Dr Georgia Rigas is an obesity doctor who leads the medical management arm of the Bariatric Unit at St George Private Hospital, Sydney, Australia’s first internationally accredited Bariatric Centre of Excellence. She brings a holistic care approach to the management of people living with obesity. One of her key primary focus areas is the multi-generational effects of obesity. She is committed to providing clear and effective communication with patients, being open and transparent, and practicing ethically, by recommending effective evidence-based treatments.

Jonathan Bullen is a Nyungar (Wardandi) man from the south-west of Western Australia. He is Learning Designer, Indigenous Curriculum & Pedagogy within Curtin Teaching and Learning. Prior to this, Jon was co-unit coordinator of an award-winning large-scale interprofessional health unit. His Ph.D. research focuses on the elements underpinning, and outcomes from, transformative pedagogies.

We understand that pelvic floor problems such as prolapse and incontinence are deeply personal and often embarrassing conditions to talk about. If you have made the first and most important step of seeking help, Dr Chen and her team are here to support you through your journey in achieving a normal life again.
Dr Chen is a female Urogynaecologist and gynaecologist who is highly experienced in minimally invasive advanced pelvic surgery, incontinence, and vaginal surgery. With over ten years of professional experience, Dr Chen is able to offer comprehensive assessment and treatment options, both non-surgical and surgical for women with pelvic floor disorders.
She is the only female certified urogynaecologist in Sydney who can offer a full range of non-surgical or surgical (i.e. vaginal laparoscopic and robotic surgery) for treatment of prolapse or incontinence. In addition, she has worked with and trained under leading world professionals in managing mesh-related problems and is an expert at mesh removal. This ensures that Dr Chen can offer the best and most evidence-based treatment options personalised to each woman.
Dr Chen speaks fluent Mandarin as a second language for consultation.
Dr Zhuoran Chen is a Urogynaecologist based in Sydney. She works at both St George Public and Private Hospital. After completing her RANZCOG Training at St George Hospital, she underwent a further 3 years of subspeciality training in urogynaecology spanning. Her passion for pelvic floor dysfunction and minimally invasive surgery led her to complete her subspecialist qualifications at the Royal Brisbane Women’s Hospital which focused on advanced laparoscopic pelvic floor reconstruction as well as complex laparoscopic and vaginal mesh removal surgery. As every women is an unique individual, the skills Dr Chen brings back to Sydney enables her to provide tailored care for the women she looks after.
Dr Chen provides a holistic and multidisciplinary approach for management of complex pelvic floor disorders including prolapse, incontinence, gynaecological mesh removal (for pain and other dysfunction) and urodynamic services with female nurses. She also has a special interest in reducing women’s pelvic floor dysfunction during their pregnancy and postpartum and provides gynaecological care for women experiencing menstrual issues, menopause and uterine or ovarian pathology.
When not in busy clinical practice, Dr Chen advocates for women’s health through teaching, research and being an active member of the community. She is the Chair of the social media committee in the International Urogynaecological Association (IUGA) and responsible for coordinating international meetings to advance women’s health. She is also a Senior Lecturer at UNSW and has published extensively in the area of urinary incontinence and prolapse.
Dr Zhuoran Chen specialises in:
Prolapse – Urinary incontinence – Urodynamics – Mesh removal – Advanced laparoscopy – Menstrual disorders – Fibroids – Menopause

Dr. Susan Barnett is a GP Psychotherapist in private practice and Medical Educator for ASPM, RACGP and Blackdog institute. She works with clients utilizing a trauma-informed and client-centered approach, empowering them to become their best selves. Her approach is practical and supportive, and she focuses on providing psycho-education and practical strategies to help clients understand how to work with their minds.
As a Medical Educator Susan is passionate about sharing her expertise and experience to teach and mentor future healthcare professionals. She is committed to sharing her knowledge for mental health with the next generation of healthcare providers, helping to improve the overall standard of care.

Lachlan Fox is an Associate at Grattan Institute. In the Transport and Cities Program, he co-authored a report into how Australian governments can reduce transport infrastructure costs.

He has held management and teaching roles in science communication organisations, and retains a deep interest in the intersection between science and evidence-based policy in water and energy policy.

Lachie holds a Bachelor of Science Advanced (Honours) degree in chemistry and materials science from Monash University.

Peter Breadon is the Health and Aged Care Program Director at Grattan Institute. He has worked in a wide range of senior policy and operational roles in government, most recently as Deputy Secretary of Reform and Planning at the Victorian Department of Health.

He was previously Health Fellow at Grattan Institute, where he co-authored reports on hospital efficiency, pharmaceutical pricing, and health workforce.

Peter holds a Master of Public Policy from the London School of Economics and a Master of Public Administration from the Hertie School of Governance.

A/Prof Sarah Glastras is a Consultant Endocrinologist at the Northern Sydney Endocrine Centre and is appointed as a Staff Specialist at the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney’s North Shore. She has completed her PhD at the University of Sydney in the area of diabetes and obesity with a particular focus on foetal programming; the effect of in utero exposure to metabolic abnormalities on the offspring’s risk of chronic disease.

She is involved in many clinical trials in diabetes and obesity management. She has received a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) postgraduate scholarship, NHMRC Early Career Fellowship, and numerous national and international grants and awards related to her research. She has a passion for researching and treating diabetes, obesity and preventing diabetes-related complications. She is abreast of new technologies available for patients with diabetes, especially type 1 diabetes.

She has a special interest in female endocrine health, pertaining to polycystic ovary syndrome, diabetes in pregnancy and weight management. Her background in psychology prior to medical studies provides her with particular insight into the psychosocial issues related to management of chronic illness. She is passionate about evidence-based medicine, holistic care and self-empowerment.

Marie-Claire is a PhD candidate and Clinical Nurse consultant who studies under the supervision of Professor Dennis Lau at The University of Adelaide. She has previously held several specialist clinical nurse roles including in emergency nursing, nurse education and academia at Monash Health and Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. She now helps to lead a multi-disciplinary practice specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome in Adelaide, SA.
Marie-Claire has a keen interest in reducing time to diagnosis and in improving outcomes for those living with POTS and hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. She has been instrumental in the formation of The Australian POTS Foundation, which is committed to improving outcomes for those with POTS by raising funds for improved research, advocacy and support for those living with POTS.

Ralph is the Foundation Chair in Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease within the School of Medical and Health Sciences.
Professor Ralph Martins, Foundation Chair in Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease at Edith Cowan University, was appointed the Director of the Centre. Ralph Martins graduated from University of Western Australia with a PhD in 1986. In 1987 he won a scholarship to Heidelberg University to work with Konrad Beyreuther. His collaborative seminal research involved isolating and characterising beta-amyloid and its precursor, the amyloid precursor protein (APP), which are now recognized as central to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease.
He was the first to propose and demonstrate that the Alzheimer brain was under oxidative stress, which is now widely recognized by the Alzheimer research community. In 1989 he joined Professor Masters at Melbourne University where he was the first to isolate and characterize the molecular components of the neuropathological hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease. This led to an international patent and formation of a spin-off company, Alzhyme Pty Ltd. In 2001 he won a Media Fellowship with the ABC and was the first Media Fellow to have his work on the Science Show. In 2002 he won a Biotechnology Innovation Fund grant, which was matched by commercial funding. He established the Sir James McCusker Alzheimer’s Research Unit at Hollywood Hospital, whose research is directed at the cause(s), and development of diagnostics and treatments. He received the UWA “Excellence in Teaching Award – Post Graduate Research” for 2002 and in 2003 was appointed Senior Editor, for the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease and Editorial Board Member for Current Drug Targets CNS & Neurological Disease.
Edith Cowan University appointed him to the Inaugural Chair, Ageing and Alzheimer’s Disease in 2004. He has Adjunct Professorial positions and close ties with clinical academics with both the University of Western Australia and Thomas Jefferson University’s Farber Neurosciences Institute. He is instigator and director of the state government funded Centre of Excellence for Alzheimer’s Disease Research and Care composed of researchers from 4 universities, 3 hospitals and 2 healthcare providers.

Dr. Kent E. Vrana is the Elliot S. Vesell Professor and Chair of Pharmacology at the Penn State College of Medicine. He received his B.S. with honors in Biochemistry from the University of Iowa, and his Ph.D. in Biochemistry (Pharmacology minor) from Louisiana State University Medical Center in New Orleans. His post-doctoral fellowship training was in embryology and molecular biology at the Carnegie Institution of Washington in Baltimore, MD (on the Johns Hopkins University campus).

Dr. Vrana joined the Department of Biochemistry at the West Virginia University Health Sciences Center as an assistant professor and then moved to the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine where he rose through the ranks to full professor. In 2004, Dr. Vrana assumed the position of Professor and Chair of Pharmacology at the Penn State University College of Medicine.

Dr. Vrana is a member of the editorial boards of several scientific journals (Associate Editor for Pharmacology (Karger Press), the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (an ASPET journal) and Medical Cannabis and Cannabinoids (Karger Press)). He has served as chair (30 times) and/or a member of over 110 scientific review panel meetings for the federal government and non-profit organizations. He has co-authored more than 190 scientific articles, book chapters, and monographs (including two textbooks). In 2009, he was named an honorary professor of the School of Medicine of the Peruvian University of Applied Science in Lima, Peru, and was inducted into the Society of Distinguished Educators at the Penn State College of Medicine. In 2015, he was elected a Fellow of the American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS). He currently serves the immediate past president of the Association of Medical School Pharmacology Chairs (AMSPC).

Feusner’s research program seeks to understand perceptual and emotional processing phenotypes across conditions involving body image and obsessions/compulsions, including body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, and OCD. He also studies gender identity, own body perception, and the effects of hormone treatments in individuals with gender dysphoria. He published the first functional neuroimaging studies in BDD and the first studies to directly compare the neurobiology of BDD to anorexia nervosa. He has also investigated neurometabolites and brain connectivity in OCD, including predictors of acute and long-term treatment response to cognitive-behavioral therapy. Feusner’s neuroscience research utilizes functional (fMRI and EEG), structural neuroimaging (sMRI and DTI), and psychophysical testing to understand the brain. He has also created novel digital applications to assess and quantify perceptual distortions of appearance, and affective and interoceptive experiences, to be used across mobile and other platforms for research and clinical purposes.