Rate My Professor Sharnee Diamond

Sharnee's academic journey began unconventionally; leaving school at 16, she trained as a dental therapist in a practice in Sydney, Australia, after missing a connecting flight. Returning to New Zealand, she worked several years for Lumino the Dentist in Auckland while studying NCEA exams at night school and taking supporting papers at Auckland University of Technology. Encouraged by her boss, she and her brother became the first in their family to enrol in university, moving to the University of Otago to pursue a Bachelor of Biomedical Science (BBiomedSc) majoring in Functional Human Biology. She valued the flexibility and relevance of her degree, particularly research-based assignments in the third-year physiology paper PHSL 345. In her current teaching role, she serves as contact for the postgraduate paper MAOH401 Hauora Māori Advanced Practice, a practice-oriented course that strengthens knowledge of Māori health equity through Te Ao Māori, leadership, whānau-centred care, and innovative service design aligned with Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Her research specializations include rural health and social support, highlighted by the 2019/20 Otago Medical Research Foundation Summer Research Scholarship project 'Aging in rural communities: access to specialized support,' supervised by Associate Professor Chrystal Jaye. A key publication is Diamond, S., & Jaye, C. (2020). Meeting the social support needs of older rural people in Central Otago: The impact of a pilot social work position. Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work, 32(2), 131-141. Through these contributions, Sharnee positively impacts health and education systems for rural Māori communities.