb is an experienced academic nurse leader. After being awarded her PhD in 2016, she was employed at the University of Western Sydney before taking up the position as the inaugural Professor of Primary Healthcare Nursing at the University of Wollongong, one of only two Australian professorial appointments specific to primary healthcare nursing. She leads a strong research programme in primary care nursing, with particular emphasis on nursing in general practice, chronic disease and nursing workforce issues. She also undertakes research around learning and teaching in nursing, evidence based practice and research methodology.
Professor Halcomb has a strong track record of publication, with over 150 peer reviewed papers, and 32 book chapters published since 2001. Her 2009 “Mixed methods research for nursing and the health sciences”, published by Wiley-Blackwell, was the first nursing mixed methods research text. In 2017 she co-edited the Australian-New Zealand text “An Introduction to Community and Primary Health Care 2nd ed.”. This text has now been published in the UK and Europe and a new edition is being published in 2020. Additionally Professor Halcomb has led the writing of two national professional practice standards for primary care nurses. Since 2004 Professor Halcomb has been an Investigator on grants totalling over $6.16 million. She has been an invited speaker at 16 national and international conferences and co-authored 160 conference presentations.
Professor Halcomb has a sustained nationally and internationally recognised track record of integrated scholarship. Her most significant contribution has been her research around the emerging role of Australian nurses in general practice and their contribution to multidisciplinary health service delivery in the community. She has also laid the foundations for mixed methods nursing research internationally. She has led research in a range of workforce issues including; exploring the nursing role and the barriers and facilitators to practice, job satisfaction, advanced clinical practice and understanding the professional practice environment. Additionally, Professor Halcomb has led research around clinical issues, including; consumer satisfaction, lifestyle risk factor reduction interventions, health screening interventions and collaboration between doctors and nurses. Throughout all of this work Professor Halcomb has focussed on ensuring that the knowledge generated has been built on the synthesis of existing knowledge and that key findings and implications have been translated back into practice and policy. Through her advocacy and leadership, her research has highlighted the issues around this emerging speciality and advanced nursing in primary care.