Joy's key roles at CSU are promoting the advancement of professional practice and education through collaborations in research, scholarship, student supervision, education, organisational change and networking.

Joy's research interests are linked to professional practice (professional decision making, the nature of practice across professions, practice wisdom, the changing shape of professions in work and society), higher education quality, professional education (particularly socialisation, expectations of graduates), practice-based education (particularly pedagogy, workplace learning, curriculum frameworks) and qualitative research strategies.

Joy has produced many publications including 29 books in professional practice, research and education. Recent book titles include: Practice-Based Education: Perspectives and Strategies; Educating health professionals: Becoming a university teacher; Realising Exemplary Practice-Based Education; Communicating in the Health Sciences; Creative Spaces for Qualitative Researching … Living Research; Education for future practice; Researching practice: A discourse on qualitative methodologies; Writing qualitative research on practice; Clinical Reasoning in the Health Professions; Being Critical and Creative in Qualitative Research.

 Joy has worked for over 25 years as an educator, scholar, researcher and research supervisor at The University of New South Wales, The University of Sydney and Charles Sturt University. She has held appointments as visiting scholar and consultant to a number of Australian and international tertiary institutions. In 2004 Joy received a Member of the Order of Australia award for service to health science education through course development, academic and administrative contributions and research into teaching methods. Joy is a member of the Australian Learning and Teaching Fellows Network.