Find an expert

I bring industry and academic experience in working on quantum error mitigation, quantum error correction, and quantum control theory to enable quantum computing demonstrations on hardware. I am currently investigating the feasibility of combining error mitigation and error correction techniques with quantum algorithms at the University of Queensland. My team's recent focus spans quantum kernel methods, quantum Hamiltonian simulations for chemistry and optimization, and analysis of quantum channels and their impact on quantum learning. While my group is a theoretical physics research group, we focus on hardware-aware algorithms design and have close partnerships with superconducting qubit experimental platforms at UQ and IBM, with supporting classical computational compute capability at Pawsey Sentonix through NCMAS. I co-lead the quantum computing workstream with Prof. Sally Shrapnel for the Queensland Digital Health Center; I work closely with Prof. Eleanor Rieffel quantum algorithms aligned with the work of the newly established Queensland Decarbonization Alliance and I lead the Asia Pacific Hub of IBM Quantum's Industry Working Group for Healthcare and Lifesciences. Prior to this, I worked on execution of dynamic circuits for error mitigation and quantum error correction applications at IBM Quantum (US) for three years. My work resulted in 3 patents and being recognised as one of IBM Research’s Top Technical Contributors in 2023 globally. I have also designed classical algorithms for noise filtering and prediction for trapped ions at the Quantum Control Laboratory in the University of Sydney, winning ARC EQUS inaugural Director’s Medal in Australia in 2019. QDA is hiring a postdoc position in Quantum Algorithms (https://lnkd.in/e9jZQUEt) and funning two Ph.D positions: Robust Quantum Algorithms for Decarbonisation Applications (https://lnkd.in/gQ3S6bjY) & Distributed Quantum-Enhanced Algorithms (https://lnkd.in/gV7z4EQj)

Stephen Harfield is a Narungga and Ngarrindjeri man from South Australia. He is a public health researcher and epidemiologist. His research focuses on centring the health and wellbeing needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people and their communities through Indigenous-led research.

Stephen’s research employs mixed methods that combine both quantitative and qualitative approaches, grounded in Indigenous methodologies. His research privileges the knowledges of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and adopts a strength-based approach to ensure that the research positively impacts and benefits Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities.

Stephen has more than 10 years of experience conducting research in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and health services. His work focuses on the health and wellbeing of adolescents and young people, sexual health, men’s health, health services research, and enhancing research quality.

In March 2025, Stephen submitted his PhD thesis, titled "Strengthening Primary Health Care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Young People Living in Urban Southeast Queensland”. In recognition of his PhD work, he was awarded the Lowitja Institute’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Award at the 4th International Indigenous Health and Wellbeing Conference 2025.

Stephen holds a Master of Philosophy in Applied Epidemiology from The Australian National University (2019), a Master of Public Health from Flinders University (2013), a Graduate Certificate in Health Services Research and Development from The University of Wollongong (2012), and a Bachelor of Health Sciences (Public Health) from The University of Adelaide (2008).

CURRENT POSITIONS

· Senior Staff Specialist (Public Health Medicine), Queensland Health

· Principal Research Fellow, Centre for Clinical Research - University of Queensland

RECENT POSITIONS

· General Practitioner, Indooroopilly General Practice

· Director, Queensland Centre for Intellectual and Developmental Disability (to January 2021)

· Senior Medical Officer, Mater Intellectual Disability and Autism Service (to November 2020)

· General Practitioner, Cornwall Street Medical Centre (to November 2020)

Mehedi is a public health researcher with strong expertise in quantitative data analytics. He has over eight years of professional experience in developing and developed countries. He has built a distinguished career in public health research, focusing on critical areas such as reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health (RMNCH), nutrition, non-communicable diseases, mental health, sleep health, social determinants of health and health inequalities.

Mehedi completed his PhD from the University of Queensland in 2022. In his doctoral thesis titled “Future direction of maternal and child health in low- and middle-income countries”, he utilized data of over 4.3 million participants extracted from 284 national surveys conducted in 75 low- and middle-income countries to understand the future projections of maternal and child health-related indicators and gaps in progress, with geographical variations across countries. His doctoral research resulted six publications in reputed international journals and provided valuable insights for global and country leaders in their pursuit of achieving health-related Sustainable Development Goals.

Mehedi has a charming engagement with research community. He has reviewed manuscripts for eight international journals and published 45 peer-reviewed articles, many of which appear in high-impact journals. His work has gained media attention, with coverage of more than 15 research stories.

In addition to his research and professional activities, Mehedi is an active member of several professional international collaborative groups, including Global Burden of Diseases, the American Society for Nutrition, the International Health Economics Association, the Society for Research in Child Development, and Health Systems Global, where he collaborates with fellow experts and stays at the forefront of developments in his field.

Mehedi is a Global Change Scholar (2018 cohort) of the University of Queensland and a recipient of several prestigious scholarships and awards. He recently honoured with a national award in the Pregnancy Monitoring Innovation Challenge 2022 funded by the Aspire to Innovate (a2i), Bangladesh, recognizing his innovative contributions to maternal and neonatal health.

Mehedi’s current research focuses on unveiling environmental exposures in pregnancy and risk in adverse birth outcomes in Queensland, Australia.

Dr Helen Haydon is a Senior Research Fellow and Registered Psychologist at the University of Queensland. She has national standing, and an emerging international reputation, as a digital health researcher with a focus on aged and palliative care, psycho-oncology and carer wellbeing. She has led 3 applied nationwide digital health research programs: 1/ Palliative Care ECHO that connects services and upskills health professionals across Australia in palliative care; 2/ Elder ECHO, a telementoring program to support the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation’s (NACCHO) Elder Care Support workforce in the delivery of Culturally safe aged care and; 3/ Caring for the Carer, an online intervention for carers of people with brain tumour. http://caringforthecarer.org.au/

Other research includes: evaluation of telepalliative care services (e.g. patient/ carer outcomes and perceptions and staff perceptions); voluntary assisted dying; technology supported grief and bereavement support and; digital mental health.

She is a Registered Psychologist with clinical experience working with a range of issues and diverse populations and has over ten years’ experience teaching and facilitating workshops on psychology and health communication.

A/Prof Ingrid Hickman is a Principal Research Fellow in Implementation Science with the UQ ULTRA team (Clinical Trial Capability) located within the Centre for Clinical Research in Herston. A/Prof Ingrid Hickman is an implementation scientist and has over 20 years experience in health services clinical research. Her career has focused on research excellence, strategic leadership and translating scientific evidence into improved clinical care for people with complex chronic conditions. From randomised controlled trials and mechanisms of disease progression through to patient centred co-design of health services, her collaborative approach to research aims to find solutions to health care problems. Prior to taking up the role with the ULTRA team, A/Prof Hickman led the Metabolic Obesity Research Group and the Nutrition Research Program at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane for over 12 years. Within this role she has been a passionate advocate for embedding implementation science and methodologies into clinical trials and health services research and has been recognised internationally for her investment in implementation science and clinical workforce capacity building in research translation.

hearing impairment, hearing loss, hearing rehabilitation, evidence-based practice, family-centred hearing care

Louise Hickson, AM, is an Emeritus Professor of Audiology in the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences at The University of Queensland. She has published over 300 research articles, books and book chapters with her main focus on the effects of hearing loss on people's everyday lives and the development of strategies and interventions that improve the uptake and outcomes of hearing rehabilitation. Louise is Chair of the Phonak Expert Circle on Family-Centred Hearing Care, is on the Executive Board of the International Society or Audiology and is a Fellow and Life Member of Audiology Australia. She has received numerous awards recognising her contributions to audiology, including the international research award from the American Academy of Audiology, The University of Queensland Leadership Award, a Lifetime Achievement Award from Hearing Australia and a Life Member of Audiology Australia. She is an Editor of the International Journal of Audiology amd in 2021 Emeritus Professor Hickson was Australia's Leading Researcher in the field of Audiology and Speech and Language Pathology. In 2022 she became a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to tertiary education and audiology associations. She is a sought after speaker and regularly presents at conferences and meetings around the world. Louise also provides advice to hearing service providers both in Australia and overseas and is committed to improving services for people with hearing difficulties.

I am an academic and consultant working in global health with a focus on health technology assessment (HTA), health systems and services research, and the use of medicines in populations. I have a particular interest in the use of data and research for evidence-informed decision making and implementation science in the context of low and middle income countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. I have worked on international health projects in Indonesia and am currently working on several projects in HTA and medicines use in Ghana and sub-Saharan Africa. I work with an extensive network of clinicians and health professionals to investigate the use of medicines and adverse effects in general practice, cancer, psychiatry, neurology, and internal medicine. I have honorary or visiting appointments at the University of Queensland (UQ, Brisbane, Australia), Imperial College London (UK, International Decision Support Initiative) and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana). I have a BSc(Hons) and MPH from UQ and a PhD from Monash University. I have lived or worked in Australia (Brisbane, Melbourne), Canada (Toronto), Indonesia (Yogyakarta), UK (London), and Ghana (Accra, Kumasi). I worked as a consultant in HTA in Australia for many years evaluating submissions to subsidise medicines on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). I am an experienced teacher having coordinated courses, lectured, and tutored in undergraduate and postgraduate programs. I was a Foundation Coordinator in the UQ Master of Pharmaceutical Industry Practice (from 2019). I am an advisor on diverse PhD and student research projects.

Professor Ruth E. Hubbard is the leading frailty expert in Australia, with dual research and clinical leadership roles.

As Masonic Chair of Geriatric Medicine, supported by Aegium Foundation, she created the Australian Frailty Network, a national partnership of researchers, clinicians, professional associations and consumers, with the vision of delivering a national response to frailty that enables frailty-informed care for all older Australians.

As the Director of General and Geriatric Medicine & Consultant Geriatrician at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane, Queensland, she has led the establishment of frailty-focused models of care including a peri-operative geriatric medicine service, geriatrician-led care in the Emergency Department and specialised dementia care wards for people with challenging behaviours.

Prof Hubbard has generated $43mill funding, more than 200 publications, 100 conference appearances, eight book chapters and Consensus Statements supporting national and international policy.

She qualified from St. Mary’s Hospital, London and trained in Cardiff, Wales, completing an MSc in Medical Education and an MD on frailty pathophysiology before undertaking a post-doctoral fellowship in Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia.

Ruthie's teaching and research interests lie at the intersection of law and healthcare. Her research investigates the role of patients and family caregivers in shaping healthcare regulation, particularly in the context of aged care and voluntary assisted dying. Ruthie teaches in the Ethics, Law and Professionalism stream of the Year 1 medical degree and coordinates Elder Law in the Law School.

Ruthie Jeanneret, BA, LLB (Hons), GradDipLegPrac, PhD, completed her PhD thesis at the Australian Centre for Health Law Research, QUT. Her empirical PhD thesis investigated patients' and family caregivers' perspectives and experiences of voluntary assisted dying regulation in Australia and Canada. Ruthie has been involved in writing the voluntary assisted dying mandatory training for participating practitioners in Queensland, Western Australia, and Victoria. She also has experience in teaching undergraduate law and nursing students.

From 2018 - 2020, Ruthie worked as a litigation lawyer in Queensland and Tasmania, practising primarily in commercial litigation.

Bec Jenkinson is health consumer advocate-turned-researcher, with more than 15 years’ experience as a leader in the Australian health consumer movement, advocating for high quality, respectful, person-centred care. She is also skilled qualitative and mixed methods researcher, writer, presenter and networker with a passion for consumer and community involvement in health and medical research, and broad experience encompassing health policy, service delivery and evaluation, and education. Bec's PhD investigated the experiences of women, midwives and obstetricians when pregnant women decline recommended care. She went on to co-lead the development and implementation of Queensland Health's Guideline: Partnering with the woman who declines recommended maternity care. More recently, Bec has been the academic lead of the RADIANT study, alongside a Lived Experience Lead. Aiming to addressing weight stigma in maternity care, RADIANT was recognised with two awards at the inaugural AccessCR Australian Consumer Partnerships in Research Awards in 2025. The study coproduce national, consensus-based Best Practice Principles for Weight Inclusive Maternity Care, which have now been endorsed by peak stakeholder organisations.

Bec is now a Senior Research Fellow with UQ's Clinical Trials Capability Team (ULTRA), working collaboratively with researchers, consumers and other stakeholders to enhance consumer and community involvement (CCI) in clinical trial designs and processes. She is particularly interested in the methodologies of research priority setting, and currently leads a pilot study aiming to expand Australian researchers access to James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnerships. Bec is also interested in how innovative approaches can support more inclusive CCI, and drive health equity in clinical trials.

Dr. Edmund W. Kanmiki is a public health researcher with expertise spanning population health, epidemiology and health economics. He is passionate about achieving health equity, particularly for vulnerable populations. Dr. Kanmiki’s research focuses on social determinants of health, reproductive, maternal, and child health (RMCH), community-based healthcare interventions, healthcare financing, Indigenous health, non-communicable diseases and related areas. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics with economics, a master’s degree and PhD in public health. Edmund’s doctoral thesis at the University of Queensland aimed at improving equity in maternal and child health in rural communities using community-based primary healthcare strategies.

At UQ Poche Centre, Edmund is a member of the Implementing Life Course Interventions research team led by NHMRC Leadership Fellow, Mamun Abdullah. He is a co-investigator of the ARC Centre of Excellence for children and families over the Life Course project titled “Preventing and managing diabetes among Indigenous women and youth”. He is also a research coordinator for the “Exposure to Trihalomethanes in Pregnancy and Birth Outcomes in Queensland Study”.

Prior to joining the University of Queensland, Dr. Kanmiki held research roles at the University of Ghana and the Navrongo Health Research Centre and provided consultancy services to some national and multinational institutions. He is a recipient of the Mastercard Scholarship, Elsevier Atlas award and early carrier research grant award from the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (RSTMH). His research and peer-reviewed publications have informed health policy and programs. Dr. Kanmiki has presented his research at several esteemed conferences. His research has also garnered media attention in prominent outlets including The Conversation in Australia, Health and Medicine in Canada, and Health and Wellness in the United Kingdom.

Michelle is a sociologist and lawyer: her research focuses on decision-making and the operation of law and regulation in practice for people with disabilities and other impairments to communication and legal capacity. She has research interests in the sociology of law, decision-making (supported and substituted), legal personhood, the UNCPRD, disability law, legal and administrative transition to adulthood, communication impairments, and profound intellectual disability. Her work examines decision-making in practice in a range of areas, including health and aged care, banking and finance, income support, and the NDIS. Michelle is trained in both qualitative and quantitative methods, and has extensive experience in research development, design, and practice, as well as health consumer research and co-design.

Michelle works on the MRFF funded project: Unspoken, Unheard, Unmet: Improving Access to Preventative Health Care through Better Conversations about Care. She leads the experience gathering stage of the project, the co-design elements of the work, and the development of guidelines about communication, decision-making, and aged care.

Michelle is also a consumer and disability advocate, with experience in strategic policy development, implementation, and evaluation, including the co-design of state level strategy for transition to adulthood health care, and on Australia’s National Living Evidence Taskforce. She is also the consumer board Chair of Child Unlimited, a consortium of researchers, clinicians, and consumers working towards best evidence-based practice in health care for children and young adults with chronic ill health and disabilities, and co-chair of the consumer advisory committee for the ARC Centre of Excellence Life Course Centre.

Jacki Liddle is a research fellow and occupational therapist researching quality of life, participation and life transitions. She uses innovative technology, along with qualitative and quantitative research methods to investigate the needs and experiences of people living with neurological conditions (dementia, Parkinson's disease, stroke), older people and their caregivers. She has worked with a multi-disciplinary team co-designing technology with people living with dementia and their care partners to support communication. Currently, she is in a conjoint position with Princess Alexandra Hospital, supporting the development, conduct and application of research that improves outcomes for patients.

She has also been involved in developing technology to measure outcomes including lifespace, time use, and activity and role participation to help monitor and improve community outcomes. Dr Liddle's PhD focused on researching the experiences related to retirement from driving for older people, which led to the development of the CarFreeMe program to improve outcomes related to driving cessation. Versions of the program for older drivers, people living with dementia and people with traumatic brain injury have been developed and trialled.

Mark Liu is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow focusing on the potential for clinical trials to affect change on a larger, longer-term scale. He was the interning early-career researcher for a multidisciplinary patient safety trial conducted at eight hospitals across Sydney, Melbourne and regional New South Wales. His doctoral research program involved physical activity for cancer patients, with an emphasis on creating long-term behaviour change for underserved groups.

Methodological expertise:

• Implementing trials in real-world contexts
• Behaviour change theory
• Consumer involvement
• Leveraging routinely collected healthcare data for research
• Other areas of interest: supportive care for people with cancer, inequities in healthcare

Dr Logan is a geriatrician working at The Prince Charles Hospital and Mater Hospital Brisbane. He has expertise in dementia, behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD), frailty, and goal-directed care in chronic disease. He holds a PhD from the University of Queensland, has a strong publication record, and has contributed to national research programs. Dr Logan is experienced in leading multidisciplinary teams, driving quality improvement initiatives, and is recognised as a skilled communicator and collaborator.

Dr Kristiana Ludlow is a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Health Services Research, Faculty of Health, Medicine, and Behavioural Sciences, the University of Queensland, and an Honorary Postdoctoral Fellow at the Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Macquarie University. She completed her Bachelor of Psychology with first class Honours in 2015, her Master of Research in Medicine and Health Sciences in 2017, and her PhD in in Health Innovation in 2020. Dr Ludlow has expertise in co-design, qualitative research and Q methodology. Her research interests include co-designing interventions and digital health tools with end-users, frailty, education, aged care, person-centred care, the role of family caregivers in care, missed care/unfinished care, and care prioritisation. She is passionate about collaborating with consumers, service users and health professionals to improve the delivery of healthcare and mental health services.

Annika Luebbe is an early career researcher with interests in rural mental health in Australia and abroad. Her works focus on strengths-based approaches to understanding the many contributions to mental health in rural, regional, and remote locations. Annika has experience in mixed-methods research, framework development, and mental health service evaluation. Her ongoing research in rural health contributes to the growing rural mental health literature, informing relevant rural solutions, policy, and practice.

Dr Asmita Manchha is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Unspoken, Unheard, Unmet: Improving Access to Preventative Health Care through Better Conversations about Care team (UQ School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences) and an Early Career Researcher. She was awarded a PhD from the University of Queensland (UQ) in 2022, which examined the nature and consequences of the stigma of working in aged care. Asmita also has a first-class Bachelor of Business Management Honours’ degree from the UQ and Bachelor of Commerce from the Australian National University.

At the heart of Asmita’s research is her passion for developing practical, evidence-based resources to empower people who receive and provide aged care services. Her research themes include: (a) Understanding approaches to challenge stigma (i.e, negative attitudes, stereotypes) associated with aged care to promote a greater recognition of the aged care sector, (b) Development of a fit-for-purpose communication screening tool and resources for aged care workers to help older Australians have better conversations about aged care, (c) Exploration of interventions to support the recruitment and retention of people working in aged care with a strengths-based focus on career development, and (d) Application of language-based methods and frameworks from Systemic Functional Linguistics to examine complex social issues in the field of gerontology.

Asmita has vast experience in conducting qualitative and mixed-methods research pertaining to reframing negative perceptions about working in aged care, which have been published in The Gerontologist and Journal of Applied Gerontology. She is actively involved in the gerontology research community including the Australian Association of Gerontology (AAG), where she is the QLD Divisional Secretary.

I am a clinician researcher with experience in health services research, transdisciplinary care, stroke research, implementation science, and consumer engagement. I am passionate about optimising healthcare services and improving patient care by identifying and addressing inefficiencies using innovative models of care and solutions. I am an expert in the field of transdisciplinary healthcare models.

I am also an occupational therapist with over 8 years of experience in direct patient care across multiple hospital settings, including acute stroke, neuroscience, general medical, orthopaedics, and surgical. I currently work as a Service Improvement and Innovation Officer for community healthcare services at Mater at Home.