Dr Rebecca Szabo is a specialist obstetrician/gynaecologist, medical educator and simulation expert. She is an honorary senior lecturer at The University of Melbourne in the Departments of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Newborn Health and the Department of Critical Care. She is the lead of the Gandel Simulation Service a translational simulation service based at the Women’s in partnership with The University of Melbourne and has a Masters of Clinical Education focused on simulation and is a PhD Candidate exploring implementation of simulation in hospitals focused on health systems integration, quality improvement and patient safety. She is the Chair of The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) Simulation Training Advisory Group. Rebecca has been an instructor for the AMaRE / Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics (ALSO) program for over 10 years and was the Chair of the Board 2021-2023. She has experience working and teaching across Australia, Thailand and Mongolia and is passionate about healthcare access, safety and equity. In 2020 Rebecca was a member of the infection prevention mechanisms subgroup of the the Victorian statewide Healthcare Worker Infection Prevention and Wellbeing Taskforce for education and simulation expertise. Her work and research has focused on maternity care and safety, simulation and training, science communication and education.

Jessica is an ICU nurse with with over 14 years experience in oncology, intensive care and surgical settings. She is an experienced educator and has taught a variety of topics, including research design, critical care skills. Jessica has held appointments in the university and healthcare sector, including leading strategy and clinical outcomes research at a large tertiary hospital. Formal qualifications – Jessica holds a number of postgraduate degrees. Masters in Nursing (Advanced Practice), Graduate Certificate in Critical Care, PhD in Medicine, Graduate Certificate Science Communication. Jessica’s areas of research include exploring human interactions with artificial representations of reality, specifically the impact on engagement related to authenticity. Her interest areas include how learning activities shape patient outcomes, with a particular focus on stereotyping versus individual design.

Dr Faux is the Director at the Rehabilitation Unit at St Vincent’s Public Hospital, who specialises in pain management and general rehabilitation. He has appointments at: St Vincents Campus Prince of Wales Private Griffith Base Hospital, NSW Currently a Senior lecturer in Clinical Medicine at the University of New South Wales, his research interests are in the management of spasticity, trauma management and stroke rehabilitation. Doctors refer patients to him with the following conditions: Arthritis Strokes Back and neck pain Joint replacements Fractures Difficulties with walking Self-care Incontinence MBBS BA FRACGP FAFRM (RACP) FFPMANZCA GAICD

Professor Baxter is the Deputy Executive Dean (Research Centres), Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of Sydney. She continues to maintain her appointment as Professor of Surgery in the Department of Surgery and the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. She is a scientist with the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute at St. Michael’s Hospital and a Senior Scientist in the Cancer Theme Group with the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences. Professor Baxter obtained her MD and PhD in Clinical Epidemiology from the University of Toronto. She completed her general surgery residency training at the University of Toronto followed by a fellowship in colorectal surgery at the Mayo Clinic . Most recently, she completed a MBA from the University of Melbourne in 2022. Her primary research focus as a clinical epidemiologist and health services researcher is the effectiveness of colorectal cancer screening, long-term outcomes of cancer survivors and quality of surgical care. She also applies the use of linked health administrative data and cancer registry data to evaluate long-term consequences of cancer care for adults.

Professor Anne Kavanagh is Chair of Disability and Health at the University of Melbourne. She is Principal Investigator on the NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Disability and Health. Anne is a public health researcher who researches the social determinants of health inequalities. She has a specific interest in the social determinants of health and wellbeing of people with disabilities.

Dr Singh has been appointed National Chair for the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) Social Prescribing Specific Interest Group. Last Wednesday, she assumed this remarkable role and will consult with over 500 doctors nationwide. Her dedication and leadership are truly admirable. In addition to her role with RACGP, Dr Kuljit Singh is the lead doctor at the Southport Lower Acuity Facility, providing vital support for overflow patients from the Gold Coast Hospital. She is also actively involved in the Social Prescribing Pilot Project at SeaWorld, furthering her impact on healthcare innovation. (BMedSC, MBBS (Hon), FRACGP)

Dr Richard Symes is a Consultant Ophthalmologist and consults at Sydney Eye Hospital, Gordon Eye Surgery and Lane Cove Eye Surgery in Sydney. Dr Symes has a strong interest in cataract surgery, particularly complex cataract surgery in patients with retinal disease, uveitis or glaucoma. For the last 5 years, Dr Symes has been actively involved in clinical trials for retinal Diseases. He has published a number of articles in the scientific press on cataract surgery visual outcomes.

My research explores individuals’ information behaviours, including people’s experiences of technology and social media. I also conduct research on societal impact and the strategies researchers use to engage with the public, across disciplines. As a methodologist, my work examines researchers’ practices with social research methods and how the public engages with research tools (e.g., questionnaire design; interview methods). At a broad level, my work is interdisciplinary and explores how people use information to make decisions in their work and personal lives. I have studied a range of topics including students’ experiences, consumer behaviour, health-related information needs, collaborative work, translation of research results into practice, misinformation, and many other topics where people use technologies to access the information they need to solve daily problems.

Dr Violet Kieu is a consultant Gynaecologist specialising in fertility, reproductive endocrinology, and fertility preservation. Violet graduated from Medicine, Surgery & Medical Science from the University of Melbourne in 2007 and was awarded the Vernon Collins Prize in Paediatrics. She holds a Diploma in Surgical Anatomy 2009, a Masters of Reproductive Medicine with Excellence 2019 from UNSW and is a strong advocate for fertility care and women’s health. Violet completed a three-year Clinical Fellowship at the Reproductive Services Unit at the Royal Women’s Hospital (RWH) & Melbourne IVF and is now a consultant in the Endocrine Metabolic Clinic and Fertility Preservation Service at the RWH, as well as at Eastern Health. She has completed her Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility subspecialty certification (CREI). Violet’s research awards include the Australian Gynaecology Endoscopy Surgery (AGES) Platinum Laparoscopy Award 2018 and a presentation prize from the Australian and New Zealand Society for Paediatric Radiology (ANZSPR) 2012. As an Clinical Senior Lecturer in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Melbourne, Violet conducts both quantitative and qualitative research into the patient experience of IVF. She has published in both national and international peer-reviewed journals. Violet contributes to education and leadership through lecturing and thesis assessment for MD and Biomedicine Honours students. She is also a journal reviewer and Associate Faculty Member of Faculty Opinions. Violet’s passion is narrative medicine. That is, listening to and understanding the patient journey. Violet uses Evidence-Based Medicine to improve IVF outcomes by integrating patient values with the best scientific knowledge and clinical expertise.

Dr. Caroline Seiler recently defended her PhD in Medical Sciences (Physiology and Pharmacology) at McMaster University on the clinical effects of gluten, wheat, and the nocebo effect in irritable bowel syndrome and whether patients change their diets when presented with tailored information. Having worked at McMaster’s Farncombe Institute, she published high-impact meta-analyses on celiac disease, inflammatory bowel diseases, and probiotics, and coordinated two irritable bowel syndrome clinical trials. In her free time, she has been a ballroom dancer for the past 7 years and enjoys dancing modern jive and American-style tango.

Dr Powell is a neurologist and geriatrician with a special interest in cognition and dementia. She obtained her MBBS from the University of Adelaide and completed her neurology and geriatric medicine training across St Vincent’s, Concord and the Prince of Wales Hospitals with a neurodegenerative disease fellowship at the University of Sydney Brain and Mind Centre. She is currently undertaking a PhD through the University of New South Wales Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing focusing on maintaining high cognitive ability and mental and physical health with increasing age.

I am a molecular pharmacologist who works at the University of Adelaide, Australia. I have a broad interest in the understanding of how surface receptors can modulate neuronal function and survival, as well as interests in natural product pharmacology and drug design. As well I am interested in evolutionary biology, science communication (committee member of SA Science Communicators) and am an avid amateur astronomer. My astronomy blog is astroblog. I did postdoctoral work in the Institute of Pharmacology at the Free University of Berlin in 1991-1994, returning to Australia in 1994. I have collaborated with Professor John Carver, Dr. Scot Smid and Professor Colin Barrow on using natural products to attack the neurodegeneration process in Alzheimer’s Disease. I was recently elected as convenor of the Toxicology Special Interest Group of the Australasian Society for Pharmacology and Toxicology. I am also collaborating with Professor Roger Byard on the forensic implications of herbal medicines. I have held NH&MRC funding and currently hold ARC funding.