Stella is Senior Lecturer in Medical Education at the Centre for Medical Education (CME), School of Medicine, University of Dundee. Stella is the lead for quality assurance and enhancement for the Masters in Medical Education (MMEd) programme and contributes to learning, teaching and assessment across the MMEd programme. Stella’s career started in physiotherapy, working in the public and private sector, mainly in the musculoskeletal field. In 2000-2004 she undertook doctoral studies related to the experience and management of pain in rheumatoid arthritis. Following these studies, Stella moved into academia, working as a lecturer and then senior lecturer in physiotherapy at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh (2004–2014). Stella joined the Medical School in 2014.

Research interests include: exploration and evaluation of interprofessional education; healthcare students’ perspectives on professionalism and the relationship between emerging professional and digital identities; methods to support student engagement in curriculum development, evaluation, advancement of understandings of ‘quality’ in assessment and the use of network technologies to enhance learning.

Hunter, C., MacIver, D., Howden, S., Forsyth, K., Adamson, A. and Bremner, L. (2013). Identification of a common language describing paediatric physiotherapy practice for children with additional support needs to support communication with those outside the physiotherapy profession. Physiotherapy, 99, (1):84-91. Howden, S. Cable, S., Al Harrasi, S., Dhomun, L., Duffy, B., Jessa, F., Lamont, J., McCormick, A., McLean, L. and Selfridge, A. (2011). Evaluating a strategy to assist undergraduate healthcare students to gain insights into the value of interprofessional education experiences from recently qualified healthcare professionals. Higher Education Academy: Health Sciences and Practice centre. Available from http://www.health.heacademy.ac.uk/projects/miniprojects/completeproj/ [Accessed 3 March August 2014]. MacIver, D. Owen, C. Flannery, K. Howden, S. Forsyth, K. Shepherd, C. and Rush, R. (2011). Services for children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD): the experiences of parents. Child: Care, Health and Development, 37 (3), 422–429. Bulley, C., Salisbury, L., Whiteford, S., Donaghy, M., MacKay, E. and Howden, S. (2009). A prospective qualitative exploration of views about attending pulmonary rehabilitation. Physiotherapy Research International. 14, 3: 181-192. Forsyth, K., MacIver, D., Howden, S., Owen, C. and Shepherd, C. (2008). Developmental Co-ordination Disorder: A synthesis of evidence to underpin an Allied Health Professions’ Framework. The International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 55, (2): 153-172. Forsyth, K., MacIver, D., Howden, S., Owen, C. and Shepherd, C. (2008). I still can’t tie my shoelaces: developmental co-ordination disorder: a review of evidence and models of practice employed by allied health professionals in Scotland. Discussion Paper. NHS Scotland, Edinburgh. Available from: http://www.healthcareimprovementscotland.org/default.aspx?page=13594 Glover, P., Bulley, C. and Howden, S. (2008). Influences on physiotherapists when deciding to study at Master's level: an exploratory study. Advances in Physiotherapy, 10 (1): 14-20. Howden, S. Pain and rheumatoid arthritis. In: Twohig, P.L. and Kalitzkus, V. (2008) Social studies of health, illness and disease: perspectives from the social sciences and humanities. Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi. Forsyth, K., Howden, S., MacIver, D., Owen, C. and Shepherd, C. (2007). Developmental Co-ordination Disorder: A Review of Evidence and Models of Practice Employed by Allied Health Professionals in Scotland. Produced for NHS Quality Improvement Scotland (QIS). Available from: http://www.healthcareimprovementscotland.org/default.aspx?page=13594