Past Research

Unlike many nurses I know, I did not always want to be a nurse growing up. However, when my son was born, we spent a significant amount of time in hospitals. Throughout this time the interactions and experiences with the nurses at different health facilities sparked something in me. These nurses had mine and my son’s best interest at heart, advocating for us and making what was a very scary time in my life, a little bit easier. I knew then that I wanted to be that person for someone, to make the scary moment in their life a little bit easier.

As a mature age nursing student, my path to becoming a nurse hasn’t followed the “traditional” trajectory. I’m a wife and mother of three children who all attend Sale Catholic schools and are heavily involved in local sports teams. I was raised in Heyfield, went to school here, married a local boy and am delighted to be doing my Graduate Nursing Year in 2022 at Central Gippsland Health, Sale. Growing up in a small country town, I now have the privilege to give back to those in their time of need through our wider regional health care system. I was guided by many community and likeminded residents through my educational, sporting avenues and being a member of our small community that I am now seeing those faces again. This time the life circle is evolving, and it is my pleasure to have the opportunity to return the kindness, love and support that was shown to me growing up.

Natalie Peach is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, University of Sydney. She currently works as the Project Coordinator on the COPE-A clinical trial, investigating the efficacy of integrated exposure-based therapy for co-occurring post-traumatic stress and substance use disorders in adolescents.

She completed a combined Masters/PhD in clinical psychology at the University of Melbourne and Orygen Youth Health in 2017. Her PhD focused on phenomenological relationships between childhood trauma, PTSD symptoms and psychotic symptoms in young people with early psychosis. Her research interests include adolescent mental health, early intervention, PTSD, substance use, comorbidity and psychosis.

Ivana Kihas began working as a Research Assistant at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) in May 2013. She has worked across three research projects: a post-marketing surveillance study of Suboxone-film, an opioid substitution treatment; a prospective cohort study examining non-medical use of pharmaceutical opioids and related harms; and on a randomised control trial investigating the efficacy of a Behavioural Activation Treatment for co-occurring depression and substance use disorder.

Ivana completed a B.Sc. Psychology (Honours) in 2012 at Macquarie University. Her thesis explored the effects of letter confusability on visual word recognition. Between 2012 and 2014, Ivana also worked at the Emotional Health Clinic (Macquarie University) as a Research Assistant on the Cool Kids Stepped Care Program study, working with children, adolescents and their parents to help them overcome anxiety.

Dr Dennis Chan is a physician who is undertaking research to improve the management of neuroendocrine tumours. He completed his Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery alongside a Master of Bioethics and Health Law at the University of Otago, New Zealand, in 2012. Since then, he has undertaken specialist training with the Royal Australasian College of Physicians as a Specialist Endocrinologist and General Physician.

In 2019, he completed a Master of Science at Barts and the London School of Medicine focusing on Cushing’s Syndrome caused by neuroendocrine tumours. This has led him to pursue a PhD in translational research at the University of Sydney focusing on neuroendocrine tumours and their management.

After completing her 4^th year Psychology thesis in 2006 on the effect of resilience and hope on adolescent academic engagement, Mandy Gibson worked with the Department of Communities Qld, and Child and Youth Mental Health Services (Qld Health). Mandy has over a decade of clinical experience as a Psychologist providing suicide risk assessments to young people following near lethal attempts and treatment to young people experiencing suicidality, complex trauma, self-harm and other mental health issues.

I have been studying and working in disciplines, pathology, biotechnology and scientific research for 10 years. I find these areas interesting because of their broad range of techniques, applications and outcomes to the community, health and science.

I am a country Australian and have travelled to study/work in Wagga Wagga, Canberra and Sydney. I wish to use my knowledge, qualifications and skills to provide an understanding of disease pathology and biology, specifically in the neurodegenerative disease, motor neuron disease. I believe that understanding disease pathology is vital to improve patient/clinician/carer support and care by determining diagnostic and prognostic techniques.

I am a first-generation Vietnamese-Australian PhD Student studying at the University of Sydney.  I am passionate about contributing to scientific and medical research, which also allows my analytical and creative side to prosper. Currently, I am in the Bosch Young Investigators Committee, which is a postgraduate student-run committee to manage events for other postgraduate research students, from academia-related such as conferences to social.

I am also a member of the Australasian Society for Stem Cell Research with other academics who specialise in stem-cell research. On the side, I love playing piano, video games, dodgeball and producing digital art.

After graduating with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Western Australia, I commenced my medical training at the University of Notre Dame. I have subsequently worked as a doctor in both the public and private health sectors, being involved in the treatment of a number of patients with colorectal cancer.

I am currently involved in medical education at the University of Notre Dame and have completed further post-graduate training in health professional education.