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Margaret Bullock (physiotherapist)

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Margaret Irene Bullock AM FTSE (née Roberts, born 24 March 1933) is an Australian former professor in physiotherapy at the University of Queensland and pioneer in the field of ergonomics.

Early life

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Margaret Irene Roberts was born in Brisbane, Queensland on 24 March 1933.[1] She attended Brisbane Girls Grammar School.[2] Margaret enrolled in the University of Queensland in 1951, becoming one of the first two students to graduate with a B.App.Sc in physiotherapy and occupational therapy in 1955.[3]

Career

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Margaret tutored in the Department of Physiotherapy at UQ from 1955 to 1957.[4] She married engineer and UQ graduate Keith Bullock in 1957,[5] and they moved to Boston, USA during his Fulbright Scholarship. Margaret Bullock, as she was now known, worked as a physiotherapist at Massachusetts General Hospital while her husband worked at Harvard University.[5] They returned to Australia in 1960, where Margaret worked as a lecturer.[4] She was also a physiotherapist with the Spastic Centre in Brisbane. Her two children were born during this period.

In the late 1960s, Bullock began research into the measurement of body movements, leading to an extensive study of physiotherapy practice and ergonomics of workspaces in vehicles and aircraft cockpits.[4][6]

She took her PhD from UQ in 1973, the first person in the world to take it in physiotherapy.[3] Following her graduation, she became Head of the Department of Physiotherapy at UQ, and retained this position until 1987. She was Deputy President and President of the UQ Academic Board from 1986 to 1990.

She became Australia's first professor of physiotherapy in 1978.[3]

Bullock retired from the university in 1999,[6] and she was granted emeritus Professor status.[4] Margaret's husband, Keith Bullock died in 2015.[5] She has been a visiting professor at Harvard University, Tufts University, and in Sweden.

Memberships and awards

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References

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  1. ^ "Family Notices". Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 – 1933). 28 March 1933. p. 10. Retrieved 25 August 2017 – via Trove.
  2. ^ "Prof Margaret Bullock – an exceptional pioneer" (PDF). Brisbane Girls Grammar School. 2015.
  3. ^ a b c "Physiotherapy pioneer to speak at ceremony". UQ News. The University of Queensland. 7 December 1998. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  4. ^ a b c d e Ailie Smith (1 August 2007). "Bullock, Margaret Irene". Biographical entry. Encyclopedia of Australian Science. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  5. ^ a b c "Obituary – Professor Keith Bullock" (PDF). Salt. Saint Andrew's Uniting Church, Brisbane: 8–9. April 2015.
  6. ^ a b "Ergonomics pioneer retires to a busy life". UQ News. The University of Queensland. 21 March 1999. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  7. ^ "BULLOCK, Margaret Irene - Member of the Order of Australia (AM)". It's an Honour. Australian Government. 26 January 1997.
  8. ^ "BULLOCK, Margaret Irene - Centenary Medal". It's an Honour. Australian Government. 1 January 2001.
  9. ^ "Australian of the Year Awards". Archived from the original on 30 August 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2017.