SOMANZ

Meet Your SOMANZ Council

SOMANZ President Barry Walters
Barry Walters graduated from the University of Western Australia with the AMA Gold Medal. He undertook Physician training at Royal Perth Hospital, with further training in Obstetrics and Neonatology at King Edward Memorial Hospital for Women. This was followed by 3 years training in medical disorders of pregnancy from 1981-1984 at the Nuffield Department of Obstetrics in Oxford with Dr Chris Redman and at Queen Charlotte's Maternity Hospital in London with Dr Michael de Swiet. He holds appointments at King Edward Memorial Hospital for Women and Royal Perth Hospital, and is Clinical Associate Professor of Obstetric Medicine in the University of WA School Of Women's and Infants' Health, and Adjunct Professor of Medicine at the School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame Australia where he Chairs the Selection Committee. He has been the Meetings Convenor of the International Society of Obstetric Medicine since its inception in 2003, the first meeting being held in Fremantle. His research interests include pre-eclampsia, diabetes, thrombosis in pregnancy and the philosophy of the diagnostic process. The Royal ANZ College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists recognised his contribution by admission to Fellowship (ad eundem) of the College in 2005.

SOMANZ Secretary/Treasurer Lawrie McMahon is the Director of the Department of Renal Medicine at Eastern Health and also the Director of Eastern Health Integrated Renal Service (EHIRS). He is also a Professor of Medicine at the University of Melbourne. He has helped organize and develop the Obstetric Medicine Interest Group in Melbourne which comprises multiple specialties and meets 3 times a year. He is engaged in active clinical and laboratory research as well as maintaining a strong clinical load.

Peter Muller Duke University Medical Centre trained Maternal-Fetal Medicine sub-specialist. His current appointments are Senior Consultant in Obstetrics, Division of Perinatal Medicine and Co-Director of Women's Imaging at the Women's and Children's Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia as well as Clinical Lecturer at the University of Adelaide. His clinical and research interests include hypertensive disease in pregnancy, fetal surveillance in women with medical complications in pregnancy, and prenatal diagnosis. His particular interests are in reviewing a combination of early maternal serum analytes in the prediction of adverse pregnancy outcome.

David Ellwood is a Maternal-Fetal Medicine sub-specialist, based at The Canberra Hospital in the ACT. He is also Professor of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at the Australian National University Medical School, and Associate Dean of the Canberra Clinical School. He is the current President of PSANZ and on the Board of Women’s Hospital’s Australasia (WHA). His clinical and research interests include risk management, preterm delivery, medical disorders in pregnancy and postnatal health.

Anne Barden is a research scientist in the School of Medicine & Pharmacology (Royal Perth Hospital Unit) at the University of Western Australia. She has published articles relating to the role of endothelin, prostacyclin, cellular activation and lipids and lipid peroxidation in the pathogenesis of pre-eclampsia collaborating with Lawrie Beilin, Con Michael, and Barry Walters. She has a strong interest in the long term cardiovascular outcome of women who had pre-eclamptic pregnancies.

Emma Parry MBBS, MD, FRANZCOG, FRCOG, CMFM Emma Parry is a Specialist Obstetrician and Gynaecologist who is also a Subspecialist in Maternal Fetal Medicine. Emma is the Clinical Director of the National Women's Maternal Fetal Medicine Service and the New Zealand Maternal Fetal Medicine Network. Emma was born and grew up in the United Kingdom, completing her medical degree at Guys Hospital, London. She subsequently moved to New Zealand and is based in Auckland at Auckland City Hospital which is one of the largest maternity units in the country. Emma has varied clinical interests, but is especially interested in complex multiple pregnancy, 3D scanning of fetal anomalies, information storage and retrieval and preterm labour. She is currently leading the introduction of Selective Fetoscopic Laser Photocoagulation (SFLP) for Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome to New Zealand. To see more on this link to: http://tvnz.co.nz/health-news/new-weapon-fight-twin-blood-condition-2778509/video Emma is a member of several committees both within Auckland City Hospital and New Zealand. She is a regular speaker and organizes conferences and workshops in New Zealand and Australia through several organizations. Her research fields include Preterm Labour and Induction of Labour, Health Informatics in Women's Health and improving Maternal and Perinatal Health in the Developing World. She has published a book covering the role of Health Informatics in Women's Health. http://www.igi-global.com/reference/details.asp?id=8299 http://mfmnewzealand.blogspot.com/

Sandra Lowe

Karin Lust

Immediate Past President Claire McLintock is a graduate of Edinburgh University Medical School and moved to Auckland, New Zealand in 1990. She trained as a clinical and laboratory haematologist, she has been a physician in the Risk Maternal Fetal Medicine Clinic, National Women’s Hospital since 2001 and recently was appointed as Senior Lecturer in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Her main areas of interest include thrombotic complications of pregnancy, adverse pregnancy outcomes and management of post partum haemorrhage but she deals with all aspects of Obstetric Medicine – and finds it challenging and rewarding work!

Suzie Neylon is the Executive Officer for SOMANZ and as many of you will know managed the Secretariats for ASSHP and OMGA for over a decade via the offices housed at the RACP in Sydney. Suzie joined the RACP in 1993 with a background in nursing, travel, advertising, promotions and public relations. She has a Bachelor of Science from the University of New England, Armidale then completed her honours under the supervision of Professors Eileen Gallery and Jonathan Morris at the Kolling Institute of Medical Research, Sydney. Her laboratory based research was on the localisation of cells expressing nuclear factor kappa B in the human placental bed in normal pregnancy and pregnancies complicated by preeclampsia.

Previous Council Members

Past President (2004-2007) Gus Dekker (Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, University of Adelaide) has a long-standing research interest in the pathogenesis, prevention and management of preeclampsia, with a particular focus on genetic and immunological factors. Gus is responsible for the 'Southern Hemisphere' part of the SCOPE (SCreening for Obstetrical and Perinatal Endpoints) program - a major global study aimed at finding robust clinically useful predictors for the 3 major pregnancy complications; preeclampsia, IUGR and preterm birth.

Peter Moore graduated from Otago University in 1973. He has undertaken training in obstetric medicine, and research into immunological aspects of pregnancy and pre-eclampsia with Chris Redman in Oxford 1980 –1982. His current appointments are as Obstetric Physician, Christchurch Women’s Hospital, General Physician Christchurch Hospital, and Diabetes Physician as well as Clinical Director in the Department of Endocrinology, Christchurch Hospital. His areas of particular interest are pre-eclampsia and diabetes in pregnancy.

Stephen Gatt is Area Chair in Anaesthesia& Perioperative Medicine for the South East Illawarra Area Health Service, Director of Anaesthesia for Prince of Wales Hospital & Head of Division of Anaesthesia & Intensive Care at Prince of Wales and Sydney Children’s Hospitals. He is conjoint Associate Professor of Anaesthesia at the University of New South Wales. He is the President of the Obstetric Anaesthesia Society of Asia and Oceania (OASAO) and the President of the Federation of Maltese Abroad. He has a research interest in the clinical use of regional anaesthesia and invasive monitoring in severe preeclampsia.