Rate My Professor Maria Constantinou

Dr Maria Constantinou is Professor of Physiotherapy at Southern Cross University, serving as the university's inaugural holder of this position within the Faculty of Health. She holds qualifications including a Bachelor of Physiotherapy (BPhty), Graduate Certificate in Education (GradCertEd), Master of Physiotherapy Studies (Sports) (MPhtySt(Sports)), and PhD. Recognized as an Australian Physiotherapy Association Titled Sports and Exercise Physiotherapist, a Fellow of the Australian Sports Medicine Federation, and a Registered International Sports Physical Therapist, she brings over 25 years of experience in clinical practice, teaching, and research. Her career includes 14 years in hospitals and aged care before specializing in sports physiotherapy. Constantinou led the development and delivery of the Master of Musculoskeletal and Sports Physiotherapy at Griffith University in 2007 and the Master of Sports and Exercise Physiotherapy at Australian Catholic University in 2022. She has taught and presented in over 25 countries, mentored sports physiotherapists globally, and secured New Colombo Plan grants for physiotherapy student clinical placements in the Asia-Pacific region via in-country and telehealth programs. She supervised numerous honours, postgraduate research, and PhD students in sports and musculoskeletal physiotherapy and teaching scholarship. Constantinou contributed to major events including the Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004 Olympic Games, Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, Melbourne 2006 and Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games (as GOLDOC Polyclinic and Team Physiotherapy Programs Coordinator), Port Moresby 2015 Pacific Games, and Vanuatu 2017 Pacific Mini Games. She served on the Executive Board of the International Federation of Sports Physical Therapy from 2011 to 2019 and the Sports and Exercise Physiotherapy Australia committee from 2008 to 2023.

Her research focuses on sports injury prevention and surveillance, athlete profiles, physical activity, therapeutic taping in sports, gait and function in hip osteoarthritis, competencies for sports physiotherapists, and scholarship of teaching and learning. Key publications include 'The Effects of Rigid and Elastic Adhesive Tape on Pain in Musculoskeletal and Sports Conditions: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials' (2025), 'Effectiveness of gait retraining interventions in individuals with hip or knee osteoarthritis: A systematic review and meta-analysis' (2022), 'Spatial-Temporal Gait Characteristics In Individuals With Hip Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analysis' (2014), and 'Sports injury prevention programmes from the sports physical therapist's perspective: An international expert Delphi approach' (2022). Currently, she coordinates the physiotherapy course and leads development of Southern Cross University's new Bachelor of Physiotherapy, pending approval for delivery at Coffs Harbour in 2025 and Lismore in 2026.