Congratulations to Neil Osheroff on his Fellowship with ANZAHPE.

Neil Osheroff is Professor of Biochemistry and Medicine, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and holds the John G. Coniglio Chair in Biochemistry. He received his PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Northwestern University and was a Helen Hay Whitney postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University School of Medicine. Beyond his research laboratory, he is the longest standing course director in the School of Medicine and co-directs the Foundations of Medical Knowledge pre-clerkship phase and the Human Blueprint and Architecture foundational science course. He is a Past-Director of the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine Academy for Excellence in Education and is also a Past-President of the Association of Biochemistry Educators and the International Association of Medical Science Educators (IAMSE). In addition to his recognition as Fellow of ANZAHPE, Neil has received awards for mentoring, teaching, curricular design, educational leadership and service, and diversity and inclusion, including the “Distinguished Career Award for Excellence in Teaching and Educational Scholarship” from IASME and the “Alpha Omega Alpha Robert J. Glaser Distinguished Teacher Award” from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). He is also a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE).

My scholarly interests in health professions education include curricular design and integration, basic science medical education, competency-based assessment and feedback, programmatic evaluation, faculty development and professional identity formation, mentoring, and leadership and change management.

I have been involved with ANZHPE for several years, ever since I attended my first annual conference in Newcastle in 2015. I really enjoyed the conference and the people who I met there. Subsequently, I have attended a number of annual meetings and worked closely with the leaders of ANZAHPE while I was an officer of IAMSE, to strengthen relationships between the two Associations. As a result, I have developed a number of close friendships with colleagues in ANZAHPE. I applied for the ANZAHPE Fellowship because I felt that it would provide me with a platform to become more involved with the Association, especially with regard to mentoring and helping to develop younger educators. I am humbled and honored to have been elected as a Fellow of ANZAHPE, especially being the first Fellow from a country outside of Australia or New Zealand. I look forward to becoming even more involved in the Association in my new capacity.

Meet one of our newest members, Susan McLeod.

Susan is a Registered Nutritionist, Course Coordinator, and Senior Lecturer in Nutrition. After a 15-year career in the food industry working on food product development, food safety, and compliance, Susan transitioned to La Trobe University. There, she contributes to developing and enhancing nutrition education. Susan's passion lies in sharing her love for food and nutrition science with students and developing their employability. Susan is actively involved in research focused on Nutrition Employability, aiming to prepare students for their careers and improve their employment outcomes. Beyond academia, Susan chairs the AIFST Nutrition Special Interest Group and serves as the Deputy Chair of the NSA Special Interest Group for Nutrition Education and Tertiary Teaching.

"I chose to become a member of ANZAHPE as it provides access to the latest research on professional health education, the opportunity to network with like-minded professionals, and professional development opportunities to stay abreast of developments in health education."

Meet one of our newest members, Dr Katya Clark, PhD, RNutr.

Katya is a nutrition scientist and teaching academic who coordinates the undergraduate Nutrition degrees at Curtin University.

“As a nutrition scientist I am interested in food and process that occur after food consumption. As a degree coordinator, I am also very invested in the student experience, curriculum design, and fostering learning communities to prepare students for careers in nutrition.”  Katya's work emphasizes career development, particularly within the diverse and evolving field of nutrition.

In addition to her role at Curtin University, Katya chairs the Nutrition Society of Australia's Special Interest Group for Nutrition Education and Tertiary Teaching (SIGNETT). Recently, she completed a Graduate Certificate in Higher Education, focusing on innovative learning and teaching.

"I joined ANZAHPE as an opportunity to connect and learn from others in related fields."

Congratulations to Jessica Pace on her Associate Fellowship with ANZAHPE!

Jessica is an education-focussed academic at the Sydney Pharmacy School at the University of Sydney and a practicing hospital pharmacist. Her teaching focuses on the development of practical skills such as patient counselling, dispensing and compounding and legal and ethical reasoning and she has led significant curriculum projects in these areas. She is an emerging educational scholar, with broad research interests in pharmacy learning, teaching and assessment.

"I was encouraged to apply for ANZAHPE Associate Fellowship after attending the 2024 ANZAHPE conference, where I was impressed by the supportive and innovative ANZAHPE community and excited to work with and learn from leaders in health professions education. Associate Fellowship is also an important way of recognising my work and scholarship in health professions education."

Meet one of our newest members, Sheri Anne Rae.

Sheri Anne Rae holds a Masters of Medical Ultrasound and is an Associate Fellow of Australasian Sonographers Association. She is Chief Sonographer at I-MED Radiology Network with 25 years' experience in the radiology industry. She has a special interest in upper limb NeuroMSK ultrasound and Clinical Education. She is actively involved with multiple industry stakeholders, including ASA’s Policy and Advisory Committee, Clinical Educators Special Interest Group, Radiology Across Borders Mentorship Program and is clinical advisor for various sonography education providers.

Clinical education in sonography shares some commonalities with other allied health professions but also has some unique challenges.

"I joined ANZAHPE to learn from other health professionals ways to improve clinical education opportunities for student sonographers."

Congratulations to Dr James Thompson on his ANZAHPE Fellowship

James is a senior lecturer at the University of Adelaide, where he contributes extensively across the interprofessional education courses within the School of Allied Health. His rich and diverse clinical experience in paramedic and nursing roles underscores many of the authentic learning approaches and teaching innovations that have become the hallmark of his work.

These efforts have led to educational leadership roles in paramedicine, nursing, and medicine throughout an academic career spanning more than 20 years. His research, supervision, and ongoing collaborations extend across multiple disciplines and professional networks, encompassing themes such as programmatic assessment, simulation, entrustment, competency, mentorship, and work-readiness. This fellowship appointment recognizes his achievements and sustained contributions to health professions education.

“I am looking forward to connecting and reconnecting with many in the ANZAPHE community, whose work and words have helped shape my own ideas over the years.”

Meet one of our newest members, Dr Sharmila Ramessur Chandran.

Sharmila Ramessur is a renal physician in Melbourne. Since her trainee years, she has been involved in postgraduate medical education as well as the teaching of medical students and more recently has been involved in the creation of education courses such as the leadership course of RACP and the update course of ANZSN. She has also taken several advocacy roles within educational organisations, and is currently the president elect of RACP.

"I still really encourage ground teaching of medical students and physician trainees.  I teach medical students through University of Melbourne at Epworth Healthcare and I am a FRACP examiner. I am currently in the midst of a Masters in Clinical Education through the University of Melbourne, as I am keen to become involved in medical education research. I heard about ANZAHPE and I immediately joined as I am keen to play an active role in the association."

Congratulations to Kwang Cham on his ANZAHPE Associate Fellowship Revalidation.

Associate Professor Cham is an education-focused academic at the University of Melbourne. His scholarship interests include using digital technologies for feedback and assessment, inter-professional education, and inter-disciplinary object-based learning engaging with material culture. He is currently the Director of Education Research at The Melbourne School of Health Sciences and the Deputy Lead for Curriculum at the Faculty Collaborative Practice Center. He is also an Associate Editor of the FoHPE Journal.

 "Since being an ANZAHPE Associate Fellow in 2019, I have made lots of connections and some have led to successful collaborations. ANZAHPE has helped to foster a sense of belonging, and has created a community of practice that is supportive, nurturing and making everyone feel at home." 

Congratulations to Jacqueline North on her ANZAHPE Associate Fellowship.

Jacqueline North is a lecturer at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and a cardiorespiratory physiotherapist at Prince of Wales Hospital. Having been involved in the development of several physiotherapy programs in NSW, Jacque has extensive experience developing curriculum particularly in interprofessional education, work integrated learning and cardiorespiratory physiotherapy. Over the past decade she has taught both medical and physiotherapy students with a focus on an authentic learning approach to prepare them for success in the healthcare workforce. As a clinician for 17 years, Jacque has also provided support and training to many students and new graduates and has developed many educational resources. Additionally, she serves as a UNSW university-wide Community of Practice co-lead and Medical Education Group co-lead, contributing to the development and evaluation of teaching initiatives.

Jacque's scholarly interests lie within the areas of interprofessional practice, health professional new graduate support and teaching innovations including the development of virtual reality modules, podcasts, blended learning and simulation. She is currently leading and contributing to multiple research projects in these areas. She has presented at several educational conferences in 2024, including the ANZAHPE conference, and has secured multiple educational grants. In 2023, she completed a Graduate Certificate in Health Professions Education at Monash University.

"As a member of ANZAHPE, I have had the opportunity to network with a range of health professional educators across Australia and New Zealand and to keep up to date with relevant research and teaching initiatives. I have found ANZAHPE to be exceptionally welcoming and supportive. Having been involved in the ANZAHPE mentorship program, several ANZAHPE conferences and professional development sessions, I applied for Associate Fellowship as I am keen to support other health professional educators both at academic institutions and in clinical practice."

Meet one of our newest members, Steve Lacey.

Steve has been a clinical radiographer for over 20 years, with 15 years of experience in paediatrics. From 2009 until 2024, he was the Lead Clinical Educator in Medical imaging at The Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH) in Melbourne, including 2-years as the Allied Health Education Fellow with the RCH Education Hub. Steve is currently working part-time as the Allied Health Clinical Educator with the RCH Outreach Team and has recently taken on the role as Director of Education with the Australian Society of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy (ASMIRT).

"I have a number of ANZAHPE member colleagues at RCH, who rave about the opportunities provided by ANZAHPE. I hope to be able to learn from ANZAHPE about innovative ways of delivering education to radiographers, radiation therapists and all health professionals."