Archived media release
PA/23/2007 10 December 2007
Leading Australian child health expert delivers the Ramalingaswami Memorial lecture on maternal and child health
Australia’s leading maternal and child health expert, Professor Fiona Stanley AC, delivered today the Ramalingaswami Memorial Lecture at the National Institute of Immunology on ‘The Epidemiology of the Cerebral Palsies’.
“It is a great honour for Australia to have one of our distinguished medical scientists, Professor Fiona Stanley, present the Ramalingaswami lecture,” said Prof John Webb, Counsellor, Education, Science and Training, Australian High Commission, New Delhi.
“Professor Ramalingaswami played a leading role in the development of modern India's medical system and his ideals continue to inspire us all. Professor Stanley's work has provided new insights in our understanding of child health. In her presentation of the Ramalingaswami lecture, Professor Stanley presented these studies for which she was selected at the Australian of the Year in 2003,” added Prof Webb.
Trained in maternal and child health epidemiology and public health, Prof. Stanley has spent her career researching the causes of major childhood illnesses such as birth defects. Her research includes the gathering and analysis of population data for epidemiological and public health research; the causes and prevention of birth defects and major neurological disorders, particularly the cerebral palsies; patterns of maternal and child health in Aboriginal and Caucasian populations; various ways of determining the developmental origins of health and disease; collaborations to link research, policy and practice; and strategies to enhance health and well-being in populations.
Her major contribution has been to establish the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, a unique multidisciplinary independent research institute focussing on the causes and prevention of major problems affecting children and youth. She sits on the Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council as well as the Australian Statistics Advisory Council. For her research on behalf of Australia's children, she was named Australian of the Year in 2003 and in 2006 she was made a UNICEF Australia Ambassador for Early Childhood Development.
For further information, please contact, Prof John Webb, Counsellor (Education and Training), on 011 4149 4356.