Bernard Van Tonder

My professional career is grounded in a longstanding commitment to pre-hospital emergency care, health professions education, medical rescue and the development of competent, practice-ready emergency care professionals. With approximately 25 years of experience in emergency medical services and 20 years in emergency care education, I bring together operational expertise, academic leadership and research to contribute to the development of the emergency care profession.

My operational experience spans primary response, emergency medical services operations management, helicopter emergency medical services, intensive care transfers, remote-site medical provision, and search-and-rescue operations. I have also participated in international disaster response, including a deployment to Malawi following flooding in 2015. These experiences have shaped my understanding of the complexity of pre-hospital care and inform my teaching by connecting theoretical knowledge with the realities of clinical decision-making, teamwork, adaptability and patient safety.

My academic career at the University of Johannesburg included lecturing, undergraduate research supervision, curriculum development, assessment design and programme management. As programme manager for the Diploma and Higher Certificate in Emergency Medical Care, I contributed to programme quality assurance, academic leadership and the development of graduates prepared for professional practice. My appointment as a board-appointed moderator for the Health Professions Council of South Africa’s Professional Board for Emergency Care further strengthened my engagement with assessment standards, fairness and educational quality.

My teaching approach is student-centred, inclusive, evidence-informed and reflective. I encourage students to ask meaningful questions, critically evaluate information and develop strategies to solve complex professional problems. I regard authentic clinical learning and rigorous assessment as essential to preparing graduates for independent practice. This philosophy also informs my research into clinical competence and assessment, including my doctoral work developing COMPASS-EC, an instrument designed to support the assessment of emergency medical care students in authentic pre-hospital settings.

My broader research interests include paramedicine education, simulation-based learning, graduate work readiness, assessment validity, medical rescue, patient pathways and emerging technologies in emergency response. My publication on unmanned aerial vehicles in wilderness search and rescue reflects my interest in translating research into practical improvements in emergency and rescue operations.

At Flinders University, I aim to contribute to high-quality teaching, collaborative research and ongoing professional development. I remain committed to critically evaluating and refining my own practice, strengthening the relationship between education and clinical care, and supporting graduates who are capable, reflective and responsive to the evolving needs of patients and the communities they serve.