Sandra graduated from the University of Sydney in 1985 with a Bachelor of Veterinary Science. She initially worked in mixed practice in northern NSW, then returning to Sydney and working in companion animal practice for over 30 years. After completing a Master of Public Health in 2014, she gained a PhD in One Health through the Sydney School of Veterinary Science, with a focus on preparedness and response to zoonoses and emerging infectious diseases. Through this she explored pathways and barriers to operationalisation of One Health in Australia, investigating current capacity and preparedness of front line medical and veterinary practitioners and their interaction with existing governance and health systems. Post-PhD, Sandra has worked at the Melbourne Veterinary School teaching Veterinary Epidemiology and One Health as well as working with Asia Pacific Consortium of Veterinary Epidemiology (APCOVE), a project working to strengthen field veterinary epidemiology capacity in the Asia Pacific region.