Key Speakers
The Hon Dr Mike Freelander MP, Federal Member for Macarthur, Australian Labor Party & Deputy Chair of Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Sport
Mike has been a paediatrician in Campbelltown for 37 years. Mike trained as a paediatrician at the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children in Camperdown after completing his residency at the Royal North Shore Hospital. In 1984, Mike and his wife Sharon moved to the Macarthur Region where they raised their six children. At this time Mike commenced work at Campbelltown Hospital where he took on the role as Head of Paediatrics from 1986 to 2013.
Mike set up practices in Campbelltown and Camden because he saw that the growing needs of the region were not being met. Despite his workload as a paediatrician Mike still finds time to give back to his profession, teaching the next generation of doctors as a lecturer at Western Sydney University.
His hard work and dedication to the region has earnt him the respect of local families and residents. In his 37 years as a paediatrician in the Macarthur region, Mike has seen over 200,000 patients.
Mike has increasingly seen his patients and their families face issues of access; access to healthcare, access to work, access to housing and access to education.
Adjunct Professor John Skerritt, ex Deputy Secretary, Health Products Regulation Group, Department of Health
Adjunct Professor John Skerritt recently (April 2023) retired as Deputy Secretary of the Australian Department of Health and Aged Care, with line responsibility for over 1200 staff involved in the regulation of therapeutic goods, regulation of gene technology and industrial chemicals and control of drug import, export and production. During the COVID-19 pandemic he was part of the “public face” for media and community groups, conducting over 100 interviews, seminars and media conferences, including with the Prime Minister and Health Minister.
He is active on many national and international boards and advisory committees. John is Chair of the Scientific Advisory Council of the UK-based Centre for Innovation in Regulatory Science and is a member of the Board of the Singapore-based Centre for Regulatory Excellence. He is a member of the advisory board of the Melbourne Institute for Social and Economic policy, is an Adjunct Full Professor of the University of Sydney, and also sits on Advisory Boards at the Universities of Sydney and Queensland, and Monash University, as well as for the NSW Government and Commonwealth Department of Industry, Science and Resources.
Professor Andrew Wilson, Chair, Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee
Professor Wilson is the Chair of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee for the Australian Government. He is the Co-Director of the Menzies Centre for Health Policy, and Professor of Public Health in the Sydney School of Public Health, University of Sydney and Director of the NHMRC Australian Prevention Partnership Centre (Sax Institute). His research interests concern the application of epidemiology to informing decision making in clinical medicine, public health, and health service policy and planning. His papers and reports include aspects of prevention and management of chronic disease, evaluation of the effectiveness and responsiveness of health care and the impact of social and physical environment on health.
Dr Heidi Mitchell, Director, Contained Dealings Evaluation Section, Office of the Gene Technology Regulator
Heidi Mitchell is currently acting Evaluation Branch Head,
so is overseeing the work of the four evaluation sections. She is normally the
Director of the Contained Dealings Evaluation Section at the Office of the Gene
Technology Regulator (OGTR). The Section conducts scientific risk assessments
and develops risk management plans for work with non-plant GMOs both in
contained facilities (including maintaining guidelines and certifying contained
facilities) and for clinical trials of GM vaccines or gene therapies. Heidi
joined the OGTR in 2006 as an evaluator, preparing risk assessments for a range
of GMOs. She has also worked in the Regulatory Practice section of the OGTR at
the interface between scientific risk assessment and operational regulatory
policy. Heidi has been involved in work around the scope of the gene technology
legislation. She has represented Australia at OECD and CBD SBSTTA meetings and
presented talks at domestic and international conferences on regulation of GMOs
and gene drives in Australia. Heidi has a PhD in plant biochemistry and
post-graduate research in plant-fungal interactions and on using bacteria other
than Agrobacterium for plant transformation. She has published research papers
in peer-reviewed journals including Nature.
Adjunct Professor Debora Picone AO, Chair, Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Review Reference Committee
Adjunct Professor Picone recently retired as CEO of the Australian Commission of Safety and Quality in Health Care, a role which she held from 2012. Adjunct Professor Picone has been recognised for her leadership of major health reforms in New South Wales and nationally and for ensuring consumers have a central role in shaping health policy.
Professor Robyn Ward AM, Executive Dean, The University of Sydney
Professor Robyn Ward AM FAHMS joined the University of Sydney in July 2018 as the inaugural Executive Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health. She was the former Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) and Executive Dean (Acting) of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Queensland.
Professor Ward is an academic leader, cancer researcher and medical oncologist. She chairs the Commonwealth Medical Services Advisory Committee (MSAC), and serves on the Council and Executive of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences. In 2013 she was made Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for significant service to medical research and patient care in the field of oncology.
Professor Andrew McLachlan AM, Head of School & Dean of Pharmacy, Sydney Pharmacy School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney University
Professor Andrew McLachlan AM is a pharmacist, academic and researcher with experience in clinical pharmacology and the quality use of medicines, especially in the areas of pain management. He is Head of School and Dean at the Sydney Pharmacy School, The University of Sydney. Andrew serves on national committees related to human research ethics, medicines safety, medicines evaluation and antidoping.
Dr Teresa Anderson AM, Chief Executive, Sdyney Local Health District
Dr Teresa Anderson is the Chief Executive of Sydney Local Health District, one of the leading public health services in Australia. She has more than 35 years of experience as a clinician and health service executive. She has a well-established reputation for implementing strategies to foster innovation and best practice, supporting collaboration and building partnerships.
She is an internationally recognised Speech Pathologist and is passionate about developing programs and services to support and improve the health and wellbeing of all people in the community. In 2018 Dr Anderson was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM).
Dr Anderson is a Vice President and has been made a Fellow of the NSW Institute of Public Administration Australia, is a member of seven Medical Research, Health and PHN boards and is an active member of the Sydney Health Partners Governing Council and Executive Management Group, one of the first four centres in Australia designated by the NHMRC as an Advanced Health Research Translation Centre.
Dr Ian Opperman, Chief Data Scientist, Department of Customer Service (NSW)
Dr Ian Oppermann is the NSW Government’s Chief Data Scientist working within the Department of Customer Service, and Industry Professor at University of Technology Sydney (UTS). Ian has 30 years experience in the ICT sector and has led organizations with more than 300 people, delivering products and outcomes that have impacted hundreds of millions of people globally. He has held senior management roles in Europe and Australia as Director for Radio Access Performance at Nokia, Global Head of Sales Partnering (network software) at Nokia Siemens Networks, and then Divisional Chief and Flagship Director at CSIRO.
Ian is considered a thought leader in the area of the Digital Economy and is a regular speaker on “Big Data”, broadband enabled services and the impact of technology on society. He has contributed to 6 books and co-authored more than 120 papers which have been cited more than 3500 times. Ian has an MBA from the University of London and a Doctor of Philosophy in Mobile Telecommunications from Sydney University. Ian is a Fellow of the Institute of Engineers Australia, a Fellow of the IEEE, a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, a Fellow of the Royal Society of NSW, a Fellow and Immediate Past President of the Australian Computer Society, and a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Ian is also president of the Australia National Committee of the IEC and president of the JTC1 strategic advisory committee in Australia.
International Speakers
Hamish King, Chief Operating Officer, Cisema (Hong Kong)
Hamish King is CEO at Cisema, a China-focused CRO and regulatory consultancy founded in Munich and Beijing in 2002. A lawyer by training - admitted in Hong Kong and NSW, Australia - Hamish previously worked with UK Magic Circle Firm Linklaters in Hong Kong, and has over 10 years' experience in the legal and regulatory fields. He has obtained the RAC and CFA qualifications. Regularly writing articles and speaking on China market access and regulatory pathways, he currently lives in Hong Kong.
Stuart Reed, Director, Regulink Limited (UK)
Pharmaceutical executive working in regulatory affairs for over 25 years. Business innovator and entrepreneur. Loves efficiency and building companies that make a real difference to people’s lives. Co-founder of Regulink Limited. A specialist regulatory affairs consultancy based in the UK, providing high quality regulatory and medical personnel and support to the life science industry.
Joelle Chia, Co-Director, Co-Director, Pharma To Market Pte Ltd (Singapore)
Joelle Chia is currently the Co-Director at Pharma To Market. She is a registered pharmacist, with over 18 years in regulatory, pharmacovigilance, quality departments for drug and biotech MNCs. She possesses hands-on experience performing submissions in regulatory affairs and conducting pharmacovigilance activities for innovator drugs, generics, medical devices, complementary medicines and cosmetics in Asia, including for Singapore. She is also experienced in regulatory strategy for Asia, due diligence for mergers and acquisitions, interactions with health authorities, and representation in trade associations.
Christian Schneider, Head, Biopharma Excellence and Chief Medical Officer, Biopharma (Denmark)
Christian is a passionate and experienced regulatory science medical professional specialising in biopharmaceuticals and biotechnology. As Head of Biopharma Excellence and Chief Medical officer (Biopharma) at PharmaLex, he works to help dynamic biopharma companies bring innovative therapies as well as biosimilars to market in the smartest, smoothest and safest way possible. Christian combines scientific and leadership experience from various regulatory agencies, most recently as interim Chief Scientific Officer at the UK’s MHRA. He was among the architects of Europe’s Advanced Therapies and Biosimilars regulatory and scientific framework.
Dr Meghan Mcilwain, President, New Zealand Association Of Clinical Research (NZ)