Professor Neil Marlow (UCL, London, UK)

Neil Marlow trained in clinical medicine at Oxford and UCL. His first research post was in Manchester where he carried out one of the first and largest single observer outcome studies following low birthweight. Since that time he has continued to focus on the sequelae of perinatal events and in particular neuropsychological outcomes. He has led several large studies in the field including EPICure – a national cohort study of birth before 26 weeks of gestation that has guided national policy (www.epicure.ac.uk) .

Neil was appointed Professor of Neonatal Medicine at UCL in September 2008, having held the chair of Neonatal Medicine in Nottingham since 1997. He is Director of the Institute for Women’s Health and current President of the European Society for Paediatric Research. His research interests include early care of the newborn, particularly in relation to brain development and injury, and he is PI on a range of clinical trials aimed at improving developmental outcome for the very preterm infant.

Jane E Harding ONZM MBChB DPhil FRACP FRSNZ

Prof Harding is Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) of The University of Auckland, and a researcher in the Fetal and Neonatal Physiology research group of the University’s Liggins Institute. Her training included a medical degree at the University of Auckland, a D Phil at the University of Oxford, and a postdoctoral Fogarty Fellowship at the University of California at San Francisco.

Prof Harding has undertaken teaching and research at The University of Auckland for much of her career. In her current role, she has overall responsibility for the University’s research activities. She is also a paediatrician, and until recently practised as specialist neonatologist, caring for newborn babies at National Women’s Hospital. Her ongoing research activities concern the role of nutrition and growth factors in the regulation of growth before and after birth, and the longterm consequences of treatments given around the time of birth.

Associate Professor Papaarangi Reid

Papaarangi is Tumuaki and Head of Department of Maori Health at the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, New Zealand. She holds science and medical degrees from the University of Auckland and is a specialist in public health medicine. She has tribal affiliations to Te Rarawa in the Far North of Aotearoa and her research interests include analysing disparities between indigenous and non-indigenous citizens as a means of monitoring government commitment to indigenous rights.

Dr David Herd

Dr David Herd is a paediatric emergency specialist at Mater Children's Hospital, Brisbane, Australia. He has won several research presentation awards in New Zealand and Australia including the Royal Australasian College of Physicians Advanced Trainee award.

Dr Herd is currently completing a Doctor of Medicine degree at the University of Auckland entitled "Obviating the distress of medical procedures: practice, psychology and pharmacology". Dr Herd has published research on pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of ketamine, and is currently studying intranasal fentanyl.

Dr Herd did much of his early medical training at Taranaki Base Hospital before continuing training in the Waikato and then Starship Children's Hospital. Dr Herd's is a descendant of the Te Atiawa iwi from Taranaki.

Dr Nicola Poplawski
MBChB, DipPaed, FRACP, MD, Clinical Geneticist (HGSA)

Nicola is a paediatrician and clinical geneticist at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Adelaide, Australia. Her training incudes a MBChB and a MD at the University of Otago, and a DipPaed at the University of Auckland. Nicola began her paediatric training at Taranaki Base Hospital, where she benefited from the clinical and teaching expertise of the hospital’s Paediatricians and the wonderful outdoor beauty of the Taranaki region. She completed her training in paediatric medicine, and clinical and metabolic genetics in Australia (the Women's and Children's Hospital, Adelaide, and Alice Springs Hospital) and Canada (the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto). She is interested and has experience in genetic education for the public, for families and for health care professionals. Her research focuses on clinical aspects of inherited diseases.  

Dianne Webster

Dianne Webster has been director of the Newborn Metabolic Screening Programme since 1991. The New Zealand programme has been a world leader since the inception of the programme in 1969 and seen developments in the screened conditions and screening technology and processes. The New Zealand leadership was formally recognised by the award of the International Society for Neonatal Screening Guthrie award in 2008. She has been involved with antenatal screening for aneuploidy during the policy and planning stages and now has a practical involvement with the quality improvement measures.

Mark Davis

Dr Mark Davis is a psychiatrist based in Lower Hutt, Wellington. Mark graduated from Otago Medical School in 1976 and completed his post graduate psychiatric training (in UK and N Z) in 1986.

He has worked as a Consultant Psychiatrist to Hutt Hospital (1986-1995), Victoria University Health Service (1986), Te Omanga Hospice, Lower Hutt (1998-2003) and has been in full-time private practice since 1995. Mark is very interested in the area of professional health and well-being, and wrote two chapters for the NZ D H A S Book for doctors and health professionals, “ In Sickness and in Health”, 1998, 2nd Edition. He has been on the N Z Medical Council Education Committee, and was part of a Health Advisory group to the New Zealand Veterinary Association. Mark has had extensive training in psychotherapy, and his professional and personal journey has led him to explore more effective and practical ways for people to manage themselves and their lives.

For the past seven years, Mark has facilitated a monthly Balint group (focussing on Doctor-patient interactions) for Wellington-area General Practitioners. He also has facilitated a number of “Rest, Reflection and Rejuvenation” workshops and retreats for doctors, health practioners and their partners. Mark is married with 4 adult children.

Professor Wayne Cutfield

Trained in Paediatrics at Auckland.

Trained in Paediatric Endocrinology at the Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati USA.

Established a Paediatric Endocrine Service in Auckland and was Director of the service for many years.

Professor in Paediatric Endocrinology.

Appointed Director of the Liggins Institute, The University of Auckland’s first large scale research institute in 2009.

Currently Chairman of the NZ Growth Hormone Committee

Immediate Past President of the Asia Pacific Paediatric Endocrine Society.

International research expertise in three broad areas; assessment of insulin action in children, early life programming of metabolic disease and evaluation and management of growth disorders in childhood. Published in excess of 100 peer review manuscripts in journals and book chapters that include the New England Journal of Medicine and Lancet.

Dr Simon Rowley, MBChB. FRACP.

Graduated in 1972 from Otago University and completed his postgraduate studies in paediatrics in Oxford, UK before returning to a post in Neonatology in Auckland. He is currently working at the Newborn Intensive Care Unit, National Womens Health, Auckland City Hospital as a Consultant Neonatal Paediatrician and is the chair of the paediatric vocational training committee. He also has a private paediatric practice in Epsom looking after children of all ages. He is a visiting paediatrician to Plunket and is involved in teaching in a number of their training programmes. His interests include the newborn infant, early childhood development, behavioural and developmental outcomes and medical ethics. As part of his interest in young parenthood and early childhood development he is also interested in the adolescent brain. He is a member of the Brainwave Trust, a logical extension of his interest with the newborn brain.