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Our people
Our staff have complementary skills and experience in research, clinical treatment, policy, service development, education and communication. Our people include clinically trained researchers, specialist psychologists and psychiatrists, who are supported by our business services team. Our specialist practitioners maintain their clinical skills in their private psychology and psychiatry practices.
Executive management group
Professor Mark Creamer
Director
Professor Mark Creamer is a Clinical Psychologist with many years of experience in the area of recovery from trauma. He has worked with individuals, groups and communities following a large range of traumatic incidents. His research interests include the assessment and treatment of post traumatic stress as well as other anxiety disorders. He has published widely in the area and is on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Traumatic Stress.
Associate Professor David Forbes
Clinical Director
A/Prof David Forbes is a Clinical Psychologist with many years experience in the assessment and treatment of mental health problems following trauma and is currently the Clinical Director at ACPMH. He completed both his postgraduate clinical psychology training (1993) and his Phd (2005) at the University of Melbourne. He has worked in both acute crisis and continuing care settings across the community mental health system and as Senior Clinical Psychologist at the Austin & Repatriation Medical Centre PTSD Unit. A/Prof Forbes has also published widely in the area of posttraumatic stress in the international literature.
Associate Professor Virginia Lewis
Principal Research Fellow
Dr Lewis entered the field of public health in 1987, working for the Victorian Health Department in the Health Promotion Unit Evaluation section. During the 1990s Virginia completed a PhD in the area of social psychology exploring the links between attitudes and behaviour. Prior to joining ACPMH in 2006 Virginia worked at the Australian Institute for Primary Care (AIPC), La Trobe University. During this time she developed particular expertise in evaluating National programs and initiatives, especially those targeting mental health promotion and suicide prevention. Virginia is Director of Research at ACPMH. She is leading a three-year strategic evaluation of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs Mental Health Initiatives, and is involved in a range of other projects with the ADF and DVA.
Associate Professor John Pead
Clinical Specialist - Alcohol and Drugs
John Pead is Associate Professor and Clinical Specialist, Alcohol and Drugs. He is a clinical psychologist with a track record in grant funded research and health services management, policy and planning. He has authored several publications including New Concepts in Drug Withdrawal and Amphetamines and Analogues. He is a member of the Department of Veterans Affairs, National Mental Health Working Group and the Australian Defence Force’s, Alcohol and Drug Advisory Group.
Robyn Goodwill
Business Manager
Robyn Goodwill joined ACPMH at the end of April 2007. She has previously worked in another area of the University of Melbourne’s Department of Psychiatry (Mindful – Centre for Training and Research in Developmental Health) and has many years experience in managing a private multidisciplinary medical practice. Robyn has also extensive experience in industrial relations working for the Australian Industrial Relations Commission and a national umbrella employer organisation, in both instances in management roles.
Staff
Joanne Cesario
Administration Officer
Joanne Cesario is the first point of contact for ACPMH. Her previous experience includes 17 years as a personal assistant/secretary. She has skills in all facets of office work as well as client liaison.
Anne-Laure Couineau
Clinical Specialist - Psychology
Anne-Laure is a psychologist who has worked in hospital and community settings with people who have experienced trauma. She has specialised in the treatment of war veterans and emergency personnel diagnosed with PTSD and the effects of long term childhood sexual abuse and neglect. She has a strong background in group interventions and her previous position involved coordinating the delivery of group work to veterans and their families in Victoria.
Liam Connor
Research Assistant
Liam is study assessor on the cognitive processing therapy trial and is based at the VVCS-Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling office in Brisbane. Liam is a final year clinical doctorate student who has completed a placement at VVCS.
John Cooper
Clinical Specialist - Psychiatry
John Cooper is a Psychiatrist who has worked extensively in the area of veterans’ mental health in various sectors. Prior to joining ACPMH on a part-time basis, these included the Veterans’ Psychiatry Unit at The Austin & Repatriation Medical Centre and the Vietnam Veterans Counselling Service. He continues to assess and treat veterans in his private practice that includes civilian patients with PTSD and a variety of other psychiatric disorders. He has also previously consulted to both DVA and ACPMH. His areas of interest include assessment, comorbidity, psychoeducation and the pharmacological treatment of PTSD.
Konstancja Densley
Research Fellow
Konstancja Densley is both a researcher and database coordinator. She has degree in Political and Social Sciences, postgraduate qualifications in Philosophy and Ethics, and Religious Studies, and she completed her Master in Science (Statistics) in 2004. She has extensive experience in research with particular focus on drug and alcohol addiction. Konstancja conducts evaluation and outcome monitoring of clients' programs and statistical analysis for ACPMH's reserach program.
Susie Fletcher
Research Assistant
Before coming to ACPMH in 2008, Susie worked at a rural campus of the University of Sydney where she co-ordinated a longitudinal study of health science students on rural placements and was a lead researcher on a project assessing the supply of health professionals across Australia. Susie has an honours degree in psychology, a number of papers published in peer reviewed journals and in 2007 was the Australian invited speaker at a rural health conference in Beijing.
Brooke Ferguson
Research Assistant
Brooke is a study assessor on the cognitive processing therapy trial and is based at the VVCS-Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling office in Adelaide. Brooke is a Clinical Doctorate student from Adelaide University where she is conducting research around families and mental illness.
Dr. Meaghan O'Donnell
Senior Research Fellow
Dr Meaghan O’Donnell is a clinical psychologist who holds an NHMRC Clinical Research Fellowship. She is jointly based at ACPMH, University of Melbourne and the National Trauma Research Institute (NTRI). Dr O'Donnell completed her postgraduate clinical psychology training at the University of Western Australia in 1996 and her PhD at the University of Melbourne in 2003. She leads the ACPMH Traumatic Injury Research Program and has published widely in the area of mental health following injury.
Winnie Lau
Research Fellow
Winnie holds a Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Hons) degree and is a psychologist and Project Manager on the Promoting Recovery Study, which investigates the effectiveness of early treatment for posttraumatic stress, depression and anxiety in traumatic injury survivors. She is completing her PhD examining psychological outcomes in traumatised refugee populations
Joyce Lee
Research Assistant
Joyce is a research assistant working on the Promoting Recovery Study, which examines how early psychological treatment for injury survivors may affect the development of posttraumatic stress, depression and anxiety. Joyce holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours)/LLB from the University of Melbourne and is completing her Doctor of Clinical Psychology with a forensic specialization at Monash University.
Delyth Lloyd
Project Manager
Delyth Lloyd has worked full time in research since graduating in Experimental Psychology from the University of Oxford in 2001. Her experience spans cross-cultural research and trauma research including brain injury and PTSD. Her interests include service development in community healthcare systems. Del joined ACPMH in 2004. She maintains the centre’s research records and manages the first Australian community trial of Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) with David Forbes.
Heather Niven
Research Officer
Heather Niven holds an Honours degree in Psychology (The University of Sydney), and has several years research experience (both quantitative and qualitative) in mental health, particularly on longitudinal studies. She has coauthored publications and presented findings, conducted statistical analyses and clinical assessments. She is a research officer on the Promoting Recovery Following Traumatic Injury study, and is based at Royal Melbourne Hospital.
Dr. Ruth Parslow
Senior Research Fellow
Dr Parslow worked as a senior health policy officer in both the Queensland and Commonwealth governments. In 1999 she left the public service to undertake doctoral studies in psychiatric epidemiology, after which she worked as a Research Fellow, firstly at ANU and, more recently, at the Orygen Research Centre, University of Melbourne. Ruth has published her research findings widely and brings extensive skills and experience in advanced statistical methods, health policy development and service evaluation.
Andrea Phelps
Clinical Specialist
Andrea Phelps is a clinical psychologist specialising in the assessment and treatment of PTSD. She has worked in hospital and community settings across the acute and continuing care spectrum, providing psychological assessment and treatment services to adults with mental illness, including at the Austin and Repatriation Medical Centre PTSD Unit. Andrea consults to ACPMH’s clients in the areas of policy advice, service development, and education and training. She is undertaking a PhD in the area of sleep and nightmares in PTSD.
Suzanne Pollard
Research Assistant
Suzanne holds a post graduate diploma in psychology and a Bachelor of Arts degree. Over the past ten years she has worked in a variety of positions aiming to improve the well-being and mental health of people with acquired disabilities and mental illness. More recently she has turned her focus to research in this area. Currently Suzanne works as a research assistant to the Promoting Recovery Study which is headed by Dr Meaghan O’Donnell at the National Trauma Research Institute site.
Susannah Tipping
Research Fellow
Susannah is a Psychologist on the Promoting Recovery Study, which investigates the effectiveness of early intervention for posttraumatic stress, depression and anxiety in traumatic injury survivors. She is completing a MPsych(Clinical)/PhD at the University of Melbourne. Her thesis is exploring meaning in life, social connectedness and quality of life in young people from a Sudanese refugee background.
Richard Todd
IT Officer
Richard Todd has worked in the IT field at the University of Melbourne for over eleven years and as a commercial programmer for a further four years. He has an Arts degree and postgraduate qualifications in Environmental Science and Information Technology/Management.
Tracey Varker
Research Assistant
Tracey is a study assessor on the cognitive processing therapy trial and is based at the VVCS-Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling office in Melbourne. Based at the VVCS-Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling office in Melbourne, Tracey is doing her PhD at Swinburne University in prevention of trauma with Police.
Daryl Wade
Senior Clinical Fellow
Darryl Wade is a Clinical Psychologist with many years experience in a diverse range of mental health settings and has previously coordinated government-funded mental health initiatives. In 2006 he completed his PhD at the University of Melbourne which examined the impact of substance misuse on the course and outcome of first-episode psychosis. He has published on mental health issues affecting young people. Darryl is a member of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) and the APS College of Clinical Psychologists.
Pip Weiland
Military Psychologist
Pip Weiland is a psychologist in the Australian Army Psychology Corps. After commissioning in 2003 she completed her supervision at 1 Psychology Unit, Randwick, providing psychological support to military members in both the Solomon Islands and Iraq. She was most recently employed as the area psychologist for the Darling Downs region in Queensland, responsible for support to the Australian Army Aviation Training Centre and Borneo Barracks. Pip is currently studying a Master of Organisational Psychology at Monash University and has a special interest in leadership training.
Dr. Bronwyn Wolfgang
Research Fellow
Bronwyn Jones Wolfgang received her Masters from the Humboldt Universitaet zu Berlin and her PhD from the Department of Psychology, University of Melbourne. Her doctoral research explored the role of emotion regulation in recovery from trauma. Bronwyn's work at the ACPMH includes on a range of policy, service development and knowledge dissemination initiatives.