Rate My Professor Sally Bristow

Associate Professor Sally Bristow is a nursing academic in the School of Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of New England. She holds a Bachelor of Nursing, Graduate Diploma in Midwifery, Master of Nursing, and Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing and Midwifery from the University of New England, completed between 2018 and 2021. With more than 30 years of experience in nursing and midwifery, including clinical roles at Royal North Shore Hospital and in remote Aboriginal communities in Far North Queensland, she progressed at UNE from Lecturer in Nursing to Senior Lecturer, Associate Professor of Nursing, and Discipline Lead for Nursing. She contributed to the School of Health Teaching and Learning Committee and currently serves as Adjunct Associate Professor at UNE alongside her role as Associate Director, Accreditation Services at the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council.

Bristow's academic interests center on chronic conditions, disability, and the experiences of mothers, particularly rural mothers caring for children with chronic health conditions, including access to specialist care and maternal resilience. Her key publications include 'The rural mother's experience of caring for a child with a chronic health condition: An integrative review' (Journal of Clinical Nursing, 2018), 'Rural mothers’ feelings of isolation when caring for a child chronic health condition: A phenomenological study' (Journal of Child Health Care, 2021), 'Conquering the great divide: Rural mothers of children with chronic health conditions accessing specialist medical care for their children' (Collegian, 2020), 'Understanding maternal resilience; Lesson learnt from rural mothers caring for a child with a chronic health condition' (Journal of Clinical Nursing, 2021), and chapters 'Self-management and empowerment' and 'Disability' in Chronic Care Nursing: A Framework for Practice (2019). She received the Tertiary Education Impact Award from the UNE Oorala Aboriginal Centre for supporting Indigenous students. In 2025, she served as an Associate Investigator on an inaugural Cardiovascular Research Network grant addressing rheumatic heart disease. Bristow teaches nursing courses such as the Bachelor of Nursing and Master of Nursing Practice, emphasizing compassion, advocacy, rural health care, and increasing Indigenous nurses and midwives.