Rachel Brown

Rachel graduated as an occupational therapist in 1995. She has worked in a variety of adult and paediatric services within New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Ireland. Most of Rachel’s practice has been in community settings and included wheelchairs and seating.  She has been in her current role with Enable New Zealand Limited since 2010. This role involves her running wheelchair, seating, and lying support outreach clinics in the lower South Island of New Zealand. In addition to this, Rachel provides clinical advice for requests outside of the outreach setting. She has published two articles on lying supports, one on back supports, and has presented on these topics,  multiple sclerosis, and motor neurone disease (MND) at International, European and Oceania Seating  Symposiums.  

In 2022 she participated in a research study entitled Tele-delivery of complex wheelchair assessment: a comparative case study which was run through the University of Otago, in New Zealand. This study is due to be published, and Rachel will be named as a co-author.

Rachel was on the External Review Group for the World Health Organization Wheelchair provision guidelines that were published in 2023.  

She is currently working on a post graduate research paper with the aim of completing her post graduate certificate. Rachel will work on a manuscript for publication entitled “What impacts do people with motor neurone disease (MND) perceive power wheelchairs have on their health and participation in life roles and activities “. 

Rachel is passionate about wheelchairs and seating, custom fabrication and working with people with MND and multiple sclerosis.

When she is not working, she can be found tramping up a hill, swimming lengths in the pool, on her yoga mat, cooking up a storm in the kitchen or catching up with friends over a chai latte.