Spotlight on Emerging Leaders Fellowship (ELF) Program 2024
Dr Vera Camões-Costa
Dr Vera Camões-Costa is an implementation scientist, mixed-methods researcher and former mental health practitioner, with experience in designing, implementing and evaluating evidence-based health innovations in primary care.
She is particularly keen to integrate the consumer voice into her implementation science work
Dr Vera Camões-Costa is an implementation scientist, mixed-methods researcher and former mental health practitioner, with experience in designing, implementing and evaluating evidence-based health innovations in primary care. She is particularly keen to integrate the consumer voice into her implementation science work. As a Research Fellow at the Centre of Research Excellence in Sexual and Reproductive Health for Women, Dr Camões-Costa oversees the implementation planning, piloting and evaluation of a co-designed Endometriosis Management Plan for providers and their patients through primary care settings. With 20 peer-reviewed publications, 13 of which were published in the last 5 years, her research currently focuses on integrated care delivery, and quality of care through guideline implementation.
She was recently awarded the internationally recognised Transdisciplinary Understanding and Training on Research - Primary Health Care Fellowship from Western University, Canada, which has allowed for opportunities of international collaboration in primary care research with multidisciplinary teams. Vera is also a fellow of the Oxford International Primary Care Research Leadership Program (2024-2026). Her research interests are on exploring how the interplay between reproductive wellbeing and mental health can be better recognised and addressed by multidisciplinary team-based primary care.
Dr Amy Winship
Dr Amy Winship is a Rebecca Cooper Foundation Al & Val Rosenstrauss Fellow and Group Leader in reproductive biology at Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute.
She obtained her PhD in 2016 at the Hudson Institute of Medical Research, focused on cytokine function in the reproductive tract and reproductive cancer.
Her recent research has been at the forefront of the fertility preservation field in identifying ovarian toxicity profiles of new-line cancer therapies. Immunotherapies, in particular, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have revolutionised cancer therapy – harnessing the patient’s own immune cells to mount an anti-tumour response. Using preclinical models, Dr Winship made the ground-breaking discovery that ICIs cause irreversible ovarian damage, raising concerns that people treated with these agents may be at increased risk of infertility and comorbidities related to early menopause.
Her current research proposes uterine protection is the missing link to effective fertility preservation for healthy pregnancy for cancer survivors. Her teams’ analysis of clinical pregnancy outcomes shows survivors experience increased rates of infertility and obstetric complications after cancer therapy, even after using currently available fertility preservation methods, including embryo transfers from cryopreserved or donor oocytes, unexposed to cancer therapies. This research has overturned dogma that because of its cyclical and regenerative nature, the endometrium – the inner lining of the uterus – does not sustain permanent damage. By designing unique preclinical models and using primary human tissues, we showed the first empirical evidence that radiotherapy causes direct, lasting uterine damage, leading to new clinical guidelines for patients and clinicians.
Dr Dani Barrington
Dr Dani Barrington is a transdisciplinary teaching and research academic who specialises in understanding and improving experiences of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).
Her particular focus is menstrual health and justice (from menarche to post-menopause), toileting and incontinence.
Dr Barrington is a public health engineer by training, but soon after her PhD fell in love with participatory research and development. This led to her partnering with the International Water Centre, Monash University, University of the South Pacific and University of North Carolina to develop her 3.5 year post-doctoral research project on improving WASH in peri-urban informal settlements of Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and Solomon Islands. During this period, she also became a Founding Director of the Australian period poverty charity, Share the Dignity, realising that WASH inequalities persist in all countries, regardless of their economic status. Dr Barrington has since worked on WASH projects in Australia, Eastern and Southern Africa, Southern Asia and South America.
She has worked in schools of engineering, marketing and public health, bringing in the expertise of colleagues across many disciplines to inform and improve my research. Dr Barrington is currently a Senior Lecturer in Global Health in the School of Population and Global Health at The University of Western Australia, an Honorary Fellow in the School of Public Health at The University of Queensland and a Guest Lecturer in the School of Civil Engineering at University of Leeds.
Dr Karen Best
Dr Karen Best is Co-lead of the ‘Pregnancy and Newborn Health’ research program within the Women and Kids theme at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute. A mid-career researcher, Dr Best has extensive expertise in midwifery, clinical trial management, and academic proficiency. She earned her PhD in 2015, receiving a dean’s commendation for thesis excellence.
Dr Best has led several large-scale clinical studies, engaging over 20,000 participants across clinical and community settings. Notably, she led the landmark 2018 Omega-3 to Reduce the Incidence of Preterm Birth (ORIP) Trial, whose findings have significant global applications.
Dr Best’s current research focuses on the impacts of prenatal exposures on health outcomes for women and children. Currently, she is leading two major projects: a national pregnancy trial investigating the effects of prenatal iodine on infant development (the PoppiE Trial), and an implementation project embedding an omega-3 test and treat program into routine antenatal care to prevent preterm birth.
Over the past five years, Dr Best has attracted more than $8.9 million in grants and fellowships. Most recently, she was awarded a $1.36 million Maternal Healthy Lifestyles MRFF grant to translate her omega-3 research findings into practice. Her work, published in top-ranking journals and extensively cited, has influenced practice guidelines globally.
Dr Best actively mentors students and research staff, significantly contributing to perinatal research through her leadership. Her impact on perinatal research continues to grow, driven by her commitment to improving outcomes for women and children and translating evidence into practice.
Davina Smith
Davina Smith identifies as a Gooreng Gooreng and South Sea Islander person.
Davina has had a rewarding career spanning 18 years across various settings including education and health care, with a focus on advocating for people who identify as Indigenous Peoples, at risk or are culturally diverse. She led a team implementing strengths-based birthing services designed to support the health and well-being of families in Southeast Queensland during the perinatal, birthing, and early childhood periods.
Davina recently joined the Indigenous Health Projects team at Mater Research Institute as Senior Indigenous Research Officer and brings leadership and expertise in working collaboratively, with a focus on Indigenous communities’ strengths and resilience, and the ability to provide cultural mentoring and support to non-Indigenous members of her team. Davina has a Bachelor of Psychology in Behavioural Studies. She is a mother to four exceptional adults and has two grandchildren.
