John Woods is a survivor of early-life domestic abuse. Following high school, he studied then practiced medicine, but for mental health reasons was compelled to abandon specialist training, spent lengthy periods unemployed, and eventually left the profession. With considerable support and mentorship from work colleagues and others, during the past decade he has re-established stable employment and completed a PhD examining the quality of palliative care provided to Indigenous Australians. Currently working as a researcher at The University of Western Australia, he has contributed to various projects investigating health services quality, epidemiology, therapeutics, education of health professionals, and family/domestic violence.