Professor Carol Bower & Professor Steve Zubrick
Two of The Kids Research Institute Australia’s founding researchers – one a leader in birth defects research and the other in child and adolescent mental health research – have been inducted as new Fellows to the prestigious Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences.
UWA Professors Carol Bower and Steve Zubrick were among 49 new Fellows from around Australia, including three from Western Australia, to be inducted during a special dinner held in Adelaide last night as part of the Academy’s third Annual Scientific Meeting.
The Kids Research Institute Australia Director Professor Jonathan Carapetis, who was inducted into the Academy in 2014, said the pair joined an exclusive club of only 15 other WA researchers to have been made Academy Fellows since its inception.
“Of those 17 WA researchers, seven are from The Kids Research Institute Australia – a clear reflection of the outstanding quality of scientists we are fortunate to have working at the Institute,” Professor Carapetis said.
“Carol and Steve have both shaped how child health research happens here in WA, and have made an enormous impact in the scientific community, and most importantly, in the health and development of children and families.”
Professor Bower is highly regarded nationally and internationally for her research and advocacy on birth defects, as well as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders and their prevention through the reduction of prenatal alcohol use.
She is particularly well known for her ground-breaking research into neural tube defects such as spina bifida and their prevention with folic acid.
The Academy recognised Professor Bower for her leadership and for her provision of population-based evidence for prevention, diagnosis, management, and development of policy and practice.
“She is a passionate advocate for the primary prevention of birth defects, for monitoring and evaluation of preventive, screening and treatment interventions and for the involvement of consumers and community in research,” the Academy said.
Professor Zubrick is a leading developmental scientist who pioneered the first population studies of the prevalence and burden of mental disorders in Australian children and adolescents.
He and his team conducted the landmark Western Australian Aboriginal Child Health Survey in 2001 and 2002, and led the 1998 and 2014 National Surveys of Child and Adolescent Mental Health. He is also a creator and leader of the National Longitudinal Study of Australian children.
“His work has guided policies and services for children across Australia and placed Australian child and adolescent mental health into a global perspective,” the Academy said.
Others from The Kids Research Institute Australia to have been inducted into the Academy include Professor Fiona Stanley, who was made an Honorary Fellow in 2015; and Professors Donna Cross, Susan Prescott, and Steve Stick, who were each made Fellows in 2015.
The 2017 election of Fellows brings the Academy’s Fellowship to 321.
See the Academy’s website for a full list of new Fellows and their citations.
About the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences
The Academy was established in 2013 to provide an impartial and authoritative voice for healthcare, informed by the best available evidence and expert advice from the best and brightest in health and medical research.
Its three main purposes are: to mentor and develop future generations of health and medical researchers; provide independent advice to government and others on issues relating to evidence-based medical practice and medical researchers; and provide a forum for discussion on progress of medical research, with an emphasis on translation of research into practice.