Our team

Distinguished Professor Antoine van Oijen

Co-Founder WARRA, ARC Laureate, Director Molecular Horizons, UOW

vanoijen@uow.edu.au

Antoine van Oijen led research groups at Harvard Medical School and Groningen University (the Netherlands) before moving to the University of Wollongong in 2015 as an Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow. He is interested in studying the mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance, from developing novel molecular diagnostics to understanding how resistance travels through the community.

Professor Mitchell Byrne

Co-Founder WARRA, Associate Dean – Education, UOW

mbyrne@uow.edu.au

Professor Mitchell Byrne is an endorsed Clinical and Forensic Psychologist with over 35 years applied experience. He is currently Associate Dean – Education for the University of Wollongong’s Into Health Primary and Community Health Centre. Professor Byrne’s favourite epithet is: ‘all behaviour has meaning’ and believes that understanding the meaning of a behaviour is the first step in changing that behaviour.

Dr Chris Degeling

Senior Research Fellow, Australian Centre for Health Engagement, Evidence and Values, UOW

degeling@uow.edu.au

Chris has a background in the history and philosophy of science and veterinary medicine, and expertise in qualitative, deliberative and philosophical methods. His research focuses the social and political dimensions of public health including OneHealth, overuse in medicine, public health surveillance and pandemic preparedness.

Professor Faisal I. Hai

Director, Strategic Water Infrastructure Lab, Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences, UOW

faisal@uow.edu.au

Professor Hai is an environmental biotechnologist. His work addresses significant research gaps at the nexus of water quality and public health. He brings to WARRA the capacity to assess wastewater-associated antibiotic resistance, i.e., the occurrence, fate and transformation of antibiotics, antibiotic resistant bacteria and antibiotic resistant genes in wastewater.

Dr Chloe Story

Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Staff Specialist, Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District

Chloe.Story@health.nsw.gov.au 

Chloe Story works in the Microbiology Department at the Wollongong Hospital and lectures at the University of Wollongong. She has research interests in antimicrobial and diagnostic laboratory stewardship and is working on policies to help prevent antimicrobial resistance in Papua New Guinea. She strongly believes in the importance of the OneHealth model, recognising that environmental and social factors need to be considered with increasing antimicrobial resistance worldwide.

Dr Sandra Jones

Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Staff Specialist, Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District

Sandra.Jones2@health.nsw.gov.au

Sandra Jones is an Infectious Diseases physician and Microbiologist working both in the laboratory and clinical setting at Wollongong hospital.  She has interests in Antimicrobial Stewardship, the surveillance of AMR in clinical samples and the use of rapid diagnostic techniques to enable earlier detection of AMR to better inform patient treatment.

Associate Professor Martina Sanderson-Smith

School of Chemistry and Molecular Bioscience and Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, UOW

martina@uow.edu.au

Associate Professor Martina Sanderson-Smith is a molecular microbiologist. After completing an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship in Germany, Martina received an NHMRC Career Development Fellowship to establish a research group at UOW.  Martina leads a team investigating bacterial interactions with humans and the environment, and is interested in understanding mechanisms of AMR, how resistance is transmitted, developing ways to control bacterial infection and raising community awareness of AMR.

Janaye Fish

Research Clinician, Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District

janaye.fish@health.nsw.gov.au

Trained as a dietitian, Janaye applies her clinical experience and healthcare knowledge to her current roles as both research clinician at the Local Health District, and WARRA project officer. She has experience across the multiple facets of the research process, with a particular interest in health behaviours, the drivers of consumer choice, and project management. 

Associate Professor Spiros Miyakis

Associate Professor, Graduate Medicine, UOW; Head of Department, Infectious Diseases; Co-Director Division of Medicine, Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District

miyakis@health.nsw.gov.au
smiyakis@uow.edu.au

Spiros completed his PhD in Molecular Genetics at the University of Crete, in Greece, before completing General Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases training. Spiros has a strong track record in the area of infectious diseases, with his main research focus antimicrobial drug resistance and the molecular mechanisms that underlie microbial adaptation to antibiotics. He has authored more than 75 peer reviewed publications, receiving over 6000 citations.

Dr Peter Newton

Clinical Director Microbiology, Local Pathology Director for Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District, NSW Health Pathology; Clinical Snr Lecturer, Graduate Medicine, UOW 

peter.newton1@health.nsw.gov.au

Dr Newton has practiced as a clinical microbiologist with the public pathology provider for the Illawarra and Shoalhaven regions since 1996. He is a contributing member of the Australian Group on Antimicrobial Resistance (AGAR), has experience working on a number of national and international collaborative and clinical trial projects, and brings with him a wealth of expertise and passion for tackling the issue of antimicrobial resistance.

Professor Nina Reynolds

Professor of Marketing, Faculty of Business and Law, UOW

ninar@uow.edu.au

Dr Nina Reynolds is a Professor of Marketing, a member of the British Psychological Society and the Chartered Institute of Marketing. Nina is interested in how consumption can impact on individual and community wellbeing. She wants to understand the links between consumers’ motives and behaviours, and their psychological wellbeing, as well as their impact more broadly (e.g., community, environment).

Dr Shahla Meedya

Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing, UOW

smeedya@uow.edu.au

Dr Shahla Meedya is a senior lecturer at the University of Wollongong. She leads research projects in primary care nursing with an emphasis on women’s and children’s health, specifically breastfeeding, antimicrobial resistance and stewardship, healthy lifestyle, person-centred care and chronic diseases. She also undertakes research around learning and teaching, focusing on technology based methods. Dr Meedya has particular interests in quantitative studies, mixed method approaches and evidence based practice.

Professor Judy Mullan

Director Centre for Health Research Illawarra Shoalhaven Population (CHRISP)

jmullan@uow.edu.au

Professor Judy Mullan has extensive experience as a university academic and a registered pharmacist. She is currently the Director of the Centre for Health Research Illawarra Shoalhaven Population (CHRISP) and the Deputy Director of the Illawarra & Southern Practice Research Network (ISPRN) within the University of Wollongong. Her research areas of interest include: safe use of medicines, chronic disease management, health literacy and health service delivery.

Dr Caitlin Keighley

Microbiologist and Infectious Diseases Physician, Southern IML Pathology (Sonic Healthcare)

Caitlin.Keighley@southernpath.com.au

Dr Caitlin Keighley is a microbiologist and infectious diseases physician. She is also a clinical lecturer. She has previously developed a PCR for identification of a carbapenemase with bacteria, authored over 30 publications, and is interested in molecular mechanisms of microbial drug resistance and epidemiological trends in antimicrobial resistance. She is excited about the potential to decrease antimicrobial resistance with decreased usage in both the community and hospital environments.

Andrew Bowen

Team Leader Southern IML Pathology (Sonic Healthcare)

andrew.bowen@southernpath.com.au

Andrew has over 25 years’ experience in diagnostic Microbiology laboratories. He has particular interests in antimicrobial resistance, mycology and key indicator management and monitoring systems (KIMMS). Andrew is a Fellow of the Australian Society for Microbiology, and a member of the Australian Society for Antimicrobials, Australian Institute of Medical Scientists, and European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases.

Tarant Hill

Research Development Officer, Wollongong Antimicrobial Resistance Alliance (WARRA)

tarant.hill@health.nsw.gov.au

Ready for any challenge, Tarant has recently joined the WARRA team as Research Development Officer.  He brings with him extensive experience in communications, people management and events coordination. An avid traveller and seeker of new experiences, Tarant has a keen interest in the behavioural patterns and societal differences of cultures both locally and throughout the globe.