Debra graduated from the London College of Acupuncture in 1989. With a practice based in women’s health she commenced acupuncture courses for midwives in 1997. This led to publications on the use of acupuncture and acupressure in pregnancy including her 2006 text book “The Essential Guide to Acupuncture in Pregnancy & Childbirth” which has subsequently been translated into German and French. Dr Betts completed her PhD on the use of acupuncture in threatened miscarriage in 2014.
She is currently an Adjunct Fellow at the National Institute of Complementary Medicine at the University of Western Sydney and the Director of Postgraduate Programmes for an online Masters course through the New Zealand School Acupuncture.
She also supervisors a hospital maternity acupuncture clinic in New Zealand, has numerous publications in peer reviewed journals and lectures internationally on the use of acupuncture in maternity care. She currently resides with her husband in Wellington, New Zealand.