Professor Lyle Palmer

Scientific Director

Professor Palmer is an internationally renowned geneticist and epidemiologist who is expert in the genetics of complex respiratory diseases. He plays key roles in a number of clinical teams in Australia, the UK and the US involving genetics research into asthma, sleep apnea, cardiovascular disease, cancer, fetal growth regulation and diabetes. His group is also active in methodological research in statistical genomics and medical informatics.

Professor Palmer is the Foundation Chair in Genetic Epidemiology at the University of Western Australia, where he is also a Professor in the Schools of Medicine & Pharmacology and Population Health. He is the founder of the Laboratory for Genetic Epidemiology in the Western Australian Institute for Medical Research. Before returning to Western Australia in mid-2003, he was an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and the Director of Statistical Genomics at the Channing Laboratory, Boston.

Professor Palmer has been recognized for his leadership role in biomedical research by numerous awards, including Fulbright and Churchill Fellowships. In 2001, Professor Palmer was appointed the youngest ever section editor for the “Encyclopedia of Biostatistics” (EOB), the standard international reference work for biostatistics. Since completing his PhD in 1998, he has chaired and/or given invited symposia at over 30 international scientific meetings, has delivered over 60 invited lectures, has produced over 120 publications, and has co-edited a commercially successful encyclopedia of genetic statistics that has become a standard reference. In 2005 he was recognized as the "Best Business Talent Under 40" by the business community of Western Australia and was named an "Inspirational Western Australian". He is in high demand internationally as a speaker and teacher.

Dr Anne Pratt

Project Coordinator

Anne has a range of qualifications in psychology, nursing, management, and training and development. She has a strong interest in the optimization of family health and wellbeing, and studied the prevention causation and treatment of Postnatal Depression in both her PhD and Masters programs. She recently joined the Joondalup Family Health Study as Coordinator, after two years in Darwin, where she was the Director of Community Services for a local Council. Prior to that she worked for Edith Cowan University as a lecturer, as well as in staff professional development. She has had extensive experience of working in and with the community of Joondalup in a range of mental health, rehabilitation, and public health areas, and has been a long time resident of the City.

Ingrid Nilsson

Study Team

Ingrid graduated from Murdoch University in 2000 as one of the first students to complete a double major in Biomedicine and Molecular Biology, and was awarded the Australian Society for Parasitology Undergraduate Prize for that year. She completed her Honours in Veterinary Virology in 2001 with her project focusing on genetic variation in a virus affecting racehorses.

Her first graduate jobs included Research Assistant at a biotechnology company and Sleep Technologist at the St John of God Sleep Centre. She joined WAIMR in 2003 as assistant to the Manager, became the Human Resources Officer in 2005, and was delighted to join the Joondalup Study Team in April 2006. Ingrid has a strong interest in the community and has worked with Parkinson’s WA and the Australian Red Cross in addition to two years as a volunteer with St John Ambulance.

Jessica Lee

Study Team

Jessica graduated from the University of Western Australia with a Bachelor of Health Science, majoring in Public Health and Pathology (Oncobiology), and a Bachelor of Commerce, majoring in Management and Human Resource Management.

Jessica has been involved in several population health projects – she has previously worked at the School of Population Health at UWA as an Administrative Assistant and been an Environmental Auditor on the RESIDE (RESIDential Environments) Study, which evaluates how the design of communities affect people's health and sense of community. She has worked at the Cancer Council WA on the Rural Specialist Breast Nurse Project, looking at lymphoedema services available to breast cancer patients in regional Western Australia. She was also involved in Mentally Healthy WA – a project aimed at improving mental health in six rural sites in WA. Working in the genREACH team at the Laboratory for Genetic Epidemiology, Jessica is the co-ordinator of the WA Twin Register, and is also involved in the WA Sleep Health Study.

Chris Williams

Analyst / Programmer

Chris graduated from the University of Western Australia in 2004 after completing Honours degrees in Science (Computer Science) and Electronic Engineering. After joining WAIMR later that year, he completed pilot laboratory information systems for the WA Sleep Health Study and the Lions Eye Institute Age-related Macular Degeneration Study. Chris continues to provide informatics support to several research groups as well as core informatics infrastructure as part of the WAGER project.

Chris Ellis

Analyst / Programmer

Chris graduated from Murdoch University in 2001 with a double major in Computer Science and Information Systems. He completed his Honours in Computer Science in 2002 and began a Graduate Software Engineer position at Fujitsu Australia Ltd, working with a large database management system as utilised by the Department of Housing and Works of Western Australia. After 2 years at Fujitsu, Chris came to the Laboratory for Genetic Epidemiology to take up the role of Analyst/Programmer. This position involves the analysis, design and construction of Oracle databases and web-based front-end interfaces for research groups that form part of the WAGER project.

Declan Lynch

Analyst / Programmer

Declan graduated in 1988 with a National Diploma (Ireland) in Electronic Engineering from the Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT). Following graduation he took a job as a Calibration Engineer where he was involved in the repair and calibration of industrial electronic test equipment in accordance with industry standards. In 1990 he returned to DIT as a Technical Support Engineer at the School of Control Systems and Electronic Engineering. He was involved in many projects in the areas of Electrical/Electronic and Control Systems Engineering as well as Information Technology. He graduated from DIT with a BSc(Hons) in Information Technology in 2004, following five years of part-time study. He completed his honours in Software Engineering, Database Management Systems and Internet Development with a project developing an open-source Geographic Information System. After emigrating to Perth in September 2005, he joined WAIMR as an Analyst/Programmer in February 2006.

Dr Marion Macnish

Manager, WA DNA Bank

Marion worked as a Veterinary Nurse for 10 years before embarking on a career in science. She completed a BSc in Medical Science with Honours at Curtin University of Technology in 1994. Her honours research was based on the identification of antigens of the parasite Strongyloides species and the development of a diagnostic enzyme-linked immunoassay under the supervision of Dr Norman Gare and Runi Mendez. Marion took up a position at Murdoch University as a Professional Officer for a health promotion project conducted in the Kimberley region for 2 years before commencing a PhD on the molecular epidemiology of the parasitic tapeworm Hymenolepis nana under the supervision of Prof Andrew Thompson and Dr Una Ryan in the Division of Health Sciences at Murdoch. Following completion of her thesis Marion undertook 'commercial in confidence' post doctoral research with Prof Thompson and Dr Wayne Greene working towards the development of a vaccine to control the ubiquitous dog and cat flea in companion animals. A change of direction occurred in 2005 and Marion became a Senior Project Officer with the Australian Biosecurity Cooperative Research Centre for Emerging Infectious Disease (Perth node) where she honed her project management skills. Currently Marion is the Manager of the WA DNA Bank, a position made possible with an NHMRC Enabling Grant in 2005.

Professor Lawrence Beilin

Cardiovascular Health And Metabolism

Professor Lawrie Beilin is Professor of Medicine at the UWA School of Medicine and Pharmacology Royal Perth Hospital (RPH) Unit. He is also an Honorary Physician in Internal Medicine at RPH.

Some of Professor Beilin's research achievements include: identifying blood pressure lowering effect of vegetarian diets; demonstrating the importance of fatty acids in cardiovascular health and demonstrating the role of dietary protein and fibre in lowering blood pressure.

Professor Timothy Davis

Endocrinology And Diabetes

Professor Tim Davis is Professor of Medicine in the Fremantle Hospital Unit. He will bring expertise in the areas of diabetes and glucose metabolism, in addition to experience in the planning, collecting, analyzing and interpreting data from his close involvement with the Fremantle Diabetes Study (FDS) and the United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study.

Clinical Professor Graeme Hankey

Neurology And Stroke

Clinical Professor Graeme Hankey is a Consultant Neurologist and Head of the Stroke Unit at RPH. His research focuses on the causes and risk factors of stroke and on potential behaviours and interventions that may modify these risks.

Professor Hankey is Co-Principal Investigator for the Perth Community Stroke Study, which was the first Australian, community-based investigation of stroke incidence and outcomes. He is also Chief or Co-Chief Investigator for the Australian Cooperative Research on Subarachnoid Haemorrhage Study and Thrombosis in Stroke Study and is the Australian Co-ordinator for the International Stroke Trial.

Adjunct Associate Professor Nat Lenzo

Radiology And Imaging

Associate Professor Lenzo is a Consulting Physician at the Department of Nuclear Medicine Royal Perth Hospital and was Head of this department between January 2002 and January 2006. He is a Visiting Consultant Physician at St John of God Hospital Murdoch and a Board Member of the Australian Institute of Radiochemical Engineering.

Associate Professor Lenzo played a key role in implementing the WA PET/Cyclotron imaging service at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in 2002. He has helped implement image fusion techniques into clinical practice and has developed new PET imaging tracers such as fluorocholine, which has been assessed in glioma, prostate, breast and liver cancers.

Professor Michael Millward

Oncology

Professor Millward is Director of Cancer Council Clinical Trials WA, Professor of Clinical Cancer Research at The University of Western Australia (UWA) and a Consultant Oncologist at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. He also holds an MA in Bioethics.

Professor Millward's previous appointments include Head of Clinical Research at the Sydney Cancer Centre, Senior Staff Specialist at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and Consultant Medical Oncologist at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute. He has a played a lead role in defining standards of care for lung cancer and melanoma patients, through multinational trials, and has participated in International Data Monitoring and Trial Management Committees.

Clinical Professor Arthur W. Musk

Respiratory Medicine

Professor Bill Musk has over 40 years training and experience in clinical and epidemiological collections of lung function data and questionnaires, including close involvement with the Busselton Health Study since 1966. He was Co-Chief Investigator of the first epidemiological study to demonstrate a molecular genetic association with asthma (in the Busselton population and in collaboration with Oxford University).

Current roles include: Chairman of the Busselton Population Medical Research Foundation and Co-Chief Investigator of the current Busselton Health Survey, Co-Chief Investigator on follow-up studies of the Wittenoom asbestos-exposed populations, an intervention study of cancer prevention in people exposed to asbestos; and conducting epidemiological studies of the aluminium and gold mining industries in WA.

Professor Musk continues to be very active in clinical practice.

Dr Anne Barden

Cardiovascular Health

Dr Barden is a Research Fellow within the centre. She is a research scientist with an interest in the biochemical changes that accompany pregnancy and the pathophysiology of pre-eclampsia. Her research also examines the biochemical mechanisms associated with lifestyle interventions and their effect on cardiovascular risk and includes the study of eicosanoid metabolism and lipid peroxidation.

Dr Kay Cox

Cardiovascular Health

Dr Cox is a Research Fellow with a longstanding research interest in the role of physical activity, nutrition and lifestyle in the prevention and management of cardiovascular disease and its risk factors such as hypertension, obesity, and diabetes. Her research has also encompassed health promotion interventions with a focus on strategies to promote increased physical activity both in the short and long-term particularly in the older adult.

Dr Trevor Mori

Cardiovascular Health

Dr Trevor Mori is a Senior Lecturer and a biomedical research scientist. His interests are the effect of diet and lifestyle on cardiovascular risk factors, including aspects of diabetes, hypertension and atherosclerosis. His research has focussed on the potential beneficial effects of omega-3 fatty acids in relation to cardiovascular disease and the role of lipid oxidation in cardiovascular disease.

Dr Jonathan Hodgson

Cardiovascular Health

Dr Jonathan Hodgson is Senior Research Fellow with major research interests in: (1) the role that dietary flavonoids might play in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease; and (2) dietary macronutrients in relation to features of the metabolic syndrome, including blood pressure, blood cholesterol and obesity.

Please refer to the entry for Ear Science Institute Australia.

Professor Billie Giles-Corti

Physical Environments And Social Determinants

Professor Billie Giles-Corti is a Professor at the School of Population Health, where she is also a Consultant for the Health Promotion Evaulation Unit. She was Founding Director of The UWA Albany Centre and was responsible for the WA Department for Planning and Infrastructure mandating footpaths in new sub-division design codes. One of Professor Giles Corti's current projects is "Active Schools", which involves working with the Department of Education and Training to assess the impact of playground design on children's physical activity.

Professor Jonathan Emery

General Practice and Genetic Epidemiology

Professor Jon Emery is Chair of General Practice and Deputy Head of the UWA School of Primary, Aboriginal and Rural Health Care. He has developed and led research teams at Oxford and Cambridge Universities and specialises in translating medical advances into clinical primary care.

Professor Emery also has experience in cancer research and has established strong collaborations with multidisciplinary teams and clinicians.

Dr David Burgner

Infectious Disease

Dr Burgner brings experience in co-ordinating large population-bases studies of susceptibility to childhood and neonatal infection, and is WA's only paediatric infectious disease specialist. Dr Burgner is the Chair of a national committee advising the Federal Government on issues of childhood infection and refugee child health and he is currently a Visiting Research Fellow at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children's Hospital.

Associate Professor David Forbes

Gastroenterology

Associate Professor David Forbes is Chairman of the Paediatric Medicine Clinical Unit at Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) and Co-Director of the WA Child and Youth Health Network at the WA Department of Health. Dr Forbes was Director of the PMH Emergency Department from 1985 to 2000 and he initiated the Eating Disorders Program there in 1996.

Professor Louis Landau, AO

Respiratory Paediatrics

Professor Landau is a paediatric respiratory physician specialising in physiological, clinical and epidemiological research in childhood respiratory disease. He was Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at UWA from 1996-2000 and is Chair of the Postgraduate Medical Council of WA.

Professor Landau was Founding Chair of the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research and The WA Institute for Medical Research. He co-founded the Rapid Thoracic Compression Technique, which is used world-wide to detect disease and measure response to therapy.

Professor Landau has contributed greatly to a number of therapeutic and management guidelines for childhood asthma, cystic fibrosis and bronchiolitis and he has been awarded the Order of Australia.

Associate Professor Susan Prescott

Allergy and Immunology

Associate Professor Prescott is an international expert in childhood allergy and early immune development. Her recent research has focused on the role of early life events and maternal interventions in the immune development of infants, to the extent of advising on national guideline revisions for allergy prevention.

Dr Prescott was Head of the UWA School of Paediatrics and Child Health in 2003-2004 and continues to work in clinical practice at PMH. She has held a Winston Churchill Fellowship and was a WA finalist in the 2003 Telstra Business Woman of the Year Award.

Associate Professor Roger Hart

Reproductive Health

Associate Professor Roger Hart is a sub-specialist in reproductive medicine and infertility; he is an associate professor of reproductive medicine with the School of Women's and Infants' Health, UWA, he is the lead clinician for the reproductive medicine clinic at KEMH and is the Medical Director of the IVF Unit - Fertility Specialists of Western Australia. His interests are Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, male and female infertility and endometriosis.

Associate Professor Martha Hickey

Reproductive Endocrinology

Associate Professor Hickey is a gynaecologist at King Edward Memorial Hospital and UWA. Her expertise is in the area of reproductive endocrinology and she has a particular research interest in menstrual disorders and menopause. She is an editor of the Cochrane Menstrual Disorders and Subfertility Group and editor of the menopause journal "Maturitas". She also heads the education committee of the Australasian Menopause Society and acts as an expert advisor for the World Health Organisation on abnormal uterine bleeding.

Professor Osvaldo Almeida

Psychiatry and Ageing

Professor Almeida is Professor of Geriatric Psychiatric at UWA, one of the most active academic units in this field in Australia, and is a Consultant Psychiatrist at Royal Perth Hospital.

Recognised by his peers as one of the leading researchers in geriatric psychiatry, Professor Almeida's research has demonstrated that physical activity is associated with good mental health outcomes in later life. He was also one of the first to discover that SSRIs are better tolerated long term than try-cyclic anti-depressant medications.

Professor Almeida developed the Faculty of Psychiatry in Old Age for the WA branch of RANZCP and its training program is now considered to be one of the best nationwide. Professor Almeida contributes to various WA and national committees on issues relating to old age, mental health and health outcomes. In collaboration with others, he has recommended policies that have resulted in funding for specialized units for early diagnosis of memory disorders and for older people with mental health care needs. There is now a strong and cohesive network of professionals dedicated to these issues and healthy ageing programs are currently a national priority.

Professor Grady Venville

Education

Grady Venville is a Professor in the field of science education for primary and secondary aged children. She is a qualified and experienced secondary teacher with well established contacts and collaborations with teachers, students, scientists and academics in the City of Joondalup. She has a strong background of research in science and genetics education, including a large teacher professional development project in London.

Grady Venville's research interests include: Student understanding of basic biology and genetic concepts; Experts' views of what student understanding should be; Appropriate teaching methods, models and approaches; Curriculum integration; and Professional development support for teachers.

Professor Alan Bittles

Community Genetics

Professor Alan Bittles is Adjunct Professor at the Centre for Human Genetics at Edith Cowan University (ECU). He was Director of this Centre from 1993 to 2005 and was Founding Co-Director of the Centre for Health and Ageing from 2001 to 2003. Professor Bittles is a Founding member of the Asian Thalassaemia Network and was an Invited Advisor to the World Health Organisation on issues of public health genetics in developing countries.

Specialising in community genetics, Professor Bittles has been engaged in population-based studies for over 25 years, including projects and collaborations in Australia, Asia, Sweden, UK and the U.S.A. He has substantial statistical and practical experience with multi-ethnic community groups and the ECU Joondalup Community and a major component of his research has focused on health aspects of increased life expectancy.

Professor Donna Cross

Health Promotion and Social Determinants

Donna Cross is Professor of Child and Adult Health at ECU and Adjunct Professor at Curtin University. She is Director of the ECU Child Health Promotion Research Centre and Founding Co-Director of the Vario Health Institute in Joondalup. Professor Cross' expertise is primarily child and family health promotion intervention research and she has formed significant school and family based networks in the City of Joondalup.

Professor Cross' research has influenced health promotion policy, whole-of-school practice and the health of children and adolescents throughout Australia and particularly in WA. These public health outcomes have been in the areas of youth smoking, sun safety, pedestrian safety, bullying prevention and management, and mental health promotion.

In 2005, Donna Cross was Highly Commended in the Edith Cowan University Vice Chancellor's Award for Professional Competence.

Professor Ralph Martins

Alzheimer's Research and Ageing

Ralph Martins is Foundation Professor of Ageing and Alzheimer's at ECU and Adjunct Professor at the Farber Institute for Neurosciences at Thomas Jefferson University in the USA. He is also Director of Research at the Sir James McCusker Alzheimer's Disease Research Unit at Hollywood Private Hospital. Professor Martins and his collaborators have formed Australia's first Alzheimer's Centre, the Centre of Excellence in Alzheimer's Disease, Research and Care, which translates key clinical findings directly back to patients in a healthcare setting.

Examples of Professor Martins' findings include the identification of key lifestyle factors contributing to Alzheimer's risk, and identification of potential diagnostic biomarkers.

Professor Robert Newton

Exercise Physiology

Professor Newton is an accredited Exercise Physiologist. He is Co-Director of the Vario Health Institute and Foundation Professor of Exercise and Sports Science at ECU.

Professor Newton's research team investigates the effects of different exercise modalities and dosages on the risk and treatment of chronic disease, such as cancer. The team is also very interested in obesity, bone density and muscle loss associated with ageing and physical inactivity. Professor Newton helped to implement the "Living Longer, Living Stronger" campaign, which now has over 2000 seniors performing resistance training twice per week across several centres in WA. Other research on resistance training has translated into development programs for elite athletes.

In 2005, The Vario Health Institute was successful in obtaining federal funding for a DEXA body scanning system that accurately measures bone density, fat and muscle, and has many applications in cancer, Alzheimer's, obesity and diabetes research.

Associate Professor Jonathan Foster

Cognitive Neuroscience & Neuropsychology

Associate Professor Foster is an international authority in neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience, specifically with respect to the neural basis of lifespan neurocognitive development, degeneration and deterioration. His research has focused on the neural mechanisms underpinning long-term episodic memory and the neural basis of processes that regulate memory (including attention and executive functions) in both healthy controls and in neurological and psychiatric patients.

Dr Foster is employed as a Senior Research Fellow in Cognitive Neuroscience in the School of Exercise, Biomedical & Health Sciences at Edith Cowan University. He is registered as a Clinical Neuropsychologist in WA, and currently serves on the National Executive of the Australian Psychological Society College of Clinical Neurpsychology (the only neuropsychologist from WA to have been elected to this committee). He has previously held a Royal Society/NATO International Fellowship in Biological Sciences, a Rotman Research Institute Fellowship and a Personal Chair in Neuropsychology.

Professor Jeff Spickett

Environmental and Occupational Health

Jeff Spickett is Professor of environmental and occupational health at Curtin University of Technology and he is also an Adjunct Professor at Mahidol University in Thailand and Visiting Professor in The Centre for Disease Control in China.

He has been involved in a range of research activities in his work including the impacts of environmental factors on the health of children, mainly associated with the effects of indoor air quality on respiratory symptoms.

He has been engaged in a number of international research projects mainly through the world Health Organisation in countries in the Western Pacific Region of WHO. His work has been extensive and as a result of this work Curtin University was designated as a WHO Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health Impact Assessment a few years ago. Professor Spickett is the Director of this Centre.

Dr Dean Bertolatti

Environmental and Occupational Health

Dr Dean Bertolatti is the Director of the Environmental and Occupational Health Program at the School of Public Health, Curtin University. He has extensive experience in managing physical, chemical and biological hazards. He has gained 12 years work experience in Environmental and Occupational Management in local and state government in Western Australia. He has also undertaken local and international research and consultancy work in these areas.

Dr Bertolatti is currently conducting research in collaboration with the Town of Kwinana, which involves the investigation of indoor air quality in childcare centres. His experience in risk management enables him to provide an important contribution to research activities that aim to better quantify the human health risks associated with some of the most potentially dangerous indoor/outdoor environmental contaminants.

Dr Krassi Rumchev

Environmental and Occupational Health

Dr Krassi Rumchev is Lecturer at the Curtin University School of Public Health. During her 15 years research experience she has been involved in a number of collaborative project at national and international level.

She has a wide scope of research interests in occupational and environmental health, indoor air quality, and prevention of asthma and respiratory diseases from exposure to environmental/occupational hazards. Her research and project interests also include the development and implementation of new strategies that promote healthy environments for children and adults.

Professor David Hay

Educational Psychology and Genetic Epidemiology

David Hay is Professor of Psychology at Curtin University. He has over 38 years experience in quantitative behaviour genetics in the areas of twin studies, single-gene disorders, and population-based studies of extended pedegrees with psychoses.

Professor Hay has a special interest in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). His team's research showing that ADHD is inherited as a continuum throughout the population, is one of the most cited research papers on ADHD. The Australian Twin ADHD Project has developed into one of the world's largest genetic resources for the study of ADHD and he has played a major role in establishing international collaborations in this field.

Professor Hay developed http://www.twinsandmultiples.org/ which receives 300,000 hits annually and provides information on educational needs for multiple birth families. He also has a strong commitment to children whose parents have mental health disorders, establishing the first intervention program CHAMPS, in Victoria in 1995.

Dr Susan Leitao

Speech Pathology

Dr Leitao is a Certified Practising Speech Pathologist and Senior Lecturer at the Curtin University School of Psychology . She is Chairperson of the Speech Pathology Australia Literacy Task Group and is Co-editor of the Speech Pathology Australia publication: ACQuiring Knowledge in Speech, Language and Hearing (ACQ).

Dr Leitao is invited on a regular basis to provide professional development delivery for teachers, speech pathologists and educational psychologists. This involves working with students who have speech, phonological processing and literacy difficulties, in conjunction with the WA Health and Education Departments and organisations such as Dyslexia-Speld. As a result, policy and planning for literacy teaching has been influenced in several WA schools.

In May 2005, Dr Leitao was awarded a Fellowship of Speech Pathology Australia.

Associate Professor Anne Passmore

Community Outreach and Engagement

Associate Professor Passmore is Deputy Head of the Curtin School of Occupational Thearpy and Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Research in Disability and Society.

Associate Professor Passmore was the first Australian researcher to study and promote citizenship capacity in people with disabilities, and in people who are vulnerable, including those with a mental health disorder. This is now a priority goal in 2006 within the WA Disability Sector.

Research supervised by Anne Passmore has influenced rehabilitation processes internationally, provided evidence for best practice locally, and has promoted improved psychosocial outcomes amongst vulnerable groups. An example of best practice includes promotion of mental health outcomes in children who have siblings with cancer.

Professor Leon Straker

Occupational Health

Professor Straker is Director of Research at the School of Physiotherapy, Curtin University of Technology. His research focusses on the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders and the impact of computer use on health.

He is a NHMRC Senior Research Fellow and is currently leading two NHMRC project grants related to the development of spinal pain in adolescence and wise use of computers by children. His research projects range from epidemiological studies, through RCTs to biomechanical laboratory studies.

Dr Angus Burnett

Biomechanist

Dr Angus Burnett is a Research Fellow at the School of Physiotherapy at Curtin University of Technology in additional to being an adjunct Associate Professor at the School of Exercise, Biomedical and Health Sciences at Edith Cowan University.

Dr Burnett research areas are Spinal Biomechanics in Sports and Exercise and in the prevention and treatment of spinal pain. Furthermore, he is interested in strength and power development which was stimulated from coaching elite junior track and field athletes.

Dr Burnett was recently awarded a Fellowship to the Australian Association for Exercise and Sports Science and is currently the Vice President of Public Relations for the International Society of Biomechanics in Sports.

Professor Daniela Stehlik

Community

Daniela was appointed as inaugural Professor in Stronger Communities at Curtin University of Technology and Director, Alcoa Research Centre for Stronger Communities in December 2003.

Daniela is one of Australia's leading social scientists working at the intersections of resiliency, human service practice and social cohesion focussing on families and communities in regional/rural Australia. She has published widely in Australia and internationally, and regularly presents her work at national and international conferences.

She is a member of the Rural Society editorial board, undertakes reviews for national journals and was The Australian Sociological Association's Jean Martin Award Convenor in both 2000 and 2002. From 1999 - 2003 she was Central Queensland University's senior social scientist seconded to the CRC for Sustainable Sugar Production.

Ms Bronwyn Kitching

Community

Bronwyn graduated from the University of Western Australia with a Bachelor of Social Work in 1990 and is currently studying toward a Postgraduate Diploma of Business, majoring in Human Resource Management at Edith Cowan University.

Bronwyn's interest in research began as a student Social Worker as part of her practicum when she undertook a research project looking at reunions between adoptees and their relinquishing parents, and has continued with client satisfaction surveys, quality improvement projects and other practical and applied research projects since.

Bronwyn has a strong interest in affordable and appropriate housing and community care services. She has a long association with Shelter WA, the peak body for low income housing consumers, and has held the role of Chair and Vice Chair for several terms.

Dr Amma Buckley

Community

Amma Buckley has recently taken up a two year research fellowship with the Alcoa Research Centre for Stronger Communities. Her doctoral research, completed in 2003 at the School of Social Work and Applied Human Sciences, University of Queensland focuses on women and onshore refugee determination within the Australian context. This topical research study is currently the only national in-depth analysis of gender and refugee status.

Amma has held academic positions at University of Queensland and James Cook University teaching core curriculum for undergraduate and postgraduate social work courses. She possesses well developed research skills having worked across a number of ARC industry, collaborative and a diverse range of research projects.

Amma has a solid base in a range of qualitative research methods including community surveys, focus groups, in-depth interviews, community needs analysis, and has an excellent working and teaching knowledge of both qualitative and quantitative data analysis software. She currently provides training in data analysis using NVivo software to current staff and postgraduate research students.

Dr Nola Kunnen

Community

Nola Kunnen has extensive experience in research and practice, drawing on 20 years community development practice. She has undertaken research and consultancy for Local, State and Federal government organisations and for community organisations. She also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate community practice, social policy and social research with the Department of Social Work & Social Policy ( Curtin University). She promotes the involvement of community stakeholders, service providers and service users in research with the aim of ensuring that research is informed by experience and practice. Her PhD research explored participation in Australian community practice.

Nola's research expertise is in applied social research, using qualitative and mixed methods, with an emphasis on good practice and responsive service-delivery.

In addition she is supervising Honours, Masters and Doctoral research students.

Nola has presented papers on community participation, housing and homelessness issues at state, national and international conferences and links with the Homelessness Standing Committee of the European Network of Housing Researchers (ENHR) and with Australian social housing and homelessness researchers through the AHURI network.

Professor Ian Constable, AO

Ophthalmology

Professor Ian Constable is Foundation Director of the Lions Eye Institute, Foundation Director of the UWA Centre for Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Foundation Professor of Ophthalmology at UWA and Director of Ophthalmic Services at the WA Department of Health. He is a Consultant Ophthalmic Surgeon at Royal Perth Hospital, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Fremantle Hospital Princess Margaret Hospital, Hollywood Private Hospital and St John of God Hospital.

Other senior appointments include Chairman of the WA State Science Council, Senior Advisor to the Lions Save Sight Foundation, Honorary Advisor to the Retina Australia Foundation, and Member of the Board of Directors for the Australian Foundation for the Prevention of Blindness (WA).

Examples of Professor Constable's research interests include: development of artificial cornea, co-invention of a venous shunt for retinal vein thrombosis and methods of screening for diabetic retinopathy.

Professor Constable was awarded an Order of Australia in 1988 and a Centenary Medal in 2000.

Associate Professor Timothy Jones

Endocrinology

Dr Tim Jones is an Associate Professor in Clinical Sciences and Head of the Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes at Princess Margaret Hospital. His research team focuses on growth, puberty, metabolism, obesity and diabetes in children.

Dr Jones was a Research Fellow at Yale University from 1988-1991. He is responsible for establishing the paediatric diabetes clinical research centre at PMH and the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research and has developed a population based DNA repository for type 1 diabetes, including all children diagnosed with diabetes in WA.

Hypoglycaemia in children with type 1 diabetes is a particular area of expertise for Dr Jones.

Professor Nicholas de Klerk

Biostatistics and Epidemiology

Professor de Klerk is Head of the Biostatistics and Genetic Epidemiology Division at the Telethon Institute and Adjunct Professor at the UWA School of Population Health. He is an occupational epidemiologist and biostatistician with over 20 years experience in occupational exposure assessment and disease risk modeling in cohort studies, such as the Busselton Health Study.

Research done by Professor de Klerk's team has led to European Union and Austrlian policies regarding asbestos, Australian Silica Standards, and confidence in WHO DTP vaccination schedules.

Other projects Professor de Klerk has been involved in, include the WA Twins Register and WA Data Linkage Unit and Family Connections Project.

Dr Wendy Oddy

Nutrition

Dr Oddy is a Research Fellow in the Population Sciences Division of the Institute for Child Health. Her speciality is childhood nutrition and she has been involved with intitiatives such as Baby Friendly Hospitals, Breastfeeding Public Health Promotion and Eat Well, Move Well.

Professor Marcus Atlas

Ears and Hearing

Professor Marcus Atlas is Founding Director of the Ear Science Institute Australia (ESIA), Director of the UWA Ear Sciences Centre and inaugural Professor of Otolaryngology at UWA. He also works as a Consultant Otolaryngologist at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital and St John of God Hospital Subiaco and has held previous Consultant positions at Princess Margaret Hospital for Children and St Vincent's Hospital (Sydney). He was Head of the Otolaryngology Department at Sydney's Concord Hospital from 1997-2000.

Professor Atlas' research covers the clinical, information science and tissue engineering fields. Examples of projects are patient quality of life after rehabilitation surgery, outcomes after implant of hearing devices, ear telemedicine for patients in remote areas, computer aided diagnosis for ear diseases, the development of an artificial tympanic membrane, and tissue culture of ear tissues and hair cells.

Professor Atlas also initiated and promoted the Surgeon Scientist program in the Australian Society of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, whereby advanced surgical trainees complete a research PhD prior to their surgical training.

Adjunct Associate Professor Robert Eikelboom

Computer and Information Technology

Dr Eikelboom is the Research Manager at ESIA, and heads the Computer and Information Science group at ESIA and the UWA Ear Sciences Centre. As a bio-engineer, his particular research interests are in the use of computer and information technology to assist in the diagnosis and management of people for ear disorders.

Primary projects are in ear telemedicine, computer aided diagnosis and automated audiology.

Adjunct Associate Professor John Beilby

Molecular Biology and Biobanking

Associate Professor John Beilby is a Principal Scientist in Clinical Biochemistry at PathWest and Adjunct Associate Professor with the UWA School of Surgery and Pathology. Specialising in biobanking, Associate Professor Beilby established the routine molecular biology diagnostic testing laboratory at PathWest (QEII), including a diagnostic service for Huntington's disease. Associate Professor Beilby has also formed Cardiovascular Genetics Research Group and Pharmacogenomics Group and he is. A member of the WA Cardiovascular Consortium and of the Busselton Population Medical Research Foundation Board.

Professor Margaret Otlowski

Bioethics and Law

Margaret Otlowski is Deputy Head of the School of Law at The University of Tasmania.

She helped to develop the statewide ethics committee system in Tasmania and was instrumental in setting up the international, online Biotechnology, Health and Environment Network: Ethical, Legal and Social Intersections (BHENELSI).

Professor Otlowski is also Co-founder and Deputy Director of Centre for Law and Genetics, Board Member of the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Health Law and Ethics, a member of the Federal Privacy Commissioner's Health Leaders' Forum and a member of the Tasmanian Anti-Discrimination Tribunal.

Professor Michael Drummond

Health Economics

Professor Drummond in a leading international health economist and is considered one of the 'Fathers of the field.' He is Director of the Centre for Health Economics at The University of York and has led a multi-national team on the Economic Evaluation of Health Technology for the European Union. Professor Drummond was also integral in the WHO Report on Guidelines for Health Care Practice and has developed a methodology to assess the economic value of research investment by the National Institutes of Health (USA).

In 2004, Professor Drummond was awarded the Donabedian Lifetime Achievement Award by the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research.