Speakers

TEDx speaker and Author Annie Harvey is an expert in emotional wellbeing and speaks both nationally and internationally. Her particular passion is giving people really practical tools to avoid burnout and empathy fatigue. Annie has a light hearted style to deliver simple strategies around an important topic. As an educator, Annie likes to make people aware of the less talked about strands of burnout but more importantly, loves to send everyone away with a fun and meaningful toolkit. Annie is also a mindfulness trainer and laughter wellness expert and is the creator of The Giggle Game, an intergenerational program for co-regulation.

Craig has worked in the financial sector for over 40 years, interpreting ‘big picture’ economic and financial trends.

Education: Craig holds both Bachelors and Masters degrees in Commerce (Economics).

He was appointed Adjunct Professor at Perth's Curtin Business School in 2012.

Craig retired from the position of Chief Economist, CommSec in October 2024. He was appointed to Parkinson’s Australia Board in October 2024. He now delivers speeches and writes ad hoc reports on the economy.

He has worked at Rural Bank NSW, State Bank NSW, Colonial, CommSec and the Australian Financial Review.

Personal: Outside work, Craig's main interests are powerlifting and athletics (sprints) and trying to keep up with his wife, three children and two miniature schnauzers.

David Tsui is the Nurse Practitioner in Parkinson’s & Movement Disorders for the whole Western Sydney Local Health District (WSLHD) in New South Wales.  He entered the field of movement disorders in 2008 under the mentoring of Laraine McAnally (retired Clinical Nurse Consultant).  He completed his Master of Nursing in 2014 and was endorsed as a Nurse Practitioner in 2017.  In addition to his clinical roles, David was one of the authors and tutor of the Australian College of Nursing, ‘Parkinson’s Care 299’ unit of study and worked as a casual academic at the University of Sydney.  David has also been an integral committee member of the Movement Disorders Chapter (MDC) of Australasian Neuroscience Nurses Association (ANNA) since 2016 and was nominated to be the chairperson of the MDC in 2019 to 2022.  He now co-chairs the Movement Disorders Chapter with Sue Williams. 

Dr Ashani Couchman is a Urological surgeon who is a sub-specialist in Transitional (adolescent) urology and Neuro-urology. And has been appointed Vice President elect for the Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand.

A graduate of Auckland Medical School in 2003 and she completed her surgical training in New Zealand. This was followed by fellowships at the Institute of Urology (London), Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children (London) and National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (London) and Western General Hospital (Edinburgh) culminating in a consultant position at Kingston Hospital, Kingston-upon-Thames. She is the Neuro-urologist at the Repatriation Precinct, The Royal Adelaide Hospital and is a visiting specialist at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia.

Her positions are:

• Deputy Head of Unit – Department of Urology – Royal Adelaide Hospital
• Chair of the Children and Young Persons committee of the International Continence Society
• Board Member – Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand
• Member of the Adolescent Transition Care Clinical Network Steering Committee – South Australia
• Co-Chair of the Report on Terminology of Transitional care in the Lower urinary tract and pelvic floor symptoms and dysfunction for the international continence society
• Member of the editorial panel for Continence – the journal of the International Continence Society
• Chair of the Medical Advisory Committee – Calvary North Adelaide Hospital
• Member of the Executive Committee for the RACS Annual Meeting 2023
• Member of the special advisory groups for: Functional Urology and Paediatric Urology for the Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand
• Advisory Board Member – Urology (Botox) – Allergan/Abbvie

She is a member of:
The International Neuro-Urology Society
The European Association of Urology
The American Urological Association
The International Continence Society
The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons

She has published clinical research in her sub-specialty fields and edited a reference textbook on urinary incontinence. She continues to be a reviewer of the Journal of Paediatric Urology, a peer reviewer of the British Journal of Urology International and a member of the Cochrane Collaboration

David Blacker is currently the medical director of the Perron Institute for neurological and translation science, clinical professor of Neurology at the University of Western Australia and a board member of Parkinson’s WA. For most of his career he was a stroke neurologist and researcher, including working closely with the Perron Institute scientists on developing neuroprotective therapies. In 2018, he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, which contributed to him retiring from clinical practice in 2023. He writes and speaks widely about his personal experience with PD, and hopes to assist others by sharing this. He aims to help his medical colleagues gain a greater insight into living with PD and to improve their communication and interactions with people with PD. He has written a book, “My FIGHT with PD” which covers these issues.

He spent several years as a child living in rural Western Australia, and was a frequent visitor to relatives who lived on farms. He has also been a keen golfer for more than 50 years. He suspects these activities may have exposed him to pesticides, possibly playing a role in the development of his young onset PD. Since 2021 he has been looking closely at the issue of pesticides and PD. In 2024, following the APVMA’s release of their report on paraquat he rallied his medical colleagues around Australia and internationally to advocate for a ban, and if not a ban, at least recognition that paraquat exposure IS a risk for developing PD. He is concerned that if this risk is not recognized farmers, their families and neighbours will continue to be at risk.

Clinical Professor David Blacker AM, MB BS, FRACP

Dr Katrine Del Villar is a member of the Australian Centre for Health Law Research and a senior lecturer in the School of Law at Queensland University of Technology (QUT). She researches legal issues in end of life decision making, including voluntary assisted dying, advance decision-making, consent and capacity. Katrine is an investigator on the Commonwealth government-funded End-of-Life Law for Clinicians project (ELLC), which provides comprehensive end-of-life legal training for health professionals and aged care practitioners. She was also a member of the QUT team involved in writing the mandatory training for practitioners participating in voluntary assisted dying in Western Australia and Queensland.

Laurie Mischley, ND PhD MPH studied naturopathic medicine (ND) at Bastyr University and epidemiology (MPH) and nutritional sciences (PhD) at the University of Washington and she maintains appointments at both Universities. Her work is focused on identifying the nutritional requirements unique to individuals with Parkinson’s Disease (PD) and has published on coenzyme Q10, lithium, NAD+, and glutathione deficiency (www.lauriemischley.com). She is Principal Investigator of the Modifiable Variables in Parkinsonism (MVP) Study (MVP-study.com), which is attempting to describe why some people with PD progress slower than others. She is working on ways to study, package and deliver evidence-based lifestyle modification as a therapeutic strategy. She founded the Parkinson Center for Pragmatic Research (www.parkinson-cpr.com) and the canine scent-based PD screening tool, ParK-9 (www.Park-9.com), developed a patient-reported outcome measure to assess PD severity (www.PD-symptoms.com), built the Parkinson Symptom Tracking (PRO-PD) App, and is instructor of the online series, Parkinson School (www.Parkinson-School.com). Dr. Mischley maintains a small clinical practice at Seattle Integrative Medicine focused on nutrition and neurological health of patients with Parkinsonism. 

Melissa is a Specialist Neurological Physiotherapist and founder of PD Warrior, an exercise, education and training program for people living with Parkinson’s, licensed across 10 countries globally. She is a clinician, educator, author and entrepreneur, and her 24 year career in physiotherapy has been dedicated to helping to improve the lives of those living with Parkinson’s.

Melissa currently sits on the Board of the Australian Physiotherapy Association and the Executive Committee of the International Neurological Physical Therapy Association (INPA) for the World Confederation for Physical Therapy.

Melissa was awarded Australian Physiotherapist of the year in 2019, Small Business Champions Australian Entrepreneur of the Year in 2020 and HESTA Impact Award in 2022.

Dr Shu Ng (MBBS, MPH)  is the Chief Medical Officer and Managing Director of Astrid Clinic. She graduated from Monash University in Melbourne in 2010 and has 14 years of postgraduate medical experience in medical and surgical specialties. She undertook an 18-month Radiation Oncology research fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, USA, whilst completing her Master of Public Health (MPH) with University of Sydney. The research fellowship culminated in four first author peer-reviewed publications, five co-author peer-reviewed publications and two international conference presentations. After her return to Melbourne, she spent three years in Radiation Oncology specialist training at Alfred Health and Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, before embarking on cannabinoid medicine. In addition to cancer care, Dr Shu also has interests in the applications of cannabis therapies in chronic pain and neurodegenerative disorders including Parkinson’s. 

Dr Shu is a TGA Authorised Prescriber and has practised cannabinoid medicine since 2020, personally managing over 2500 patients and their journey with medicinal cannabis. She is a member of the Australian Medicinal Cannabis Association (AMCA), Cannabis Clinicians Australia (CCA) and Australian & New Zealand College of Cannabinoid Practitioners (ANZCCP).

Dr Stephen Tisch graduated from the University of Tasmania in Medicine with first class honours. He completed neurology residency at St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney and the Mayo Clinic Rochester Minnesota USA. He trained in movement disorders and deep brain stimulation (DBS) at The National Hospital for Neurology Queens Square and completed his PhD on pallidal DBS for dystonia from University College London. Dr Tisch is a Consultant Neurologist and Head of Department of Neurology at St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney, and Conjoint Associate Professor University of NSW. His areas of special interest are movement disorders, DBS and MRI guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS). In 2017 he competed 6 months sabbatical at l’hopital Salpetriere Paris and studied MRgFUS at two European centres. He co-established Australia’s first MRgFUS treatment centre at St Vincent’s Sydney in 2018, with over 190 tremor patients treated to date. He has authored or co-authored over 80 peer-reviewed articles and two book chapters. He serves on the advisory committee for Parkinson’s NSW and Dystonia Network Australia and is the Treasurer of the Australian Movement Disorders Society.

Dr. Wayne Markman is the CEO of SYMBYX Biome, an innovative Australian MedTech company leading the development of light therapies for Parkinson’s disease. Having witnessed the impact of Parkinson's firsthand, with multiple immediate family members diagnosed, Wayne is deeply committed to improving the quality of life for people living with Parkinson's (PwP). His personal connection to the condition has fuelled his determination to find better treatment solutions.

Wayne's professional journey began in economics and finance, having completed his MBA in the U.S. However, his passion for healthcare led him to pivot his career. As a mature-aged student at Macquarie University in Sydney, he earned his Doctor of Chiropractic degree, focusing on neuroscience and movement disorders. It was during this time that he discovered the Australian research into the use of light therapy to manage Parkinson's symptoms.

In 2020, Wayne co-founded SYMBYX Biome, with a mission to explore Parkinson’s as a whole-body condition. SYMBYX emphasises the gut-brain connection, an area of growing evidence for therapeutic intervention. Under his leadership, the company is actively sponsoring clinical trials globally to assess the benefits of light therapy in addressing motor, non-motor, and symptom fluctuations in Parkinson's patients.

The SYMBYX laser devices are cleared as medical products in the UK/EU and Australia and FDA clearance is the next priority. “The SYMBYX system is complementary to Levodopa medications, good diet and exercise. Above all, light therapy is safe, relatively non-invasive and returns agency to PwP who can self-administer the therapy at home. It’s critical that we educate our customers on the best available evidence and the importance of a multi-pronged approach”, says Dr Markman.

Dr Wayne Markman
Co-Founder & CEO SYMBYX Biome

BA (Macalester College); MBA (Harvard);
BChiro/MChiro (Macquarie University)

Linda has over 30 years' experience working in senior executive and leadership roles in healthcare and now brings her extensive health system knowledge, experience and networks to the role of CEO at Go Gentle Australia. As a former GP, Clinical Research Director, Managing Director, board member, government advisor and Group Chief Medical Officer at Medibank, she is well placed to provide leadership and expert advice to ensure Go Gentle achieves its vision of an Australia where we all have choice at the end of life.

Martin Rocliffe was born and raised in London and educated as a Microbiologist/Serologist and Biochemist in Manchester in the 1980’s.

His career in Medical Sales meant worldwide travel, eventually bringing him briefly to Australia in the mid 1990’s.

After several senior positions in Sales & Marketing for multi-nationals based in the UK, Martin and his wife Mags emigrated to Australia in 2010.

Martin has three grown up children and two Grandchildren in the UK, plus Mag’s daughter Jessica, Hubby Steve and two Grandsons in Queensland.

Becoming Australian Citizens in 2015 was a highlight for them both as they continued to travel within Australia, Asia and the UK in between work and family commitments.

Mags was diagnosed in 2017 with Parkinson’s Disease. By 2020 her health was declining and a move to Qld was necessary to be near family for support.

By 2023 Mags was recategorised as having Multi System Atrophy Parkinsonia (MSAP) as her health got rapidly worse. Sadly Mags’s passed away under QVAD supervision with Martin and Jessica by her side in April 2024. It followed long periods of paralysis, pain and suffering but was dignified and peaceful at the end.    

Michael Bakker is a pharmacist and has worked with the Parkinson’s community in South Australia for more than a decade. Michael is the Chief Pharmacy Information Officer for SA Health but has been a board member with Parkinson’s SA for more than 7 years. Overtime he has specialised in Home Medication Reviews for People with Parkinson’s and has delivered more than 100 of these reviews for people living with Parkinson’s in and around Adelaide. In 2021 Michael published original research in the frequency and type of medication errors that people with Parkinson’s experience when they are admitted to hospitals. It is the most comprehensive study of the challenges of managing Parkinson’s related medicines during transfer of care and was the genesis for the Parkinson’s grab bag and the development of guidelines on the management of PD meds in people with swallowing difficulties that have been shared across jurisdictions nationally.

Born in the US, and raised in Europe and Africa, MJ grew up with the mindset that talking about sex, pleasure and relationships does not have to be shameful or taboo. Her travels sparked her interest in cultural differences between sexual attitudes, norms and values. A natural born communicator, she attempts to foster a safe and non-judgemental environment to invite people to discuss areas of a personal nature openly, so that they can explore their relationships freely and fully informed. MJ’s passion is providing people a safe way to re-discover their own strengths and supporting them in returning to emotional wellness. Her work ethos is based on curiosity, a value for genuine human connection and the belief that you are the expert of your own life. MJ advocates for safe, good and pleasurable sexual and relationship health for everyone. Trauma-informed practice, empowerment and a person-centred approach are the key elements and foundations of her approach to life.

MJ completed her bachelors in Psychology (Hons) at the University of Adelaide (2021) and is currently undertaking her Masters in Sexology at Curtin University.

Aunty Violet Sheridan is a pillar of the community in Canberra and the region. She is a passionate Ngunnawal Elder who shares her cultural knowledge and expertise with the entire community. She generously donates her time at events, schools, and for a broad range of organisations - in a bid to bring all Australians together.

•  •   •  • 

The Ngunnawal people are the Traditional Custodians of the Canberra region with a continued cultural, spiritual and historical connection to the area.

Evidence of the Ngunnawal’s ancestral connection of the Canberra region stretches back over tens of thousands of years where cultural, social, environmental, spiritual and economic connection to these lands and waters has been maintained in a tangible and intangible manner.
 

Ngunnawal country was defined by the language of the people inhabiting the land, not by lines clearly marked on a map. Generally the borders covered the area from Yass to Boorowa, towards Coolac, the highlands west of the Shoalhaven and back to Goulburn. This is an area of almost 11 000 square kilometres.
 

Ngunnawal is bordered by Wiradjuri, Ngarigo, Gundungurra and Yuin lands.

Olivia is the CEO of Parkinson’s Australia, but prefers the title National advocate and Changemaker. She has a wealth of Parkinson's experience, both with engaging with people affected by Parkinson's, government relations and advocacy skills. Parkinson's Australia has recently launch their new brand, and new tag line - National Advocacy. Connection. Awareness. This was chosen as their "promises" to the Parkinson's community across Australia.

She was the State CEO of Parkinson's SA, ACT and NT and in that time lobbied the SA government to fund 4FTE Parkinson's Nurse Specialists. Olivia founded Brain x Body Fitness Studio, an innovative exercise facility focused on the elements of neuroplasticity and adaptable to clients with a variety of health conditions and disabilities. She wrote the successful $1.5m grant for the Young Onset Exchange App which simplifies the NDIS application pathway for people living with Young Onset Parkinson's. This project has driven  and provides information for and by a working party of people with lived experience.

She also holds the voluntary position of Treasurer for The Rare Find Foundation that supports families and research for GM2 conditions, a form of Childhood Dementia.

Patricia leads the peak body for older Australians, taking a constructive approach to building an inclusive and bright future for older people. Her goal is to eliminate ageism, which should be as socially unacceptable as sexism and racism. Studying ageism as part of her BA in Social Sciences, she was inspired to volunteer in home care, and do meals runs. She cried when an older woman held on to her hand and asked her to stay because she had not seen anyone that day, and anyone young in a long time.

Committed to building a more inclusive Australia that appreciates and welcomes the contribution of older people, Patricia’s career spans community, disability, and aged care, health, and advocacy roles. She has experience from the perspective of not-for-profit, public service, advocacy, Ministerial office, and most importantly, as a support to her own ageing family members.

Patricia centres her work on the value of older people. Everyone deserves the benefit of older people we love in our lives. She has worked consistently to improve the choice and control older people have in their own lives, working to reform aged care to fund the individual’s care, rather than the provider, and following through to make sure the system works.

Paula Argy is a multifaceted individual, embodying roles such as a mother, fashion enthusiast, and ambassador for PwYOPD. She manages her condition without allowing Parkinson's disease to define her identity.

In 1989, at the age of nineteen, Paula exhibited ambition and confidence, with significant career aspirations ahead of her. It was at this pivotal age that she encountered her first symptom of Parkinson's disease, experiencing tremors in her hands. However, it was not until 1996 that she received an accurate diagnosis of young onset Parkinson's disease.

Paula has demonstrated considerable strength and resilience in managing and overcoming the challenges associated with her condition. Her volunteer efforts are noteworthy, particularly in advocating for and educating others about living with Parkinson's disease, thereby making a positive impact on her community. Additionally, her involvement in a pioneering Parkinson's drug trial has been commendable, significantly enhancing her quality of life. She has expressed contemplation on how different her life might have been if resources like YOPX had been accessible earlier.

Professor Cedric Bardy is an ARC Future Fellow and leading researcher at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) and Flinders University. He graduated from the University of Sydney and completed postdoctoral training at the Pasteur Institute (2008-2011) and the Salk Institute (2011-2016). Cedric's team focuses on discovering treatments for neurodegeneration and brain cancer in both adults and children, while leading advancements in human brain models in vitro.

Dinesh Kant Kumar is Professor at RMIT University, Melbourne, a Fellow of Australasian Institute of Digital Health, and leads research in Biosignals and Digital Health. He is also on the TGA (Australia) advisory panel for medical devices.

His passion is to develop affordable diagnostic devices. He is Editor for two journals, has been Chair of Society of Medical Engineers Australia, Senior Professorial Fellow in Brazil, and Vajra Fellow in India. His publications have been cited over 8900 times. Dinesh has also initiated two startup companies.

Dinesh has developed multiple technologies to detect and monitor Parkinson’s disease. He has developed software based devices for assessing Parkinson’s disease based on the recording and analysis of the (i) dynamics of handwriting, (ii) voice (iii) pupillary reflex, and (iv) IMU for gait. His work is to facilitate the clinicians to perform fast and accurate assessment of their patients, which can also be used for regular monitoring of the disease symptoms.

George is an interdisciplinary scientist who works on all aspects of neurodegenerative disease with an emphasis on Parkinson’s disease. He has an extensive research track record of grants, publications and disciplinary engagement, is an active teacher of undergraduates and postgraduates and is a previous recipient of National Teaching Award. In addition, George has, for many years, been an advocate for people affected by Parkinson’s disease. He is currently the President of Parkinson’s Queensland and Parkinson’s Australia, the peak State and National not-for-profit advocacy groups supporting the Parkinson’s community.

Professor Silburn is Australian and Oxford trained in Neurology and returned to Australia at the end of 1996.

He is internationally renowned and has published over 220 internationally peer reviewed papers in the field of neurodegeneration, particularly in the areas of Parkinson’s Disease, Molecular Neuroscience and Deep Brain Stimulation.

He was appointed Chair in Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Queensland in 2007 and played an instrumental role in establishing the University of Queensland’s Asia Pacific Centre for Neuromodulation where he served as Clinical and Education Director and member of the Board of Directors.

He has contributed to the establishment of Neuromodulation Centers throughout Australia and the Asia Pacific region.

He has served on two of the five Principal Committees of the Australia Governments National Health and Medical Research Council the Principal Research Committee and the Australian Health Ethics Committee.

He was awarded for his contributions to Neurology and Neuroscience with and Order of Australia (AM) by the Australian Government.

Peter Silburn, BSc, Hons, MBBS, PhD FRACP (Neurology)

Roger Barker is the Professor of Clinical Neuroscience at the University of Cambridge and Consultant Neurologist at Addenbrooke's Hospital. He runs the regional NHS Huntington's Disease (HD) as well as clinics in Parkinson's Disease (PD). His research investigates the heterogeneity of these disorders and its basis which has informed work he has done on trialing new experimental therapeutics for these conditions including cell and gene therapies as well as drug repurposing. He is lead academic scientist of the ARUK funded Drug Discovery Institute in Cambridge as well as the John Van Geest Centre for Brain Repair. He is Co-editor in chief of the Journal of Neurology.

Richelle is a CORU state registered dietitian who has been practicing Dietitian for 20 years. She was president and CEO of the of the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute (INDI), the professional body for Dietitians in Ireland. She was diagnosed with young onset Parkinson’s Disease shortly after the birth of her second child. She is a World Parkinson Congress Ambassador Alumni, a member of the Dublin Committee of the Parkinson’s Ireland and a EUPATI Fellow. She is particularly passionate about two areas (1) the importance of diet for PD and (2) the unmet needs of women with PD. She is a co-founder of the Women’s Parkinson’s Project www.womensparkinsonsproject.com and co-founder of a digital health start-up, My Moves Matter  www.mymovesmatter.com, a digital self-care companion to empower people with Parkinson’s to live better lives through personalised tracking, feedback, care and research.