I am an emeritus professor of clinical psychology, Keele University.

My 1982 Fellowship to North America was to investigate new medical research in the treatment of pain. I then established the first pain management programme (PMP) specifically for low back pain in the UK, while working in Salford as a clinician researcher, publishing extensively. I was given personal chairs – firstly at the University of Manchester and then at Keele, where I helped develop psychosocial approaches in primary care.

I have been made an honorary member of the British Pain Society (BPS), the International Association for the Study of Pain and the North American Pain Society and I have been given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the BPS Special Interest Group on PMPs.

I have been particularly interested in prevention of chronic illness, produced the first textbook on multidisciplinary management, developed psychosocial screening, and stratified care in primary care. In the last decade I have majored on the roll-out of psychologically informed practice internationally with a particular focus on training communication skills.

I am immensely grateful for the Fellowship, which has launched four decades of work in pain management.