Dr Nathalia Costa is a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Queensland's cLinical TRials cApability (ULTRA), located within the Centre for Clinical Research in Herston. Her career goal is to enhance the evidence base from clinical trials and deepen the understanding of healthcare issues through qualitative and mixed methods, with a focus on theoretically grounded, critical, reflexive and collaborative approaches. She is passionate about bringing different types of knowledge and stakeholders together to generate perspectives that create change and make research, practice and education more inclusive and nuanced. She advocates for pluralist inquiries and believes research should go beyond the dualism “quantitative/qualitative” to achieve the intersubjective understandings needed for impactful collective action. Her methodological expertise includes:
Systematic, scoping and rapid reviews
A range of qualitative methods and methodologies including but not limited to interviews, ethnography, Delphi studies, surveys, focus groups, document and policy analysis, thematic analysis, content analysis, and discourse analysis
Embedding qualitative research in feasibility trials to inform large-scale clinical trials
Conducting qualitative research to inform the development of implementation strategies
Use of systems-thinking frameworks to identify opportunities for interdisciplinary and intersectoral action to target health problems
Applying social theory to deepen understanding of healthcare and health more broadly
Participatory and collaborative research with key stakeholders (e.g., patients, clinicians, academics, policymakers)
Her publications (45+) span a diverse range of themes, including musculoskeletal conditions, pain, policy, sociology and culturally responsive care. She has also taught across a range of disciplines, including research methods, musculoskeletal physiotherapy, sociology applied to health, fundamentals of physiotherapy, fundamentals of health care, health policy, health economics and health systems finance.
Her research focuses on aspects of low back pain - from exploring ways to navigate uncertainty in low back pain care to identifying avenues to improve it within the Australian healthcare system. She is currently investigating how to optimise recruitment within the FORENSIC trial, which aims to evaluate if lumbar fusion surgery is more beneficial than continuing with best conservative care for patients with persistent severe low back pain who have already undergone non-surgical treatment.
Alongside collaborators, Nathalia has garnered grants (AUD$6M) and awards, including an international award for one of her PhD studies, awarded by the International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine – the 2021 ISSLS Prize for Lumbar Spine Research (Clinical Science). She has made >35 presentations at national and international conferences, including presentations as an invited speaker at international conferences (e.g., World Physiotherapy Congress). Prior to her current appointment, she was a Post-doctoral Research Fellow at the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (UQ - 2021), a Post-doctoral Research Associate at the Sydney School of Public Health (The University of Sydney, 2021-2022), and a Lecturer in Physiotherapy at the Sydney School of Health Sciences (The University of Sydney, 2023). Nathalia serves as an Associate Editor for Qualitative Health Research and the Journal of Humanities in Rehabilitation.
Nadine is a physiotherapist, NHMRC Leadership Fellow (leadership level 2) focused on musculoskeletal pain and orthopaedic research, particularly clinical trials, and Academic Director of the University of Queensland's Clinical Trials Centre. Nadine is also the program lead for the Health Research Accelerator (HERA 2) program focused on innovation in clinical trials (ULTRA - UQ's Clinical Trial Capability). She is passionate about supporting multidisciplinary groups to work together, with critical mass, to design, conduct, analyse and translate the results of high quality clinical trials, in ways that improve patient and service outcomes.
Nadine is a lifetime Fellow of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy in the UK, and has held previous National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Senior Investigator awards and is the only physiotherapist to have held an NIHR Research Professorship in the UK. Having moved to Australia in January 2021, she was the inaugural Director of the STARS Research and Education Alliance between the University of Queensland and Metro North Health in Queensland (STARS is the Surgical, Treatment and Rehabilitation Service, the newest public hospital in Brisbane). Nadine is part of the STARS Alliance multidisciplinary team including conjoint appointments between the University and hospital, across the disciplines of physiotherapy, nursing, occupational therapy, psychology, consumer involvement in research, interdisciplinary collaborative practice in education and practice, and research management.
Nadine's research focuses on musculoskeletal pain, including low back pain, osteoarthritis and shoulder problems, and she has a particular interest in developing, testing and implementing treatments and health services. She has led or collaborated on more than 31 randomised trials, attracting over $145 million in research funding from, for example, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), Versus Arthritis, and the Medical Research Council in the UK, PCORI in the USA and the NHMRC and MRFF in Australia. Current examples include international collaborative RCTs funded through the NIHR-NHMRC collaborative trial scheme focused on comparative effectiveness of surgery and conservative care for persistent, severe low back pain and comparative effectiveness of different approaches to shoulder joint replacement for patients with shoulder osteoarthritis. She has supervised 15 PhD students to completion, and 19 Masters research project students (nearly all were healthcare professionals), with 5 PhDs currently in progress in the UK, Europe and Australia. Nadine has led or contributed to over 287 peer reviewed publications, including the Lancet Series on Low Back Pain in 2018.
Examples of recognition as a national and international leader in the field include:
2024-2029 NHMRC Investigator Grant, Leadership level 2, supporting a program of research focused on new musculoskeletal RCTs and sharing existing RCT data to answer further research questions
2023 Stanley Paris Visiting Fellowship award, University of Otago, New Zealand, supporting visiting fellowship in March 2024
2022 Chief Executive's Award for Research, Metro North Health and Hospital Service Research Excellence Award
2020 Senior Investigator award from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) in the UK, awarded to the top 200 clinical researchers in the country.
2019 PEDro recognition for the UK FASHIoN trial - chosen by a panel of international trialists as one of the five most important physiotherapy trials published in 2014-2019. Announced on 4 November 2019.
2019 Invited member of the International Research Strategy Advisory Committee for the Health Research Board’s (Ireland) new five year research strategy development. September-October 2019
2018 Miegunyah Distinguished Visiting Fellowship 2019, University of Melbourne, Australia. February-March 2019
Dr Marie-Pier McSween is a Canada trained speech-language pathologist who completed her PhD at The University of Queensland. Her research interests include language neuroscience, neuroimaging, aphasia rehabilitation, adjunct therapies and implementation science.
Dr McSween’s research focuses on understanding the acute effects of exercise, the benefits of white noise, and the influence of Levodopa on new word learning in healthy adults and to develop new approaches to optimise interventions with patients presenting with language impairments following an acquired brain injury (e.g., stroke).
A second focus of Dr McSween’s research is aphasia recovery and aphasia rehabilitation and the implementation of comprehensive post-stroke aphasia therapy programs, leading to enhanced outcomes for patients, significant others, clinicians, and health services.
Jonathan is Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Musculoskeletal and Orthopaedic Research at the STARS Education and Research Alliance. “STARS” is the Surgical, Treatment and Rehabilitation Service specialist public health facility in Brisbane and the “Alliance” is between the University of Queensland and Metro North Health in Queensland, Australia.
His vision is to improve the quality of life of people with the most common and disabling types of joint pain by investigating the most effective and safe treatments to support condition management. A key part of this is understanding what works best for whom and why. He has a specialist interest in the clinical management of joint pain due to osteoarthritis with education, exercise and weight loss. To maximise research impact he also seeks to understand the best ways of getting new knowledge from research to the people who need it most including healthcare practitioners and people with joint pain.
His boundary-spanning physiotherapy career has involved clinical, academic, conjoint, policy and professional body roles. Prior to joining the University of Queensland, he was Research into Practice Adviser at the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy in the UK and he holds an Honorary Senior Research Fellow position at Keele University, UK.
He has published over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles in top musculoskeletal journals including The Lancet Rheumatology, Osteoarthritis and Cartilage, Rheumatology and the British Journal of Sports Medicine. He has lead-supervised three research students to completion (1 PhD, 1 MPhil and 1 Academy of Medical Sciences project student) and has 1 ongoing Prof Doc student. He contributes to national policy (e.g. 2022 UK NICE osteoarthritis guideline committee), is a steering group member of the Osteoarthritis Research Society International Joint Effort Initiative (which seeks to improve the international implementation of evidence based osteoarthritis care) and has held national committee strategy, research and communications officer roles (e.g. for: The Community Rehabilitation Alliance; The British Society of Rheumatology, and; the Council for Allied Health Professions Research). He thrives through collaboration and welcomes approaches from prospective PhD students. He is committed to improving equity, diversity and belonging in Allied Health Professions research.
Examples of national and international recognition include:
-Invited advisor to NHS England Obesity Expert Group and report writer of “the impact of weight and weight management on osteoarthritis of the hip and knee” 2021-23.
-Chartered Society of Physiotherapy competition award- Leadership Development Programme MSc module funding 2021.
-Invitations to give international conference plenaries including the Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) Epidemiology and Therapy Year in Review in 2021.
-Clinical Research Network West Midlands Research Scholar Fellowships x2 2020-2022
-Invited osteoarthritis expert to UK Royal Pharmaceutical Society 2020
-National Institute of Health Care Research (NIHR) Academic Clinical Lecturer in Physiotherapy 2016-2019
-Chartered Society of Physiotherapy Robert Williams Award for top 10 abstract at The World Confederation of Physical Therapy 2015
Dr Retamal-Walter is Lecturer in Speech Pathology in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences at The University of Queensland. Building on over 10 years of clinical experience and academic experience in Chile, Dr Retamal-Walter completed his PhD at The University of Queensland in May 2022. His PhD project explored the nature of engagement in telepractice early intervention for families of young children with communication difficulties. Dr Retamal-Walter's interest in Information and Communication Technologies relies on the use of technology to provide person- and family-centred services directly into the home environment, which is a person's natural communication environment. His research interests also include the use of simulation, virtual/augmented reality, and other innovative approaches in the preparation and training of students from speech pathology, allied health, and other health and education disciplines.
University Profile: Dr Retamal-Walter is Lecturer in Speech Pathology in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences.
Teaching Themes: Professional Practice and Communication Skills; Disorders of Early Language Development; Children with Special Needs in Communication.
Research interests: Telepractice, Communication Difficulties, Hearing Impairment, Person- and Family-Centred Care, Early Intervention, Telehealth, Professional Education.
Publications: 4 peer-reviewed journal articles, 1 book chapter.
Reviewer: Chilean Journal of Speech-Language Pathology [Revista Chilena de Fonoaudiologia]; Language and Cognition [Lenguaje y Cognicion].
Dr Kirstine Shrubsole is an NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellow at the Queensland Aphasia Research Centre. She holds a Bachelor of Speech Pathology (First Class Honours) from The University of Queensland, and completed her PhD in 2018. Kirstine has a research focus on improving implementation of evidence into practice in speech pathology and multidisciplinary services, with a special interest in stroke and aphasia rehabilitation. She has demonstrated that practice change is achievable for healthcare teams working in aphasia, leading to positive outcomes for patients, clinicians, and organisations.
Kirstine has published over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles, and has been awarded over $6 million in competitive research funding. Kirstine previously worked as the Conjoint Research Fellow in Speech Pathology (Princess Alexandra Hospital and The University of Queensland), providing research capacity building and mentoring to speech pathologists and supporting multidisciplinary research. Kirstine is the co-founder and Deputy Lead of the Collaboration of Aphasia Triallists’ Implementation Science in Aphasia working group, and a research affiliate of the Centre for Research Excellence in Aphasia Rehabilitation and Recovery.
Kirstine is completing a NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellowship on the following topic:
The Aphasia Implementation Toolkit Project: Developing an implementation intervention to improve services for stroke survivors with aphasia
She is a chief investigator on three MRFF grants, including:
Unspoken, Unheard, Unmet: Improving Access to Preventative Health Care through Better Conversations about Care
Bridging the Digital Divide: Building Health Self-Efficacy through Communication-Accessible Online Environments
Enhancing utility of neuropsychological evaluation for earlier and effective diagnosis of dementia in Parkinson's disease
Dr Viana Vuvan is a titled Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist and Lecturer in Physiotherapy at The University of Queensland. Viana has a strong clinical background in musculoskeletal physiotherapy, with experience in managing a wide range of musculoskeletal and sports-related injuries. Viana has a special interest in the management of upper limb musculoskeletal disorders and enjoys sharing her experience with students in the undergraduate and postgraduate physiotherapy programs. Viana is an active member of the Sports Injury Rehabilitation and Prevention for Health (SIRPH) research unit and the Neck and Head Research Unit (NAHRU) at the University of Queensland.
Viana’s research is focused on improving the management of persistent musculoskeletal pain conditions, such as tendinopathies, and better understanding the mechanisms underlying their chronicity. Viana’s PhD research focused on lateral elbow tendinopathy and explored the factors contributing to pain, disability and chronicity within this group. Additionally, Viana has explored similar mechanisms in other tendinopathies, including Achilles, patellar tendinopathy, plantar fasciopathy, as well as in whiplash associated disorders. She has shared her research at numerous state-wide, national and international conferences, and has been awarded for her presentations at several conferences.
A/Prof Sarah Wallace is an NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellow (2020-24; 2025-29) and Certified Practising Speech Pathologist. Her research interests include communication disability in ageing and enabling and measuring meaningful change in post-stroke (language/communication impairment following stroke) aphasia. Sarah uses qualitative and participatory methods to understand the lived experience of communication disability. She works in partnership with people with lived experience, clinicians and community members to co-produce interventions, systems and standards that improve quality of care and outcomes.
Sarah's research themes include: (a) Design and implementation of a national audit system to drive quality improvement in post-stroke aphasia services; (b) Development and implementation of methodological standards to improve aphasia research quality and reduce research wastage; (c) Development of technology-enhanced interventions to support self-management, promote equitable access to information and services, and empower people with aphasia; (d) Development of fit-for-purpose training and resources for aged care workers to help older Australians have better conversations about aged care.
Sarah leads four current MRFF-funded projects:
Bridging the Digital Divide: Building Health Self-Efficacy through Communication-Accessible Online Environments
Unspoken, Unheard, Unmet: Improving Access to Preventative Health Care through Better Conversations about Care
The Right Treatment for the Right Person at the Right Time. Driving High-Value Aphasia Care through Meaningful Health System Monitoring
Measuring, Monitoring, and Motivating Adherence to Self-Managed Aphasia Treatment
Recent publications can be viewed on my ORCID page: 0000-0002-0600-9343
I am a physiotherapist with a clinical specialty in the management of individuals with neurological conditions and vestibular disorders. I have a keen interest in examining how the body's balance systems, including the inner ear (vestibular system), eyes (ocular system), and sensory modalities (touch, proprioception), interact with the brain to optimize movement control, functionality, physical activity, and participation outcomes for individuals affected by neurological and vestibular pathologies. This includes conditions such as multiple sclerosis, cerebellar dysfunction, traumatic brain injury, stroke, Parkinson's disease, myasthenia gravis, motor neuron disease, concussion, Meniere's disease, vestibular migraines, acoustic neuromas, and age-related vestibular dysfunction. Additionally, I am interested in the influence of lifestyle choices on vestibular system functioning and integration, particularly how factors such as physical activity, community integration, sleep, and overall wellness affect both neurological and vestibular conditions, including Meniere's disease, vestibular migraines, and age-related vestibular dysfunction.
