Innovative research into Alzheimer’s, brain development, pituitary medicine, cystic fibrosis and mental health has led to five University of Queensland academics being named Fellows of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences (AAHMS).
The Academy announced the induction of 50 new Fellows at its second general meeting last night (6 October 2016), bringing the total Fellowship to 272.
Academy President Professor Ian Frazer said he was delighted to welcome the new fellows.
“Their election as Fellows of the Academy will help to ensure that the Academy can promote use of the best in research-informed health care for all Australians,” he said.
Academy executive member, UQ Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) and Acting Executive Dean of Medicine Professor Robyn Ward said the academy aimed to celebrate health and medical research and its implications for medical practice and policy.
“Fellows are selected based on the strength of their contribution to the health and medical fields,” she said.
“I’m pleased to see more UQ researchers join the academy, which aims to work with stakeholders to tackle global health problems with evidence-based research.”
The latest induction brings UQ’s total contribution of fellows to 23. UQ’s five new AAHMS fellows are:
Professor Richards is Deputy Director of Research at the Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) at UQ and a world leader in brain development, in particular nervous system wiring. She is internationally recognised as driving understanding of the corpus callosum, the major connection between the brain hemispheres.
Professor Götz is Director of the Clem Jones Centre for Ageing Dementia Research at QBI. He is an internationally renowned Alzheimer’s researcher who develops animal models for Alzheimer's and related dementias to dissect pathomechanisms. His discoveries about the potential for ultrasound to reverse dementia have made international headlines.
Academic title holder with UQ School of Medicine, Professor Claire Wainwright has a long-held research interest in airway diseases of children. Professor Wainwright is head of Cystic Fibrosis services at Children’s Health Queensland, and runs the only national clinic caring for children with the rare disease ataxia telangiectasia. The consultant paediatrician has conducted a number of trials to improve clinical outcomes for the CF community.
Professor Harvey Whiteford from UQ’s School of Public Health leads research efforts to increase the understanding of the global burden of mental disorders and improvement of mental health services in Australia and overseas.
Professor Whiteford has worked as a consultant to national and state governments, the World Bank and the World Health Organisation and is recognised as having been central to the redesign of Australian mental health services.
Professor Ho is research director and pre-eminent senior staff specialist at Princess Alexandra Hospital and holds conjoint professorial appointments at UQ and the Queensland University of Technology. His research focuses on pituitary disease treatment, the role of pituitary hormones in health and disease, and the use and abuse of hormones.
More than 170 UQ academics and professors emeriti are fellows of Australia’s learned academies, which encompass the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, the Australian Academy of Science, the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, the Australian Academy of the Humanities, the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies and the recently created Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences. A list of all UQ fellows is available here.
Media: UQ Communications, communications@uq.edu.au, 07 3365 1120.
