Dr Katrina Roper

PhD (JCU), MAppEpid (ANU), BSc (Hons) (Deakin University), Grad.Cert.Mgt. (USQ)
Honorary Senior Lecturer (C)
ANU College of Health and Medicine

Areas of expertise

  • Epidemiology 111706
  • Infectious Diseases 110309
  • Health Information Systems (Incl. Surveillance) 111711
  • Microbiology 0605
  • Public Health And Health Services 1117

Research interests

* Infectious diseases and outbreak response

* Workforce development and epidemiology training programs

* Laboratory strengthening, biosafety and biosecurity, deployable laboratory capacity

* Civil-military interoperability in humanitarian response

 

Biography

I hold an Honorary Senior Lecturer position at the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health. I was a member of faculty on the Australian Field Epidemiology Training Program (Masters of Applied Epidemiology) for two years (2016-2017).  I graduated as a field epidemiologist from the program in 2008, having completed my placement at the Centre for Disease Control in the Northern Territory of Australia (2006-2007) where I worked on trachoma eye disease, injury and safety, diabetes and hepatitis C surveillance.

Prior to joining the ANU staff, I worked for six years with the World Health Organization, three years as a consultant and three as a staff member with the Laboratory Strengthening and Biosafety team based in Lyon, France. In that time, I worked in the Middle East, South East Asia and Africa, supporting countries to implement International Health Regulations (IHR 2005) through laboratory strengthening activities. I deployed three times to Sierra Leone in 2014-2015 as part of the Ebola Viral Disease Outbreak Resposnse, during which time I provided Infection Prevention and Control training to nurses and other health care workers so that they could work safely in Ebola Treatment Units as well as conducting active case finding and case investigation within the Freetown community.

Previously, I worked at the Australian Government Department of Health as Coordinator of OzFoodNet and Assistant Director of Vaccine Preventable Diseasese Surveillance; as a Risk Assessor Microbiologist with Food Standards Australia New Zealand and as Scientist at the Therapeutic Goods Administration Laboratories.

In my early academic career, I worked at James Cook University studying the crown-of-thorns starfish for my PhD research project and the viruses that affect aquacultured prawns for a three-year ARC-funded post-doctoral research fellowship.

Current student projects

Busayo Ajuwon (PhD scholar, commenced July 2019) Thesis title: Predicting the Presence of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) in Nigerian Patients by Pathology Data Mining and Pattern Recognition Algorithms. Co-supervised with Assoc-Prof Brett Lidbury (Chair of panel) and Assoc-Prof Alice Richardson.

Past student projects

Dr Patiyan Andersson (MAE2017) Placement: Commonwealth Department of Heath, ACT

Julie Collins (MAE2016) Placement: Hunter New England Public Health Unit, NSW

Rosemary Wright (MAE2016): Placements: Murdoch Childrens Research Institute; and Department of Health and Human Services, VIC

Siobhan St George (MAE2016) Placements: Department of Health and Human Services, VIC; and Microbiological Diagnostic Unit Public Health Laboratory, VIC

Linda Garton (MAE2016) Placement: Centre for Disease Control, Northern Territory Dept of Health

Kathleen McDermott (MAE2016) Placement: National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre, NT 

Samantha Siripol (MAE2015) Placement: Indigenous and Rural Health Division, ACT

Dr Craig Thompson (MAE2015) Placement: National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, NSW

Publications

Projects and Grants

Grants information is drawn from ARIES. To add or update Projects or Grants information please contact your College Research Office.

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Updated:  25 March 2023 / Responsible Officer:  Director (Research Services Division) / Page Contact:  Researchers