Today, as apart of our Pathways in Public Health feature, we are spotlighting the amazing female Public Health practitioners, who play a pivotal role in keeping Australia safe and healthy.
In partnership with Science and Technology Australia, we are excited to share the stories and incredible work of Australia’s leading Public Health Practitioners.
Kate Cole
Scientist, Engineer and Certified Occupational Hygienist (COH)
With an extensive and award-winning scientific and engineering career under her belt, Kate Cole has channeled her expertise to protect the health and safety of workers on some of Australia’s most iconic infrastructure projects.
As a Certified Occupational Hygienist (COH), Kate Cole’s key focus is on the control of respirable crystalline silica, more commonly known as “silica dust”. This direction was informed by her completion of the Winston Churchill Fellowship and her work across major construction and tunneling projects both in Australia and internationally.
Through starting her independent consultancy, Cole Health, Kate works with organizations to help businesses prevent illness and disease of their workers in high-risk industries such as construction, tunneling, demolition, and contaminated land remediation. Her work in enabling businesses to develop streamlined processes to protect their workers has positively impacted the infrastructure sector and rightfully it has awarded her recognition as one of the Top 100 Women of Influence by the Australian Financial Review and one of the Science and Technology Australia’s Superstars of STEM.
Dr. Teresa Wozniak
Epidemiologist and Research Fellow at the Menzies School of Health Research
Anyone who has come across the term ‘antibiotic resistance’ or ‘superbugs’ is well aware of the risks associated with healthcare practitioners choosing the right antibiotics for their patients. The choice resides on a delicate balance of one of two healthcare outcomes - timely recovery or treatment failure. The consequence of the latter goes far beyond the patient to become a contribution to the growing spread of superbugs.
Dr. Wozniak’s dedicated work ensures that these decisions are supported by local and timely antibiotic resistance data. Through mapping superbug hotspots across regional Australia, her aim is to provide simple solutions to curb the urgent spread of superbugs.
Starting out in medical research, Teresa later trained as an epidemiologist and currently holds a PhD in Immunology from the University of Sydney (2007) and in Public Health from University of NSW (2016).
Amongst her busy schedule, Dr. Wozniak applies her enthusiasm for diversity of thought into developing the Women in Tropical Health mentoring program to support local talent in achieving their best.
Associate Professor Heidi Smith-Vaughan
Microbiologist and Principal Research Fellow at the Menzies School of Health Research
Heidi is a microbiologist by trade with nearly 30 years experience in building an exciting career in health research in remote Australia and in neighbouring countries in the Asia-Pacific region. She has lead lab teams in antibiotic and vaccine trials, which had been integral to informing health practice and policy.
Heidi also co-developed HealthLAB, a program that travels around the Northern Territory to educate members of the public on how to measure their own health markers and perform health and lifestyle check-ups. This initiative first hand is helping to improve the lifestyle behaviours and equipping rural communities with the power to measure and asses their own health.
Alongside some of the most underrepresented women in STEM, Heidi actively works to increase women’s participation as scientists and leaders in Australia. To address the diversity divides in this industry, by helping to develops and promote school ambassador programs, gap-year traineeships, and other initiatives that create pathways for Indigenous youth in remote Australia.
Dr. Kudzai Kanhutu
Infectious Diseases Physician, Telehealth Clinical Lead and Deputy Medical Information Officer at the Royal Melbourne Hospital
Dr. Kudzai Kanhutu’s motivation for her pathway towards becoming an Infectious Diseases Physician stems from her professional and personal experiences of health inequality in her birth country Zimbabwe and in regional Australia.
In 2017, Dr. Kudzai Kanhutu was jointly awarded the Victorian Public Healthcare Award for excellence in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse care. The award paid recognition to the work she has done to develop and implement a purpose-built electronic health record and telehealth model of care for the remote management of refugee patients.
Currently, Kudzai’s research is centered around areas of virtual care, digital literacy and the impact of housing stress on refugee health outcomes.