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Dr Lisa Anemaat

Affiliate of Centre for Neurorehabilitation, Ageing and Balance Research
Centre for Neurorehabilitation, Ageing and Balance Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Conjoint Research Fellow in Consumer and Community Involvement
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

Lisa is a speech pathologist and conjoint research fellow with Metro North Health and The University of Queensland and works with the Queensland Aphasia Research Centre (QARC). Her research focuses on examining experiences, determining priorities, and co-designing meaningful solutions with lived-experience experts, and improving consumer partnerships. Lisa’s PhD used a novel application of Experience-Based Co-Design, to co-design aphasia services for QARC, who have adopted her findings as a future focus of the centre.

Lisa Anemaat
Lisa Anemaat

Dr Nathalia Costa

Affiliate of Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research (CIPHeR)
Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Senior Research Fellow
Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research Infrastructure)
Senior Research Fellow
UQ Centre for Clinical Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

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, photo-elicitation, 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 (55+) 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$7.5M) 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).

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.

Nathalia Costa
Nathalia Costa

Dr Emmah Doig

Affiliate of Centre for Neurorehabilitation, Ageing and Balance Research
Centre for Neurorehabilitation, Ageing and Balance Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Conjoint Senior Research Fellow
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

Emmah is an experienced occupational therapist and researcher in the field of brain injury rehabilitation. Emmah's PhD, completed in 2010, compared the effectiveness of an outpatient brain injury rehabilitation program in home and hospital settings.

Research Interests

Emmah has conducted collaborative research in the field of neurorehabilitation, partnering with consumers and clinicians to develop and trial rehabilitation approaches to enhance person-centred care, goal setting and cognitive rehabilitation. Other research interest areas include metacognitive and occupation-based treatment approaches, the use of technology in rehabilitation, outcome measurement, and community-based rehabilitation.

Research Expertise

Emmah has conducted research using quantitative and qualitative methodologies including randomised controlled trials and single case experimental design. Emmah has an interest in knowledge translation, has conducted implementation research using a range of implementation frameworks, and codesigned with end-users including consumers and clinicians.

Emmah Doig
Emmah Doig

Professor Nadine Foster

Affiliate of Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research (CIPHeR)
Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
NHMRC Leadership Fellow
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Director, UQ Clinical Trials Centre
Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation)
Availability:
Available for supervision
Media expert

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) and a theme lead for clinical trials in the Centre of Innovation in Pain and Health Research (CIPHeR) at UQ. 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 311 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 - Elected to the Board of Directors, Australian Clinical Trials Alliance (ACTA)

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.

2019 - Invited member of the International Research Strategy Advisory Committee for the Health Research Board’s (Ireland) new five year research strategy development

2018 - Miegunyah Distinguished Visiting Fellowship 2019, University of Melbourne, Australia. February-March 2019

Nadine Foster
Nadine Foster

Dr Hannah Olufson

Honorary Fellow
Centre for Health Services Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

Hannah is an experienced Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD) who holds positions as a Senior Dietitian at The Surgical, Treatment and Rehabilitation Service, Knowledge Translation Workforce Development Officer for Metro North Hospital and Health Service, and Honorary Research Fellow within the University of Queensland, Centre for Health Services Research.

Hannah completed her PhD at the University of Queensland in 2024. Her PhD focused on person-centred care and interprofessional practice in nutrition and food services in rehabilitation, and has been internationally recognised. Hannah published four first-author peer-reviewed articles from her PhD research and has been invited to present her work at national conferences. Hannah has also secured competitive research funding to advance her clinical research program and translate her findings into practice across Queensland hospitals and health services, establishing herself as a promising early-career clinician-researcher. This has been reflected in recent awards, including the Practice-based Evidence in Nutrition Prize from Dietitians Australia (2024).

Hannah’s clinical research program aims to improve nutrition care in rehabilitation populations by harnessing technology, data-driven decision-making, and consumer engagement. Recent projects within this program include co-designing and implementing innovative nutrition education videos: https://metronorth.health.qld.gov.au/news/nutrition-information-for-patients, co-developing quality indicators for rehabilitation nutrition and food services with consumers and multidisciplinary staff, and using body composition measures to inform precision nutrition care.

As a Knowledge Translation Workforce Development Officer and clinically embedded researcher, Hannah is committed to bridging the gap between contemporary research and clinical practice. Hannah leads the Metro North arm of the Allied Health Translating Research into Practice (AH-TRIP) initiative: https://www.health.qld.gov.au/clinical-practice/database-tools/translating-research-into-practice-trip/translating-research-into-practice, aimed at increasing knowledge translation capacity in health professionals. Her involvement in various projects reflects this commitment to both knowledge translation and innovation, including contributing to developing and implementing a new high-value Malnutrition Model of Care and supporting the implementation of interprofessional mealtime enhancement strategies into routine practice.

Hannah Olufson
Hannah Olufson

Dr Rebecca Packer

Affiliate of Centre for Motor Neuron Disease Research
Centre for Motor Neuron Disease Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Senior Lecturer
School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

Dr Rebecca Packer is a Senior Lecturer in Speech Pathology at the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences. Dr Packer has attracted over 2.2M in research funding and published over 40 research articles and book chapters with her main focus on the impacts of swallowing disorders in head and neck cancer on survivors and their families.

Rebecca Packer
Rebecca Packer

Dr Sarah Prescott

Research Fellow
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

Sarah is an occupational therapist with over 20 years clinical experience delivering specialised brain injury and complex neurological intervention across the continuum of care in Australia and the UK. Sarah is passionate about conducting research which enables improved rehabilitation outcomes and quality of life for people with brain injury. Her PhD, completed in 2018, investigated client-centred goal setting in the rehabilitation of community dwelling clients with acquired brain injury. The PhD provides insight into how clinicians may implement the client-centred goal setting process in practice to ensure that the meaningful and personally relevant goals of people with brain injury can be formulated, despite known barriers such as memory and self-awareness impairment.

Sarah is a Post-doctoral Research Fellow in Brain Injury Rehabilitation, Surgical Treatment and Rehabilitation Service (STARS) Education and Research Alliance, the University of Queensland. She also works in her private practice, to provide specialised brain injury rehabilitation services in Queensland, Australia.

Sarah Prescott
Sarah Prescott

Dr Jonathan Quicke

Affiliate of Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research (CIPHeR)
Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Research Fellow
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

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

-OARSI Young Investigator Award 2014

Jonathan Quicke
Jonathan Quicke

Dr Felipe Retamal Walter

Affiliate of University of Queensland Centre for Hearing Research (CHEAR)
Centre for Hearing Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Lecturer in Speech Pathology
School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision
Media expert

Dr Felipe Retamal-Walter is a bilingual speech pathologist, audiologist, and early career academic at The University of Queensland. His research focuses on improving access, equity, and quality in communication and hearing healthcare across the lifespan. Drawing on over 15 years of experience across Chile and Australia, Felipe leads and contributes to international research projects funded nationally and internationally. He is a recipient of multiple academic recognitions, including top-cited article awards, international fellowships, and an invention patent for neonatal care technology.

Felipe uses mixed methods, implementation science, and participatory research approaches to co-design and evaluate practical, person-centred models of care. He works in partnership with families, students, clinicians, educators, and policymakers across many regions in Australia and the Pacific, North and South America, and Europe to develop tools, training, and systems that respond to the needs of underserved and diverse communities.

Felipe’s research themes include:

  • Design, improvement, and evaluation of service delivery models to enhance access to timely and high-quality services. This is achieved by building honest, transparent, and long-lasting partnerships that consider all stakeholders as equal partners in care: clients, families, communities, healthcare professionals, and policymakers.
  • Development and validation of implementation tools and measures to enhance person- and family-centred care, engagement, and shared decision-making in healthcare services. These tools promote equitable, community-based access for people across the lifespan in diverse regions and contexts.
  • Implementation of culturally responsive education and training approaches to prepare health professions students for inclusive, digitally enabled, and person-centred practice in global and diverse contexts.

Felipe is an active member of the World Health Organization’s World Hearing Forum. He serves on The University of Queensland’s Cultural Inclusion Council and several research engagement themes. His work has informed national policy, clinical training programs, and service delivery innovations across Australia and other global settings. As an advocate for inclusion, Felipe also leads interdisciplinary initiatives that embed equity, diversity, and cultural responsiveness in healthcare and health education systems.

Felipe Retamal Walter
Felipe Retamal Walter

Professor Nerina Scarinci

Head of School
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Affiliate of University of Queensland Centre for Hearing Research (CHEAR)
Centre for Hearing Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision
Media expert

Professor Nerina Scarinci is the Head of School, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences at The University of Queensland. Her main research focus is on the implementation and evaluation of patient- and family-centred care for adults and children with communication disability. Professor Scarinci has clinical and research expertise in the development, implementation, and evaluation of alternative models of allied health service delivery, including group interventions, eHealth, and communication partner training. Professor Scarinci has over 20 years clinical and research experience, with expertise in co-design, patient- and family-centred care, and the evaluation and management of communication disability.

University Profile: Professor Nerina Scarinci is a Professor in Speech Pathology and Director of Higher Degree Reserach Students in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences.

Teaching Themes: Professional Practice and Communication Skills, Children with Special Needs in Communication, Paediatric Speech Pathology, Hearing Impairment, Service Delivery, Professional Issues and Ethics

Research interests: Paediatric and Adult Hearing Impairment, Communication Disability, International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), Third-Party Disability, Family-Centred Care, Early Intervention, Co-Design

Publications: 107 scholarly works, including 86 peer-reviewed journal articles, 10 invited editorials, 2 books, and 9 book chapters. Impact: 1690 citations, H-index = 23, average citations per paper = 21.13, field weighted citation impact = 2.5 (Scopus, August 2022).

Grant funding: Professor Scarinci has attained >$10.2 Million in grant funding, with >$4.12 Million as Chief Investigator and >$6.1 Million as Associate Investigator or Program Lead.

Reviewer: International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology; International Journal of Audiology; Ear & Hearing; Speech, Language and Hearing; Disability & Rehabilitation; Child Language Teaching & Therapy, American Journal of Audiology; BMC Geriatrics; Clinical Interventions in Aging.

Editorial Boards: Associate Editor for International Journal of Audiology; Editorial Consultant for International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology.

Professional Memberships: Speech Pathology Australia; The Hanen Centre; Ida Institute.

Nerina Scarinci
Nerina Scarinci

Dr Kirstine Shrubsole

NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellow
School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

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 $11 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
Kirstine Shrubsole
Kirstine Shrubsole

Dr Viana Vuvan

Affiliate of Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research (CIPHeR)
Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Lecturer in Physiotherapy
School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

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.

Viana Vuvan
Viana Vuvan

Associate Professor Sarah Wallace

Affiliate of Queensland Aphasia Research Centre (QARC)
Queensland Aphasia Research Centre
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Affiliate of University of Queensland Centre for Hearing Research (CHEAR)
Centre for Hearing Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellow
School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision
Media expert

A/Prof Sarah Wallace is a two-time 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 the Lived Experience Lab (LexLab), the Qualitative Collective, and the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Communication Research and Engagement Theme (CommRET). She is a UQ Research Integrity Advisor. 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

Sarah Wallace
Sarah Wallace

Dr Katrina Williams

Affiliate of University of Queensland Centre for Hearing Research (CHEAR)
Centre for Hearing Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Affiliate of Centre for Neurorehabilitation, Ageing and Balance Research
Centre for Neurorehabilitation, Ageing and Balance Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy
School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision
Media expert

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.

Katrina Williams
Katrina Williams

Dr Yanfei Xie

Affiliate of Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research (CIPHeR)
Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Affiliate of RECOVER Injury Research Centre
RECOVER Injury Research Centre
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Research Fellow
RECOVER Injury Research Centre
Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences
Availability:
Available for supervision

Yanfei has a discipline background as a physiotherapist. She completed her PhD at The University of Queensland in October 2021. Her PhD involved ultrasound shear wave elastography, quantitative sensory testing, and physical and psychological measures to uncover potential biopsychosocial mechanisms underlying work-related neck pain and disability in a high-risk occupation group. After her PhD, she was awarded a competitive UQ postdoctoral fellowship to conduct research related to musculoskeletal pain and injury at RECOVER Injury Research Centre. Her current research focuses on uncovering the biopsychosocial mechanisms underlying musculoskeletal pain and injury, developing, and implementing effective and tailored pain treatments. She also has interests in occupational health and health equity. She has a broad range of research skills applicable across methodologies, including randomized controlled trials, case-control, and longitudinal study designs, systematic and scoping reviews, and meta-analysis. Yanfei has presented her work at national and international conferences and received several presentation awards.

Yanfei Xie
Yanfei Xie