Life Impact Health Sciences

Dr Catherine Gibson

Dr Catherine Gibson graduated from the University of Adelaide in December 2005 with a PhD in Medicine, focusing on understanding the causes of cerebral palsy.  Her research, with the support of the South Australian Cerebral Palsy Research Group, looks at various factors which may affect unborn babies during pregnancy and increase their risk of developing cerebral palsy, the most common motor disorder in children, which affects about 1 in every 400 South Australian children.

Dr Gibson’s research has won her a number of scientific awards, and more recently she won this year’s Young Investigator Awards.  She has successfully established research collaborations with researchers at the National Institutes of Health, and is continuing to pursue other international collaborations to identify antenatal causes of cerebral palsy.

Darren Ng

Darren Ng is definitely one who fits into the ‘works hard and plays hard’ category. He is a medical student at the University of Adelaide but also plays in the National Basketball League (NBL) for the Adelaide 36’s. The 189cm guard has been playing with the team from 2002 to the present time, working his training schedule around his 4th year medical studies.

Adam Nelson

Adam is currently studying Medicine and is involved in the Adelaide Medical Students' Society (AMSS) in many capacities. He is a student representative on several University committees and has won awards for his work not only for the AMSS but also for his work in hospitals.

In 2005 he was awarded the Inaugural Judith Anne O'Brien Award for a Pre-Clinical Student displaying compassion and leadership to peers. He also currently holds a John Flynn Scholarship as well as a research scholarship with the University in the Cardiovascular Research Centre, Royal Adelaide Hospital.

James Smith 

James Smith is a typical all-rounder and was named 2006 Young Australian of the Year for South Australia and was a semi-finalist in the 2006 South Australian Young Achiever Awards for both the career achievement, and science and technology categories. James Smith successfully bridges men’s health research and practice.

He is currently investigating men’s help seeking behaviours through the departments of Public Health & Medicine at the University of Adelaide. This research forms part of the Florey Adelaide Male Ageing Study and James has already received a range of accolades for this work.

Putting theory into practice, he coordinates the Royal Adelaide Hospital’s Health in Men (HIM) initiative, contributing a significant amount of his own free time. He has promoted positive health behaviour change with over 500 men through an innovative men’s health screening program, and has shared these experiences on state and national radio.

James also volunteers as a coach and official for diving, and works diligently in his leadership role as President of the SA Branch of the Australian Health Promotion Association.

Lisa Kettler

Lisa Kettler studied Psychology at the University of Adelaide as part of an Arts degree. She went on to do both Honours Psychology and then a Masters in Clinical Psychology at Adelaide.

Lisa worked for several years as a child psychologist helping troubled children and later, as a health psychologist, helping people with pain problems and people with serious illnesses. She then decided to do a doctorate in Psychology on people suffering from cystic fibrosis. She won an award for her thesis, as one of the best presented in that year.

Lisa now works as a lecturer and researcher, teaching child clinical psychology and developmental psychology, and about language, and motivation and emotion. She also works part-time as a child psychologist in our clinic located at the University's Family Practice Unit at Highbury.