A pioneer in the field of pelvic health physiotherapy in Australia, Dr Judith Thompson has been a force in physiotherapy across continents and disciplines for nearly 45 years. 

From early ambitions formed in the UK to her recent efforts supporting women’s health in the Himalayas, Dr Judith Thompson's legacy is one of innovation, empathy and dedication. 

Judith FACP is best known today for her leadership in continence and pelvic health physiotherapy but her journey into this specialised field began with a pivot that many working parents will relate to. 

After a decade immersed in spinal cord injury rehabilitation, Judith welcomed her first child.

‘I realised that I couldn’t work full-time with a baby; we had no family here in Perth,’ she says. 

‘So I studied pregnancy and birth and I became very interested in women’s health.’

This interest became a new calling. Judith enrolled in a postgraduate diploma in continence and women’s health at Curtin University, joining one of the first cohorts to complete the course. 

‘That started my pelvic health career. My daughter is now 33, so I’ve been practising pelvic health physiotherapy for nearly 33 years—I started when she was six months old,’ Judith says.

It was a career move supported by her close-knit group of pioneering colleagues. 

‘We were the foundation of continence and women’s health here in Perth. I feel very privileged to have been with that group,’ Judith says, naming Sue Jones as a pivotal early mentor.

As Judith’s expertise grew, so did her collaboration with leading minds. One particularly enduring partnership has been with Professor Peter O’Sullivan FACP. 

‘We’ve known each other for 35 years and are good friends,’ Judith says. 

‘Peter came to Perth to do his clinical master’s in musculoskeletal physiotherapy at Curtin University and, as we had previously worked together in the spinal cord injuries unit in Christchurch, New Zealand, we reconnected.’

The friendship later inspired a business partnership; Judith formed Body Logic Physiotherapy with Peter and Chris Perkin FACP.

Peter’s passion for research inspired Judith to complete her PhD, under Peter’s supervision, on pelvic floor movement assessed through ultrasound—a topic that emerged from their shared interest in patients with complex pain presentations and the interplay between the diaphragm and the pelvic floor.

Her PhD took eight years to complete while raising two children, a testament to Judith’s dedication and passion. 

The research was instrumental in understanding pelvic floor muscle function in women with incontinence and prolapse, and her work became foundational to future treatments and physiotherapy education.

A passion ignites

Judith’s impact has gone beyond the patient at hand. 

A long-time advocate for education, Judith was instrumental in reinstating and developing the postgraduate clinical master’s program in continence and women’s health at Curtin University, alongside Anne Andrews FACP, a Specialist Women’s, Men’s and Pelvic Health Physiotherapist (as awarded by the Australian College of Physiotherapists in 2010), and APA Titled Continence and Women’s Health Physiotherapist Jill Nyman MACP.

‘When we started the Curtin master’s course I thought, “I’ll finish my PhD by February and we’ll start teaching in July.” 

'Well, I handed in my PhD in June and we started the course three weeks later,’ Judith says. ‘It was a pretty intense time.’

Judith taught on the program for 15 years, until the COVID-19 pandemic shifted the teaching landscape. 

Ever humble, Judith passed over the reins to the ‘tech-savvy younger crew’ while continuing to mentor the next generation of specialists. 

‘I love the interaction with students,’ Judith says. ‘I feel it’s an absolute joy to see the passion on their faces as they develop their skills.’

Judith’s reputation also led her to become the first physiotherapist in Australia to train as a Specialist Women’s, Men’s and Pelvic Health physiotherapist (as awarded by the Australian College of Physiotherapists in 2008). 

Encouraged by peers including Peter and Chris, Judith took the exam despite the absence of a formal training program at the time.

Since then, Judith has helped encourage the next generation of women’s, men’s and pelvic health physiotherapists to become specialists, including her own mentor and co-supervisor for her PhD, Dr Trish Neumann FACP, and other candidates Dr Marg Sherburn FACP and Professor Helena Frawley FACP.

‘We were all doing our PhDs around the same time and became lifelong friends. We needed more clinical specialists and I encouraged them to take the College exams,’ Judith says.

They included colleagues and friends Dr Libby Oldfield FACP, Genevieve McGlashan FACP, Shan Morrison FACP and Anne.

‘We’ve now got a big group of pelvic health specialists promoting pelvic health in the community in Australia,’ she says. 

Judith is currently the chief examiner for the Australian College of Physiotherapists and also served on the APA’s Western Australia branch committee for more than 15 years, having signed up as an APA member in 1992.

Education leads the way Judith is passionate about educating physiotherapists and other healthcare practitioners about pelvic health conditions. 

‘The impact that pelvic health issues can have on other chronic pain conditions has been under-recognised,’ she says. 

‘There are so many women with low back, hip or pelvic girdle pain who may have pelvic health comorbidities such as incontinence, irritable bowel syndrome, painful bladder syndrome or endometriosis… and could be offered pelvic health physiotherapy.’

‘It’s helpful for patients to understand how all these symptoms might feed into each other,’ she says. 

Judith Thompson doing some fundraising with Australian gynaecologist Dr Ray Hodgson in 2019.

Judith sees physiotherapists as uniquely positioned to address this complexity.

The evidence supporting physiotherapy in treating incontinence, prolapse and pelvic pain has strengthened. 

When Trish completed her PhD studies in the early 2000s on targeted pelvic health physiotherapy for incontinence and prolapse, she showed that over 80 per cent of women with stress incontinence had improvement in their symptoms at a tenth of the cost of surgery.

However, Judith notes that public awareness and referral pathways still lag behind. 

‘Pelvic health physiotherapy has strong evidence so it is about educating other health professionals that surgery shouldn’t be the first option,’ she says. 

‘We also need more physiotherapists with skills delivering these interventions.’

Judith’s research, much of it published in international journals, has helped build this evidence base. 

Recent studies collaborating with Trish, Dr Rebekah Das and Dr Jane Chalmers at the University of South Australia include investigations into prolapse and pessary management and the psychological aspects of pelvic pain. 

She has important international collaborations with Carolyn Vandyken (Canada) and Jilly Bond (UK), investigating sensory motor dysregulation in the pelvis. 

Judith is also actively involved in the Pelvic Pain Foundation of Australia and has recently promoted a local Western Australia pelvic pain networking group to support national education and advocacy campaigns.

Early years in the UK

Judith’s clarity of purpose is remarkable and it has been with her since she was 16 years old, growing up in the UK. 

‘I always wanted to be a physio and have loved every single day of my career,’ she says.

Judith trained at Guy’s Hospital in London and began her career at Southampton General Hospital, gaining broad experience through rotations. 

From there, she took a year to work in a hydrotherapy centre in Switzerland—a chance to combine travel, skiing and early career learning. 

Judith’s passion, though, was spinal cord injury rehabilitation. That took her back to the UK and to Stoke Mandeville Hospital, north-west of London. 

The hospital was well known for its spinal unit and connection to the birthplace of the modern Paralympic Games movement. 

From here, Judith travelled to New Zealand to work at the spinal cord injuries unit at Burswood Hospital, Christchurch. 

It was here that she met her now-husband Geordie, who was involved in organising sport for people with disabilities.

‘I always say spinal cord injuries are the ultimate rehab challenge. You need to use every skill you have to get people back to active life after a catastrophic injury,’ Judith says. 

‘One of my first patients was young, 14 or 15 at the time. He was a motocross rider who had fractured his back and was in a wheelchair. 

'Despite his injury, he went on to qualify for the British Paralympic team and won a silver medal on his 21st birthday.

‘I still keep in contact with his family; it was just so lovely to see that even though his life had completely changed, he said, “How lucky am I? I’ve got this amazing opportunity to be able to really excel in a sport!” rather than “How unlucky am I to have broken my back?” 

'It’s wonderful to see people getting back to an active life. We still exchange Christmas cards.’

Eventually, Geordie’s work brought the couple to Perth; their partnership—personal and professional—has spanned decades and countries.

A Himalayan connection

In recent years, Judith’s deep empathy and global awareness have taken her beyond Australia. 

A pivotal moment came when she heard a radio interview with Dr Ray Hodgson, an Australian gynaecologist working to improve women’s health in rural Nepal. 

His book Heartbreak in the Himalayas inspired Judith to act. She learned that Ray was fundraising to build a mothers’ and children’s hospital in the Charikot region of Nepal, in the Dolakha district.

‘I thought, “Oh my goodness, this is what we have to support,”’ Judith says. 

‘Over there, if women have prolapse and their uterus is protruding out, they literally can’t walk. Everything is walking up hills in Nepal. They can’t function.

‘The new hospital is being built in an area that’s about six hours from Kathmandu on the bus,’ Judith says. 

‘It is adjacent to another hospital so they’ve got more facilities and it’s going to be a teaching and outreach hospital. 

'The doctors and midwives from rural communities will come in to learn about maternity and gynaecological care and then take that knowledge out to the regions.’

In 2019, Judith and her clinic began fundraising for Ray’s charity. A modest start raised $2500. 

The money was donated through Ray’s website and he contacted Judith to thank her for the donation. 

She asked if physiotherapists could volunteer for the project. However, at that time, what Ray really needed was doctors and engineers.

In 2023, Judith and Geordie joined a two-week fundraising trek to Nepal, raising a further $14,000 and visiting the soon-to-open hospital, under construction by Ray’s team.

This wasn’t her first time in Nepal. Before leaving New Zealand, Judith took six weeks to trek to the Everest and Annapurna base camps. 

‘That was my reason for going to New Zealand in the first place, so I could go to Nepal on the way home,’ she says.

‘I just never ended up going back to the UK. To be in those mountains in Nepal again… I can’t even describe the beauty. And the people are just fantastic.’

The recent trip rekindled Judith’s love for the Himalayas and affirmed her desire to return—not just as a tourist but as a contributor. 

‘There may be an opportunity to go back and do physio teaching once the hospital is up and running,’ she says. ‘I’ve told Ray I’m keen.’

Looking ahead

Now a senior figure in the field, Judith continues to work as the clinical director at Pelvic Health Clinic in Perth and she
consults on research, education and policy. 

Judith remains involved in research on pelvic organ prolapse and pain and she is passionate about physiotherapy’s potential to transform lives.

Recent policy shifts are heartening, Judith says. 

Government funding for endometriosis and menopause treatment is increasing and education programs such as those led by the Pelvic Pain Foundation are reaching schools and workplaces. 

‘We’re finally making women’s voices a bit louder,’ Judith says.

Judith is also encouraged by the increasing awareness of men’s pelvic health, particularly post-prostatectomy rehabilitation. 

‘That’s getting more airtime and it’s very treatable,’ she says.

Her message for future pelvic health physiotherapists is clear. ‘If this is your passion, get the training. A postgraduate course opens up a whole world. Once you’ve done that, you’re going to help so many people.’

Even as she continues to mentor, teach and advocate, Judith’s work is far from done. 

Whether in Perth or in the Himalayas, she embodies what it means to live a life of purpose, anchored by compassion and driven by a profound belief in the healing power of physiotherapy.

Cause helps to save lives 

Australians for Women’s Health is a volunteer-led charity working to improve the lives of women in rural Nepal through access to safe surgery, reproductive care and maternal health services.

Founded by Australian gynaecologist Dr Ray Hodgson, the organisation operates in remote areas where conditions such as pelvic organ prolapse can be life-limiting due to lack of care. 

Judith and her hospital’s clinic have supported the charity through fundraising, awareness campaigns and joining a fundraising trek to see the under-construction hospital.

Based in Port Macquarie, New South Wales, the charity is building a dedicated hospital for women and children in Nepal, which will provide training for local doctors, midwives and nurses. 

With support from volunteers and donors, the charity aims to bring lasting change to maternal health in the Himalayas.

Learn more or donate here.  

COURSE OF INTEREST: Women’s Pelvic Health Level 1— Part B