Nadeeka Dissanayaka

Research: Prof Dissanayaka is the principal investigator (CIA) of 2 large MRFF funded (>$3.6 million) research programs focused on improving diagnosis of dementia in Parkinson's disease (PDCogniCare) and technology assisted psychotherapy in dementia (MyAnxietyCare). Her other programs include Mental Health Benchmarking Industry Tool for Residential Aged Care (MHICare), Improving Diagnosis and Treatment of Anxiety in Parkinson’s disease (IDATA-PD), Virtual reality assisted psychotherapy for aged care (VR AgedCare), Parkinson's disease (VRAPD) and dementia (Tech-CBT), Uncovering a Therapeutic Marker to Reduce the Risk of Dementia in Parkinson's disease (TRIP), and digital delium hub. She is the developer of a new Parkinson’s disease-specific anxiety inventory (PDSAI) and co-author of 5 new psychotherapy manuals including cognitive behavioural therapy and mindfulness therapy. She is first author of the top cited publication for “Anxiety in Parkinson’s disease”, an author of book chapters titled “Anxiety in Parkinson’s disease” in “Anxiety in Older People: Clinical and Research Perspectives”, and "Progressive Neurologocal Conditions and Their Impact on Psychological Well-being in Later Life". She is lead collaborator of the international working groups focused on anxiety in Parkinson’s disease and MRI in Parkinson's disease. Her publications record over the past 10 years places her in the top 10% of the Associate Professors in the relevant field of Psychology according to the Go8 Universities productivity and citations.

Grants and Awards: Prof. Dissanayaka has received continuous funding via 3 competitive fellowships (including NHMRC) and 25 competitive research grants (>90% lead investigator). Her grant record includes international awards such as the prestigious NARSAD Young Investigator International award 2018 from the United States Brain & Behaviour Research Foundation. She is also a recipient of 2 Outstanding Young Researcher Awards in 2013, 2015 & 2023, Oustanding UQCCR PhD Supervisor Award in 2020, and the Faculty of Medicine Future Leaders Award in 2021.

Supervision: Prof. Dissanayaka holds an outstanding record of supervision in disciplines of Psychology, Medicine, Biomedical Sciences, and Pharmacy, and has supervised over 100 students, >10 postdocs and 7 Research assistants. Under her primary supervision, 23 students completed research thesis (6 PhD, 8 DPsyc, 3 MPsyc and 6 Honours) and >45 Psychology Advanced Trainees within research capacity.

Community Engagement and Professional Involvement: Prof. Dissanayaka is an author of >150 conference abstracts, >50 invited seminars, and >25 media reports. She is an advocate for the Lions Medical Research Foundation, and Royal Brisbane & Woman's Hospital Foundation. Prof. Dissanayaka was a member of the UQ Low and Negligible Risk Ethics Committee, and UQCCR Career Development Committee. She is chair of the UQCCR Research Committee. She established and led the UQCCR Consumer & Communittee Involvement (CCI) Committee, and also a member of the Faculty of Medicine CCI working group. Prof. Dissanayaka was the current chair of the Dementia Centre for Research Collaboration Anxiety and Depression in Dementia Research Network, and co-chair of the Australian Dementia Network (ADNet) Early/ Mid career researcher Accelerator group. Her international recognition is supported by the leadership in Parkinson's disease MRI consortium, and Anxiety in Parkinson's disease consortium. She is a current member of the Australian Cognitive Neurosciences Society, and International Movement Disorders Society, a peer reviewer for >20 journals, and a grant reviewer for NHMRC.