Conference Scientific Program Committee

We would like to acknowlege the contribution from our Conference Scientific Program Committee for all their work on putting the program together.

Courtenay Harris

Program Committee Chair

Associate Professor Courtenay Harris is teaching and research academic and Deputy Head of the Allied Health School at Curtin University, Western Australia. I am an occupational therapist with over 30 years of experience in areas including paediatrics, injury management, private practice and higher education. I am passionate in advancing the occupational therapy profession by building clinical research capacity and developing occupational therapy education. Research interests include decolonizing health and social care practitioner curriculums; leadership in higher education; investigating safe use of digital technologies by children to promote optimum physical, social and emotional health and wellbeing; and facilitating meaningful participation in everyday activities for people with injury, illness or disability.

Charmaine Bernie

Committee Member

Charmaine is a senior occupational therapist, lecturer and researcher with over two decades of paediatric experience across clinical and university settings. She is an accredited trainer of occupation-focused interventions including Cognitive Orientation to daily Occupational Performance, and Occupational Performance Coaching. In 2022, Charmaine completed her PhD on supporting families on pathways to autism diagnosis with the University of Melbourne. Charmaine has training and experience in conducting clinical trials and feasibility studies, and supervision of both junior clinicians and higher degree research students. She is currently a senior research fellow with the Early Years Research Lab at Southern Cross University.

Heather Block

Committee Member

Dr Heather Block is an occupational therapist and researcher. She has over 10 years of clinical experience working with people with neurological conditions and acquired brain injuries, predominantly in the acute setting. Between 2019 and 2024, Heather completed her PhD on the topic of ‘Managing challenging behaviours after traumatic brain injury in the acute hospital setting’.
Heather now works as a post-doctoral Research Fellow with the Caring Futures Institute at Flinders University. She is committed research initiatives to support healthy ageing, support and care with expertise in knowledge translation, particularly implementation science methodologies.

Linda Furness

Committee Member

Linda has worked in regional settings in the areas of disability, aged care, community health and clinical education for over 30 years. Her passion is building workplace ready occupational therapy students. This is evidenced by her current role lecturing at Southern Cross University, and previous experience supporting clinical education of pre-entry occupational therapy students and new graduates in Queensland Health. Linda’s research interests include regional health care, falls prevention and health professional learning in the workplace. She has also collaborated with educational specialists to complete research projects to enhance medical trainee learning in the workplace.

Jacki Liddle

Committee Member

A/Prof Jacki Liddle is an occupational therapist and researcher with the University of Queensland and Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane.  She engages in research to under complex needs and develop approaches to support improved outcomes for older people, people with neurological conditions and their supporters. Her research involves cross disciplinary teams including members with lived experience. Her research has included developing approaches to improve outcomes of driving cessation, codesigning technology and exploring technology based outcome measurement. She also supports clinicians to develop research and implement occupational therapy evidence into practice.

Caroline Mills

Committee Member

Caroline has been an occupational therapist for 20 years, working with children with neurodevelopmental disability, particularly autism and intellectual disability. Caroline completed her PhD at The University of Sydney in 2018 focused on supporting the sensory needs of autistic children. She is currently a Senior Lecturer in occupational therapy at Western Sydney University. Her research and teaching focuses on co-designed initiatives and innovative technologies to improve the lives of people with disability and other vulnerabilities. Caroline is an honorary allied health researcher within the South Western Sydney Local Health District (NSW Health) and serves on the Board of Directors for Macarthur Disability Services.

Tracey Parnell

Committee Member

Tracey has a career-long commitment to rural health having lived and worked in regional NSW since graduating from La Trobe University in 1991. Tracey worked clinically in the field of adult rehabilitation before transitioning to a teaching and research role at Charles Sturt University. Tracey’s research has focused on exploring lived experience, understanding the value of occupational participation to health and wellbeing, and facilitating regional health equity. She has been an invited author on several book chapters and an invited member of the editorial team for the next edition of Occupational Therapy for People Experiencing Illness, Injury or Impairment. 

Kitty Rose Foley

Committee Member

Kitty is a Senior Lecturer and the Course Coordinator of the Health and Human Sciences Honours program at Southern Cross University, Gold Coast. Kitty is also a paediatric occupational therapist working in the NDIS. Kitty completed her PhD at the Telethon Kids Institute in Perth and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at UNSW Sydney. Her postdoctoral research involved co-developing the first national longitudinal study exploring the health and wellbeing of autistic adults. Kitty is passionate about working with neurodivergent children and adults to improve participation, health and overall quality of life.

Hannah Slootjes

Committee Member

Hannah is an academic and practicing occupational therapist, with special interests in the occupational nature of matrescence, motherhood, perinatal transitions, and women’s health across the life course. As a ‘pracademic’, Hannah is passionate about knowledge translation. She offers occupational therapy services for girls and women, professional supervision, and university lectures. Hannah completed her PhD in 2022, developing two models: the Person-centred Occupational Model of Matrescence (POMM), and the Co-occupation Engagement Spectrum. She is currently writing and editing an occupational therapy textbook to inform evidence-based practice in women’s health, perinatal transitions, and matrescence, integrating contributions from researchers and practice leaders internationally.

Courtenay Harris

Program Committee Chair

Associate Professor Courtenay Harris is teaching and research academic and Deputy Head of the Allied Health School at Curtin University, Western Australia. I am an occupational therapist with over 30 years of experience in areas including paediatrics, injury management, private practice and higher education. I am passionate in advancing the occupational therapy profession by building clinical research capacity and developing occupational therapy education. Research interests include decolonizing health and social care practitioner curriculums; leadership in higher education; investigating safe use of digital technologies by children to promote optimum physical, social and emotional health and wellbeing; and facilitating meaningful participation in everyday activities for people with injury, illness or disability.

Charmaine Bernie

Committee Member

Charmaine is a senior occupational therapist, lecturer and researcher with over two decades of paediatric experience across clinical and university settings. She is an accredited trainer of occupation-focused interventions including Cognitive Orientation to daily Occupational Performance, and Occupational Performance Coaching. In 2022, Charmaine completed her PhD on supporting families on pathways to autism diagnosis with the University of Melbourne. Charmaine has training and experience in conducting clinical trials and feasibility studies, and supervision of both junior clinicians and higher degree research students. She is currently a senior research fellow with the Early Years Research Lab at Southern Cross University.

Heather Block

Committee Member

Dr Heather Block is an occupational therapist and researcher. She has over 10 years of clinical experience working with people with neurological conditions and acquired brain injuries, predominantly in the acute setting. Between 2019 and 2024, Heather completed her PhD on the topic of ‘Managing challenging behaviours after traumatic brain injury in the acute hospital setting’.

Heather now works as a post-doctoral Research Fellow with the Caring Futures Institute at Flinders University. She is committed research initiatives to support healthy ageing, support and care with expertise in knowledge translation, particularly implementation science methodologies.

Linda Furness

Committee Member

Linda has worked in regional settings in the areas of disability, aged care, community health and clinical education for over 30 years. Her passion is building workplace ready occupational therapy students. This is evidenced by her current role lecturing at Southern Cross University, and previous experience supporting clinical education of pre-entry occupational therapy students and new graduates in Queensland Health. Linda’s research interests include regional health care, falls prevention and health professional learning in the workplace. She has also collaborated with educational specialists to complete research projects to enhance medical trainee learning in the workplace.

Jacki Liddle

Committee Member

A/Prof Jacki Liddle is an occupational therapist and researcher with the University of Queensland and Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane.  She engages in research to under complex needs and develop approaches to support improved outcomes for older people, people with neurological conditions and their supporters. Her research involves cross disciplinary teams including members with lived experience. Her research has included developing approaches to improve outcomes of driving cessation, codesigning technology and exploring technology based outcome measurement. She also supports clinicians to develop research and implement occupational therapy evidence into practice.

Caroline Mills

Committee Member

Caroline has been an occupational therapist for 20 years, working with children with neurodevelopmental disability, particularly autism and intellectual disability. Caroline completed her PhD at The University of Sydney in 2018 focused on supporting the sensory needs of autistic children. She is currently a Senior Lecturer in occupational therapy at Western Sydney University. Her research and teaching focuses on co-designed initiatives and innovative technologies to improve the lives of people with disability and other vulnerabilities. Caroline is an honorary allied health researcher within the South Western Sydney Local Health District (NSW Health) and serves on the Board of Directors for Macarthur Disability Services.

Tracey Parnell

Committee Member

Tracey has a career-long commitment to rural health having lived and worked in regional NSW since graduating from La Trobe University in 1991. Tracey worked clinically in the field of adult rehabilitation before transitioning to a teaching and research role at Charles Sturt University. Tracey’s research has focused on exploring lived experience, understanding the value of occupational participation to health and wellbeing, and facilitating regional health equity. She has been an invited author on several book chapters and an invited member of the editorial team for the next edition of Occupational Therapy for People Experiencing Illness, Injury or Impairment. 

Kitty Rose Foley

Committee Member

Kitty is a Senior Lecturer and the Course Coordinator of the Health and Human Sciences Honours program at Southern Cross University, Gold Coast. Kitty is also a paediatric occupational therapist working in the NDIS. Kitty completed her PhD at the Telethon Kids Institute in Perth and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at UNSW Sydney. Her postdoctoral research involved co-developing the first national longitudinal study exploring the health and wellbeing of autistic adults. Kitty is passionate about working with neurodivergent children and adults to improve participation, health and overall quality of life.

Hannah Slootjes

Committee Member

Hannah is an academic and practicing occupational therapist, with special interests in the occupational nature of matrescence, motherhood, perinatal transitions, and women’s health across the life course. As a ‘pracademic’, Hannah is passionate about knowledge translation. She offers occupational therapy services for girls and women, professional supervision, and university lectures. Hannah completed her PhD in 2022, developing two models: the Person-centred Occupational Model of Matrescence (POMM), and the Co-occupation Engagement Spectrum. She is currently writing and editing an occupational therapy textbook to inform evidence-based practice in women’s health, perinatal transitions, and matrescence, integrating contributions from researchers and practice leaders internationally.