Current members
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Health economics
Sarah Norris is an Associate Professor of Practice, Health Technology Assessment, at the Leeder Centre for Health Policy, Economics and Data at the University of Sydney. She holds a BSc(Hons) in Physiology, a PhD in Pharmacology, and a Graduate Certificate in Health Economics.
Sarah has more than 30 years’ experience in medical research, health economics and the use of different types of evidence to inform clinical practice and health policy. She has experience across a broad range of health technologies and services (including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, diagnostic tests and public health programmes) and clinical areas. Sarah’s research interests encompass the methods used to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of emerging health technologies, with a focus on genomics and digital health.
Associate Professor Norris has served on MSAC ESC since 2013 and on MSAC since 2018.
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General practice
Dr Merran Auland is an experienced rural and remote general practitioner and anaesthetist.
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Epidemiology, pathology
MbChB, MMed (clin.epi., merit), PhDProfessor Katy Bell is a clinical epidemiologist in the School of Public Health, at The University of Sydney. She teaches and researches on the potential benefits and harms of medical tests used for screening, diagnosis and monitoring chronic disease, with a focus on cancer and cardiovascular disease. She has over 90 publications and holds NHMRC grants for health services research on the use of tests for early detection of cardiovascular disease and cancer, especially melanoma. Prior to becoming a clinical epidemiologist, she worked for six years as a medical doctor, including two years of pathology training. She is Chair Elect of the International Network for Epidemiology in Policy, and a past Vice President of the Australasian Epidemiological Association.
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Interventional cardiology
Dr Rohan Bhagwandeen is a Senior staff specialist and Director of Structural Interventions / Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation at John Hunter Hospital Newcastle NSW. He is also Director of the TAVI Program at Lake Macquarie Private Hospital. He is a strong advocate for equitable healthcare delivery and was a Clinical Lead of the Hunter New England Cardiac Stream 2012-2015. He has convened the Essential Percutaneous Interventional Course since 2005. He is a Course Director of the Sydney Valves conference and a member of numerous steering committees including ANZ Endovascular Therapies. Rohan is a board member of the Asia Pacific Interventional Council.
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Health economics
Professor Emily Callander is a health economist in the School of Public Health at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS).
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Health economics
Professor Louisa Collins is the Group Lead of Health Economics at QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute. Louisa is a health economist and holds a PhD in Public Health, Master of Public Health and Bachelor of Economics. Louisa has 20 years’ health economics experience performing economic evaluations, decision-analytic modelling and applied economic research. She predominantly works in cancer economics and her current research are in the areas of skin cancer prevention, genomic medicine, supportive care interventions for cancer survivors and the financial burden of cancer to families. Prior to 2016, she undertook health technology assessments commissioned by the Australian Government Department of Health for Medicare funding decisions.
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Surgical, anatomical pathology
Professor Anthony Gill AM is Professor of Surgical Pathology at the University of Sydney, a senior staff specialist in anatomical pathology at the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney and chairman of the Australian Pancreatic Genome Initiative (APGI). His scope of clinical practice includes both anatomical (surgical and cytological) pathology and targeted molecular testing of tumours, with an emphasis on biomarker development and companion diagnostic testing for targeted therapies.
In addition to his clinical practice, he has a proven track record of translating advances in the knowledge of cancer gained at the basic science level into validated and clinically useful tests which are now employed in diagnostic pathology laboratories around the world. He has co-authored over 500 highly cited original research publications in addition to numerous invited review articles and book chapters. He is a standing editorial board member of the WHO/IARC classification of tumours which is considered the peak international body in surgical pathology and sets diagnostic criteria for tumours applied around the world. In 2018 he was appointed a member of the order of Australia (AM) in the Queens Birthday honours list “for significant service to medical research in the field of surgical pathology as an academic, author; adviser, and mentor”.
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Clinical epidemiology
Associate Professor Susan Jordan is a medically trained cancer epidemiologist who is currently Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the School of Public Health. Before starting her PhD, she worked in rural and urban general practice for over 10 years and brings that clinical experience to her research. She currently leads projects on ovarian and thyroid cancers, examining aetiology, patterns of care and survival. Her research employs a broad range of methods including individual patient and clinician surveys, molecular epidemiology and pooling of consortia data, but she has particular expertise in large-scale data linkage.
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Health economics
Associate Professor Billingsley Kaambwa [PhD (Health Economics), MA (Health Economics), BA (Economics and Statistics)] is Head of Health Economics, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University of South Australia. His primary research focuses on employing econometric and statistical methods in economic evaluation, decision-analytic, and choice modelling. He has authored more than 150 peer-reviewed publications.
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Microbiology and infectious diseases
MBBS PhD GAICD FRCPA (Microb) FRACP (Infect Dis)Associate Professor Caitlin Keighley is a medical director, microbiologist and infectious diseases physician at Southern.IML Pathology, an infectious diseases physician at the Illawarra Private Cancer Care Centre, Wollongong Private Hospital and Honorary medical officer at the Wollongong Hospital. She is an adjunct associate professor at the University of Wollongong where she is involved in collaborative research with the Wollongong antimicrobial resistance research alliance (WARRA) and on the ethics committee.
A/Prof Keighley serves on the TGA Advisory Committee on Medical Devices (ACMD). She is the chair of the microbiology advisory committee of the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia (RCPA) and on the board of the Australian Society of Infectious Diseases (ASID). She is also co-chair of the Australia and New Zealand Mycology Interest Group (ANZMIG).
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Epidemiology, gastroenterology
M.B.B.S, B.Med.Sci, FRACP, M.Med – Clin. Epi., PhDAssociate Professor Suzanne Mahady is a senior staff specialist, consultant gastroenterologist at Royal Melbourne Hospital and adjunct senior research fellow in the School of Public Health & Preventive Medicine at Monash University. She holds a Masters degree and PhD in clinical epidemiology (University of Sydney) and has expertise in teaching epidemiology at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She is the Chair of the International Endpoint Adjudication Committee for Clinically Significant Bleeding for the ASPREE and ASPREE-XT clinical trials, with publication in New England Journal of Medicine and others. She has research interests in clinical epidemiology of gastrointestinal disorders and evidence-based health care.
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Health economics
BBSc(Hon), GDEcSt, PGDipHthEco, PhDProfessor Cathy Mihalopoulos has dual qualifications in Behavioural Science and Health Economics. She is currently the head of the Health Economics Group (HEG) at Monash University within the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine. She has a broad range of expertise ranging from the conduct of economic evaluations alongside clinical trials, economic modelling, priority-setting projects, outcome measurement and health service research. Her major field of research interest is the economics of mental health and psychosocial care. She has been invited to sit on committees of national and international significance, including the Economics Sub-Committee of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC-ESC) from 2013 -2021. Her research has attracted numerous awards including the best within trial economic evaluation inaugural award by the Australian Clinical Trial Alliance in 2023, a Society for Mental Health Research health service research award and commended in the 2021 Research Australia Health Services Research Award category.
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Health economics
BPharm, MMedSciProfessor Andrew Mitchell is an honorary professor in the Department of Health Economics Wellbeing and Society at the Australian National University (ANU). In a career spanning several decades in the Office of Health Technology Assessment in the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care, he applied long experience in reviewing clinical and economic evaluations of medicines and other health technology types. He also helped steer the development of several approaches to use this information systematically to guide resource allocation decisions in Australia’s publicly funded health care system.
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Consumer representative
MHealthSc (HealthProm&HealthEd), MWellness, NursingMs Kristine Pierce is a distinguished leader in consumer involvement and advocacy within the healthcare sector. As the Director of Consumer Involvement at Child Unlimited, UNSW, she has developed and implemented consumer engagement frameworks and led patient-centred initiatives. She has co-founded and leads SCN2A Australia and has contributed to the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE), Global Genes, and The Epilepsy Foundation. Recognised through her induction into the Victorian Women’s Honour Roll and a nomination for the Children’s Healthcare Australasia Medal of Distinction, she continues to enhance patient and family engagement, ensuring consumer voices are integral to healthcare decision-making.
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Trauma surgery, orthopaedic surgery
Professor Michael Schuetz is a practicing orthopaedic surgeon and research leader in the field of trauma care and orthopaedic trauma research. In August 2018, he commenced as the Director of Jamieson Trauma Institute based at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital campus in Brisbane and Chair of Trauma, Queensland University of Technology. The Jamieson Trauma Institute strives to advance the optimal trauma patient’s outcome by focusing on the patient’s journey to include the prehospital, acute care, rehabilitation and long-term outcomes for people who suffer a traumatic injury. Improvements can range from models of care, to specific interventions and developing new devices.
Professor Schuetz is actively involved in clinical knowledge translation and commercialisation of novel orthopaedic surgery technologies across Australia and the world. -
Anaesthesiology
FAICD MB BS (Hons) FANZCA MHPol MClSDr Joanna Sutherland is an Honorary Medical Officer Anaesthetist at Coffs Harbour Health Campus and a Conjoint Associate Professor with the University of New South Wales Rural Medical School.
She was an appointed member of the NSW Mid North Coast Local Health District Governing Board (2010-2021) and a Director of the NSW North Coast Primary Health Network (2015-2021). Dr Sutherland served as a member of the Medicare Benefits Schedule Review Taskforce (2018-2021) and chaired the Anaesthesia Clinical Committee. She is a member of the Safety and Quality Committee of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists. Her clinical and research interests include safe sedation administration and competency-based training.
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Genomics, precision medicine
Associate Professor Vanessa (Ness) Tyrrell is Head of the Clinical Translation Research Division, and Program Director of the Zero Childhood Cancer National Precision Medicine Program at Children’s Cancer Institute. With over 30 years of experience in all disciplines of genetic testing, she is a recognised leader in her field. She is a Fellow of the Human Genetics Society of Australasia (HGSA), Associate to the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia (RCPA), and Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD). Most recently she was appointed Board of the Australian Genome Research Facility (AGRF), and the Australian Genomics National Steering Committee.
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Consumer representative
Dr Christine Walker is a health sociologist, who is principal researcher for The Australian Longitudinal Study Into the Social Impact of Epilepsy. She has expertise in qualitative analysis of data. Her principal research interest is in the role of consumer experience and participation in the health system and health research. Additionally, she focuses on safety and quality in all aspects of health care to benefit health consumers.
She is a member of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Expert Committee on Quality Care and a member of the community advisory group in Melbourne Genomics Health Alliance and a Board Member of Consumers’ Health Forum, Epilepsy Foundation and Epilepsy Australia.
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