Personal Development Session

Tiahni Adamson is a proud Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander woman and Wildlife Conservation Biologist and 2024 Young Australian of the year (SA)

Associate Professor Stacie Attrill is a Speech Pathology researcher investigating health professional education and supervisory practices and the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences Associate Dean of Curriculum

Associate Professor Odette Pearson is a Kuku Yalanji/Torres Strait Islander person and Associate Professor and co-Theme Leader of the Wardliparingga Aboriginal Health Equity Theme at the South Australian health and Medical Research Institute. Her experience and post-doctoral training in Aboriginal health policy, health services research and equity comprises a unique comprehensive skillset relevant to existing and emerging complexities of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and well-being. Integral to her research is leadership and governance by Aboriginal people and communities.

Professor Nicola Spurrier is South Australia’s Chief Public Health Officer. She is passionate about preventing people getting sick and keeping all South Australians healthy. Dr Spurrier is both a paediatrician and a public health physician with expertise in communicable and non-communicable disease control, health promotion, and public health diplomacy. She has a particular interest in the health and wellbeing of children, co-designing health prevention programs with Aboriginal communities and ensuring key health information is accessible to all South Australians.

Professor Spurrier and her team, work in close partnership with local government, Aboriginal health services, hospitals, primary care, education, housing and social services, environmental and water sectors and of course the media, to ensure every opportunity is taken in our state to keep people healthy and out of hospital.

On a different note, she likes staying active, enjoying running and cycling especially when this is in the beautiful Adelaide hills. She is a keen gardener including home grown fruit and veg. When not otherwise occupied, Dr Spurrier finds joy in handicrafts such as needlework, quilting, dressmaking, mosaics and most recently basket weaving.

Dr Spurrier loves living and working in South Australia, fondly referring to it as the Goldilocks state, not too big and not too small – just right!

Professor Andrew Zannettino is the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences at the University of Adelaide. He is also a Professor of Experimental Haematology and co-directs the Myeloma Research Laboratory within the Precision Cancer Medicine Theme at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI).

The master of ceremonies for the session will be Professor Mark Hutchinson.

Professor Mark Hutchinson has been recently appointed as the Director of the Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing (IPAS). He leads the Neuroimmunopharmacology laboratory at the University of Adelaide and holds ministerial appointments.

Mark has a strong record of leading successful teams. His expertise spans diverse basic science methods for human and animal research, including biomarker identification, multiomics and complex data analytics. He engages consumers and industry and advocates for their involvement in research. He also has made a positive contribution to commercial translation between basic science and knowledge utilisation.

He also serves as the chair of the Safeguarding Australia through Biotechnology Response and Engagement (SABRE) Alliance and is the chair of the Australian Pain Solutions Research Alliance board.