ASRH Conference Convenors
Michael Traeger
Burnet Institute
Emma Knowland
Australasian Sexual Health & HIV Nurses Association
Emma is an endorsed Sexual Health Nurse Practitioner, HIV S100 prescriber and Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner working in Queensland Health. She is the President of the Australasian Sexual Health & HIV Nurses Association (ASHHNA) and a member of the Australasian Sexual and Reproductive Health Alliance (ASRHA) executive committee. Emma has over 20 years nursing experience working predominantly in sexual & reproductive health in the public system in a range of Advanced clinical practice, teaching, and clinical research roles across both hospital and community settings.
Executive Program Committee
Holley Skene
Member
SHINE SA
Holley Skene is a passionate leader in sexual and reproductive health in South Australia with qualifications in psychology and public health, working in both government and non-government sexual health roles for over 15 years. As CEO of SHINE SA, Holley advocates for evidence-based, LGBTIQA+ inclusive comprehensive relationships and sexual health education.
Clinical Management Theme Committee
Julia Scott
Co-Chair
Tū Ora Compass Health New Zealand
Julia is a sexual health physician at Tū Ora Wellington Sexual Health Service, and a public health physician at the Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR) where she provides clinical oversight for national STI and BBV surveillance. hepatitis B, C and mpox surveillance. She is past president of the NZ Sexual Health Society.
Colin Roberts
Co-Chair
Adelaide Sexual Health Centre
Nurse Practitioner at ASHC, formerly NP within various Sexual Health services in NHS England
Catherine Bateman
Member
Latrobe Community Health Service
Cath Bateman is a Registered Nurse with clinical expertise in the field of Sexual & Reproductive Health who works alongside general practitioners and other health professionals to assess, plan, explain and deliver high quality sexual and reproductive health care for community members in Latrobe and Baw Baw and from across Victoria. Cath represents sexual health nurses on the Australian Sexual Health and HIV Nurses Association federal committee and represents the Victorian SRH hubs on the Victorian Abortion and Contraception Working Group chaired by Women’s Health Victoria.
Lenka Vodstcril
Member
Monash University & MSHC
Dr. Lenka Vodstrcil is a Senior Research Fellow at the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre, part of Alfred Health and Monash University. As Deputy Head and lead epidemiologist in the Genital Microbiota and Mycoplasma group, Lenka’s research program integrates epidemiological, microbiological and clinical research to improve sexual and reproductive health outcomes at the individual and population level. Her strong track record includes >100 publications, with impacts on treatment guidelines and clinical practice. She is the President of the Sexual Health Society of Victoria.
Karen Freilich
Member
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM)
Dr Karen Freilich (she/her) is a General Practitioner and a consultant at Monash Health's Sexual Medicine & Therapy Clinic in Melbourne, Australia. Karen is a passionate advocate for sexual and reproductive health rights, and is a proud provider of medical abortion, contraception, sexual medicine therapy, and gender affirming care. Karen has completed a Masters of Reproductive and Sexual Health Research in London (LSHTM) and completed training through European Society of Sexual Medicine (ESSM) School in Budapest. In 2022, Karen was awarded the RACGP Australian Registrar of the Year Award. Karen was an Academic GP Registrar at Monash University researching contraception and abortion provision in rural Australia. Karen currently lectures and tutors Sexual Health through University of Melbourne's Medical School.
Sama Balasubramanian
Member
Sydney Men's Health
Social, Political and Cultural Aspects Theme Committee
Heather McCormack
Co-Chair
Kirby Institute & UNSW Sydney
Heather McCormack has worked in research, communications, health promotion and program management roles across the STI and BBV sector for over 15 years. She has particular interests in health equity, strengths-based approaches, digital health promotion, and optimising sexual health services to improve accessibility and acceptability to diverse populations.
Horas Wong
Co-Chair
University of Sydney
Dr Horas Wong is a Senior Lecturer in Nursing (Social Sciences) at the University of Sydney and an Adjunct Senior Researcher at UNSW Sydney's Centre for Social Research in Health. His transdisciplinary background spans nursing, public health, anthropology, and health social sciences. Dr Wong has practised clinically as a nurse, educator, and health researcher in both Hong Kong and Australia. His research and expertise focus on gender and sexuality, migration, culturally safe healthcare, community-based research, and qualitative methodologies, with a particular emphasis on HIV/AIDS, sexually transmissible infections, and migrant health.
Thomas Norman
Member
La Trobe University
Dr Thomas Norman is a Research Fellow at the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society. He currently works on several national research projects funded by the Australian Department of Health and Aged Care.
Kate Burry
Member
University of New South Wales
Dr Kate Burry is a postdoctoral research fellow with the Interconnect Health Research project, exploring the health, wellbeing and health service experiences of adolescents and adults with innate variations of sex characteristics. Kate has over a decade of experience in sexual, domestic and family violence, human rights, and sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice.
Epidemiology, Prevention and Public Health Theme Committee
Siobhan Bourke
Co-Chair
Centre for Excellence In Rural Sexual Health
A/Prof Siobhan Bourke is a Sexual Health Physician with over 20 years of experience in sexual health education for pre and post registration health practitioners. She currently works for CERSH (Centre for excellence in Rural Sexual Health) at University of Melbourne (UoM) as the Clinical Lead and educator. She is the designer and developer: three subjects for Medical Students, Sexual Health Across Clinical Contexts (MD1, MD2 & MD3) and online education modules for medical practitioners. Siobhan is the Director of the Sensitive Physical Examination Program at UoM. This program teaches all second-year medical students the practicalities of genital and breast examinations. Siobhan works clinically in a community health centre in Melbourne's Western suburbs.
Nathan Ryder
Co-Chair
Pacific Clinic
Nathan is a Sexual Health Physician working in the Newcastle Sexual Health Clinic. He is also Head of the NSW STI Programs unit and a clinical advisory on STI and HIV for the NSW Ministry of Health.
Angela Dawson
Member
University of Technology Sydney
Professor Angela Dawson is a public health social scientist with expertise in maternal and reproductive health service delivery to priority populations in Australia and low and lower middle-income countries. Angela was a NHMRC Translational research fellow examining approaches to counselling women with FGM at the point of care and the recipient of the Sax prize for research impact. She has undertaken research into to the delivery of reproductive health services in humanitarian emergencies, the management and referral of women who have experienced domestic violence as well as access to abortion and emergency contraceptive pills in Australia and internationally. Angela currently leads an NHMRC Ideas grant examining the health of refugees over generations. Angela is the co-chair of the Australasian Sexual and Reproductive Health Alliance (ASRHA), Fellow of the Public Health Association of Australia, a member of the Interagency working group of reproductive health in crisis and an Associate Editor of the journal BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth.
Laurianne Reinsborough
Member
Shina SA
For the past twenty years, Laurianne (she/her) has been working in leadership roles in prevention and health promotion, both in New Zealand and Australia. Laurianne moved to Adelaide in 2021 and is now the Executive Manager, Education and Health Promotion, SHINE SA.
Basic Science Theme Committee
Emma Sweeney
Co-Chair
University of Queensland
Emma Sweeney is a senior research fellow at The University of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research. Her research interests include the development of novel molecular tools to detect and characterise pathogens of global health importance, with a particular focus on the sexually transmitted infection (STI) superbug Mycoplasma genitalium.
Eloise Williams
Co-Chair
Doherty Institute
Dr Eloise Williams is a Clinical Microbiologist and Infectious Diseases Physician at the Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory and PhD student at the Peter Doherty Institute of Infection and Immunity at the University of Melbourne. Her research focus is in sexually transmitted infections, blood borne viruses and public health.
Gerald Murray
Member
University Of Melbourne
Dr Murray is a molecular microbiologist at the University of Melbourne, based at the Royal Women’s Hospital, Victoria, Australia. His research interests include understanding mechanisms of antibiotic resistance (with a focus on Mycoplasma genitalium), improving diagnostic methods for pathogens including human papillomavirus, and the human microbiome in health and disease.
We acknowledge that the conference is being held the traditional lands of the Kaurna people. We recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' continuing connection to land, water, and community and we pay our respects to Elders past and present. ASHM acknowledges Sovereignty in this country has never been ceded. It always was, and always will be, Aboriginal land.