Dr Rachel Wenke is a Principal Research Fellow for Allied Health Services at Gold Coast Health where she has co-designed, implemented and evaluated a number of innovative initiatives to build research capacity for allied health professionals. Rachel also works as a Senior Speech Pathologist in the area of rehabilitation alongside her research role and has a passion for helping clinicians answer clinically important research questions whilst building their confidence and skills in research. Rachel has mentored over 30 clinicians undertake research projects in multiple areas including management of adult communication and swallowing disorders and innovative models of care to enhance patient and service outcomes.
Professor Sharon Mickan is the inaugural head for the Healthcare Innovation program at Bond University which is designed to support health professionals to navigate the research evidence, critically evaluate health systems and practices and implement clinical improvements. She has a wealth of experience in knowledge translation, implementing organisational improvement and building clinicians’ research capacity and engagement demonstrated by her success in building a positive research culture within Gold Coast Health as a conjoint Professor with Griffith University. Sharon has designed, implemented and evaluated multiple research capacity building initiatives, including allied health research fellows, knowledge brokering strategies, evidence-informed journal clubs and clinical backfill grants.
Dr Kelly Weir is a Conjoint Principal Research Fellow (Griffith University) & Allied Health Research Team Leader at Gold Coast Health, Queensland Australia. She is a certified practicing speech pathologist with over 30 years clinical experience, predominantly in tertiary state-wide paediatric & adult hospitals. Kelly researches in dysphagia across the lifespan, paediatric acute and critical care, and allied health-led models of care. She has mentored allied health/interdisciplinary clinical teams in research capacity building and evidence-based practice in the healthcare setting; led the research strategy for allied health research (GCH) and particularly champions consumer engagement as coproducers in health research.
