Raffat studied Medicine in the U.K. She achieved a BSc in Medical Science from St Andrews University, Scotland in 1981. She transferred to Manchester University, England to complete her clinical years graduating with an MBChB in 1985. She was accepted at the Hammersmith Hospital, London for a postgraduate programme in Cardiology which she passed with Distinction. After working for a year at the Cardiothoracic centre at Broadgreen Hospital in Liverpool, she left the U.K to work in New Zealand aiming at achieving her Fellowship in Medicine, Specialising in Cardiology. The was completed in 2000. She spent a post fellowship year at the Prince Charles Hospital in Brisbane specialising in echocardiography. She returned to New Zealand in 2001 and settled in Palmerston North.

She is the founding Director of Manawatu Heartcare which covers general cardiology providing exercise tests including both ECG stress tests and stress echocardiography, ambulatory monitoring, 24 hour blood pressure monitoring, 12 lead ECGs and echocardiography. Her clinical expertise covers coronary heart disease, valve disease, cardiomyopathies and ion channelopathies.

Raffat is a full member of the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand.