Physicians of the Future Conference

Professor Asiata Dr. Satupaitea Viali is the current Vice Chancellor and President of OUM Samoa, serving since 2024. Prof Satu is a Cardiologist and Specialist Physician in Samoa. From 2002 to 2008, he was OUM’s Professor and Dean, and in 2007, he was on hand to congratulate OUM’s first graduates. He rejoined OUM as Interim Dean of Samoa and the Asia Pacific and Professor of Medicine in May 2023.

In addition to his roles at OUM, Professor Viali is a Professor Adjunct of Epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health, Yale University; Professor Honorary in the Department of Molecular Medicine & Pathology, Faculty of Medicine & Health Science at the University of Auckland; and Professor of Medicine at the National University of Samoa School of Medicine and School of Nursing. He is also a Cardiologist and Specialist Physician at the Medical Specialist Cardiology Clinic in Tuloto, Togafuafua, Apia, Samoa, and serves as a Visiting Cardiologist and Specialist Physician to the Ministry of Health and the National Hospital in the National Rheumatic Fever and Rheumatic Heart Disease Program. His primary area of expertise is echocardiographic screening in schools, having performed over 30,000 screening echocardiograms since 2008, with ongoing research into the regression and management of rheumatic heart disease over the past 18 years.

Professor Viali has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals on rheumatic fever, rheumatic heart disease, non-communicable diseases, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and related topics. He earned his Bachelor of Human Biology and MBChB from the University of Auckland Medical School and his Master of Public Health from the University of New South Wales. He is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (FRACP), the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand (FCSANZ), the European Society of Cardiology (FESC), and the American College of Cardiology (FACC), and was recently inducted as a Fellow of the Pacific Academy of Sciences. His current collaborative research includes studies on the ghrelin hormone and cardiovascular health, Parkinson’s disease genetics, lipidomics, metabolic health, and lymphatic filariasis, in partnership with institutions including Yale University, the University of Auckland, the University of Otago, the University of Pittsburgh, Brown University, Variant Bio, and the University of Queensland. He also serves as Co-Director of the Yale University Fogarty Global Health International Centre in Samoa and is a member of the Olaga Research Group.

Professor Viali has taught medical students across the Pacific, New Zealand, Australia, French Polynesia, and the United States, and has worked clinically in Samoa, New Zealand, Australia, Tahiti, and the Cook Islands. He is currently Chair of the Samoa Medical Council, Chair of the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC), and Founding and Senior Pastor of Cornerstone Church Samoa since 2014.

Dinesh was the first quadriplegic medical intern in Queensland. Dinesh is a doctor, lawyer, disability advocate, and researcher. While in medical school, he was involved in a car accident that caused a spinal cord injury. Dinesh was born in Sri Lanka, moving to Australia at the age of ten during the civil war.

Dinesh works in the emergency department at the Gold Coast University Hospital. He is a researcher and senior lecturer at Griffith University and assistant professor at Bond University. Dinesh is a researcher in spinal cord injury, co-leading the BioSpine research team.

He is a doctor for the Gold Coast Titans physical disability rugby team. Dinesh was a senior advisor to the Disability Royal Commission. He is an advisory board member to HealthyLife, a Woolworths company. Dinesh is a John Monash Scholar. He is an independent non-executive director of George Steuart & Co, one of the oldest companies in the world.

Dinesh was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2019. He was the third Australian to be awarded a Henry Viscardi Achievement Award. He was the 2021 Griffith University Young Alumnus of the Year. Dinesh was the Queensland Australian of the Year for 2021. His autobiography, Stronger, was published by Pan Macmillan in 2022.

Ian Winson was born in 1964 in Harare, Zimbabwe (then Salisbury, Rhodesia), and later moved to South Africa, where he completed his schooling, military service, and a Civil Engineering degree. He began his career working in township development and wastewater services before immigrating to New Zealand in 1998, where he held engineering roles with Watercare Services. A lifelong athlete, Ian was deeply involved in competitive sport from a young age, including premier league hockey, endurance events, and Ironman competitions, and played a key role in establishing The Lydiard Legend Marathon.

In 2011, Ian’s life changed dramatically following a devastating workplace accident that resulted in bilateral above-knee amputations and multiple serious injuries. After months of hospitalization and rehabilitation, he returned home determined to rebuild his independence and redefine what was possible. Drawing on resilience, discipline, and the training philosophies he had long embraced, Ian relearned to walk, swim, and live fully, while remaining actively involved in his family life.

Since his accident, Ian has become a powerful example of perseverance and adaptability. He has retrained as a personal fitness trainer and swimming coach, completed multiple marathons using prosthetics and adaptive equipment, earned a gold medal at the World Masters Games, and now competes nationally in para rowing. Today, he continues to push boundaries, including competing alongside his son in New Zealand’s Inclusion rowing category, embodying a message of resilience, purpose, and the enduring pursuit of possibility.

Alycia Inglis is an award-winning mortgage broker and the Director of Medipath Finance, with over 20 years’ experience helping people navigate property and finance with confidence. She specialises in working with medical professionals at every stage of their career, from interns through to specialists and understands the unique challenges and opportunities that come with being a medico.

Through her Medipath platform, Alycia focuses on educating and supporting doctors to make smart, considered decisions around buying their first home and building long-term wealth. Her sessions are known for being practical, relatable, and easy to understand — cutting through the noise to give clear guidance that doctors can actually use.

Associate Professor Jenny Wilkinson, OUM’s Director of Research, is an experienced higher education academic and researcher with expertise in academic leadership, curriculum design, and health research.

She has worked across public and private higher education institutions, leading teams on multiple campuses to strengthen academic programs, governance, and research initiatives that support student and faculty development. Her research interests focus on higher education teaching and learning, as well as the pharmacology and use of traditional and complementary medicine.

She is an Academic Editor for journals including BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies and PLOS ONE, reflecting her commitment to rigorous, peer‑reviewed scholarship and a collaborative research culture.

Professor Robert Sang is the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research, Development and Commercialisation) at the University of Southern Queensland, and leads the research portfolio for the University. Prior to this he was the Head and Dean of the School of Mathematics, Physics and Computing and is an adjunct professor of physics at Griffith University.

He is an experimental quantum physicist and he co-founded the Attosecond Science Group at Griffith University. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed research articles in the discipline of atomic physics and his current research involves the applications of ultra-short laser pulses of light to the experimental observation of the dynamics of electrons in atoms and molecules which occurs at the time scale of attoseconds (one attosecond is a billion-billionth of a second). The outcomes of this research are diverse and ranges from the development of new coherent x-ray sources, the testing of fundamental quantum theories, to applications in structure determination of complex molecules.

Professor Sang has held posts as a Max-Planck Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics in Munich, ARC Postdoctoral Fellowship and visiting scientist to the University of Electro-Communications in Tokyo.

Professor Sang is an experienced academic leader with senior roles at Griffith University such as the acting Pro Vice Chancellor of Griffith Sciences, Dean(Academic), Dean (Research) of Griffith Sciences, Dean (Learning and Teaching) of Griffith Sciences, Head of School (Natural Sciences), Deputy Head (Research) School of Biomolecular and Physical Sciences and the Deputy Director of the Centre for Quantum Dynamics.

An accomplished orthopaedic surgeon, clinician-researcher, and medical engineering leader, Professor Ross Crawford has made significant contributions to orthopaedic surgery, robotic-assisted procedures, and the translation of research into clinical practice. A graduate of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Queensland, Professor Crawford received his specialist qualifications in Orthopaedics through the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and later completed a D Phil (Oxon) at Oxford University.

Following his return to Brisbane, Professor Crawford was appointed Director of the Orthopaedic Department at the Mater Hospital before becoming the inaugural Chair of Orthopaedic Research at Queensland University of Technology (QUT). He currently serves as Deputy Director of QUT’s Medical Engineering Research Facility (MERF) and continues his clinical work as a visiting medical officer in orthopaedic surgery at The Prince Charles Hospital and St Vincent’s Hospital.

Professor Crawford has been at the forefront of translating medical research into clinical innovation. His work with QUT has contributed to the redesign of globally used femoral components, and he has served as a design surgeon for the Exeter total hip replacement and a principal design surgeon for surgical instruments used internationally. He also performed the world’s first cemented robotic hip replacement using the Stryker Mako robot and teaches robotic surgery nationally and internationally, training surgeons across China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore.

His research and innovation extend across robotic total hip replacement, autonomous limb manipulation, and ophthalmic imaging technology, with multiple licensed patents now being further developed for clinical use. Professor Crawford is also actively involved in improving healthcare systems through big data initiatives with Queensland Health and university partners, as well as research focused on improving healthcare delivery for Indigenous Australians, particularly in relation to retinal imaging.

A highly published clinician-researcher, Professor Crawford has authored approximately 400 publications and holds an H-index of 68, reflecting the significant impact of his work across orthopaedics, medical engineering, surgical innovation, and healthcare improvement.

An accomplished Emergency Medicine leader, Dr. Raja Barua has held senior clinical and administrative roles across major Victorian private hospitals for over two decades. As Director of Emergency Departments at Knox Private Hospital (2004–2020) and Holmesglen Private Hospital (2017–present), Dr. Barua has led service expansion, infrastructure development, and accreditation initiatives, including establishing ACEM training recognition, APED program approvals, and new ED facilities.

Dr. Barua has played a pivotal role in medical education, securing and supervising clinical placements for final-year medical students, including ongoing involvement with Oceania University of Medicine (OUM), and contributing to assessment and curriculum support. His leadership also extends to program development, including the implementation of Hospital in the Home (HITH) services and GP education programs with CPD accreditation.

Currently serving as Senior VMO and Administrative Director of Emergency Departments, Dr. Barua is an active member of key hospital committees, including the Medical Advisory Committee and Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee. He is also an RACGP Examiner and contributes to the education of Ambulance Victoria personnel.

Clinically, Dr. Barua brings broad expertise across Emergency Medicine, Paediatrics, General Surgery, Obstetrics & Gynaecology, and Tropical Medicine, supported by ALS and PALS certification. He is multilingual, fluent in Hindi and Bengali, and holds qualifications including MBBS, AMC, FRACGP, and EM Certificate (ACEM).

Prof. Lakshmana is a General Adult Psychiatrist with areas of clinical interest being perinatal psychiatry, inpatient psychiatry, telehealth, collaborative care with primary care practitioners an specialists, and Neurostimulation.

He has been in leadership roles in mental health since 2003 and has keen interest in service delivery models, consumer participation in mental health and mental health leadership. He has completed his Masters in Health Administration in 2010 to complement his work.

He works as the Director of Training for the Victorian Specialist International Medical Graduates (SIMGs) and as Additional Director of Psychiatry with Goulburn Valley Health. He is a Clinical Adjunct Professor at Oceania University of Medicine, and a Senior Lecturer in Psychiatry with the Department of Rural Health, University of Melbourne.

He is actively involved with undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and has published in scientific peer reviewed journals. He plays an active role with RANZCP as a Chair of Committee for Specialist International Medical Graduate Education (CSIMGE).

Dr. Jack Gilpin is a General Practitioner working in Queensland, Australia. Dr. Gilpin is passionate about supporting student and health practitioner wellbeing and success, and currently leads this portfolio as Deputy Head of the Medical School at The University of Queensland.

Dr. Gilpin has previously worked in GP registrar training, supporting hospital registrars as they prepare for transition into community practice. Dr. Gilpin is also a founding director of Docceroos LTD, a not-for-profit organisation focused on the health and wellbeing of doctors.

Dr. Hannah Gilchrist is a medical doctor, educator, and strategic leader with extensive experience in clinical practice and medical education. She has held senior roles in hospital-based training and university teaching, leading curriculum development, tutor coordination, and accreditation initiatives. Dr. Gilchrist is passionate about advancing medical education through innovation, student partnership, and a strong focus on clinician wellbeing and professional development.

OUM student Bailey Ralston will present important research exploring how well future doctors are being prepared to promote physical activity in clinical practice, a key factor in preventing and managing chronic disease.

Surveying 97 Australian-based OUM medical students, Bailey’s findings revealed significant gaps in preparedness. Only 31% correctly identified physical activity guidelines, while just 26% understood appropriate referral pathways to Accredited Exercise Physiologists. Confidence in advising patients and prescribing physical activity was also low, with 85% of students reporting they felt inadequately prepared by their curriculum.

This timely research highlights the growing need for practical, integrated education that equips future doctors with the skills to confidently promote, prescribe, and refer patients for physical activity in modern healthcare settings.

OUM student Anshul Das will present timely research examining patient knowledge, beliefs, and practices around antibiotic use in primary care, an important issue in the global effort to address antimicrobial resistance.

Surveying 210 patients across general practice clinics in Australia and New Zealand, Anshul’s findings revealed a notable gap between patient attitudes and understanding. While stewardship-supportive attitudes were nearly universal, foundational misconceptions about antibiotic resistance persisted, and more than a quarter of respondents reported potentially inappropriate antibiotic practices during their last course.

This important research highlights the need for clearer clinician counseling and structured communication techniques, such as teach-back, to help translate positive patient intentions into safer antibiotic use and support stronger antimicrobial stewardship in primary care settings.