Dr. Rebecca Francis is a certified practicing speech pathologist and Flinders University speech pathology lecturer, teaching in the areas of motor speech disorders and anatomy and physiology of communication and swallowing.  

Rebecca completed her Bachelor of Speech Pathology Honours degree in 2018. In 2025, she completed her PhD which focussed on cognitive and behavioral changes in MND and the interaction with dysphagia (impaired swallowing) management. Her aim is to improve care for families affected by MND, and her interests are in health care research, implementation science and the lived experience.

Rebecca is currently leading a research study funded by MND Australia and MND SA, partnering with people with lived experience of MND to determine their preferences for learning about and managing cognitive and behavioural changes in MND. She is also a member of the Australian MND Guidelines Clinical and Content Advisory Group and Research and Policymaker Advisory Group.