Our people

Professor  Danielle Mazza (MD, MBBS, FRACGP, DRANZCOG, Grad  Dip Women’s Health)

Professor Mazza is Head of Department of  General Practice at Monash University, where she leads a program of  translational research focused on guideline development and implementation in  general practice, women’s health, preventive care, and cancer. Professor Mazza  is considered a clinical leader in guideline development and implementation in  general practice. She previously led a government consultancy aimed at  developing an implementation strategy for evidence-based, best practice  clinical practice guidelines for general practice in Australia,  and has been involved in the development and publication of several  evidence-based guidelines.

Professor Mazza is also the author of “Women’s  health in general practice” (recently published in its second edition), a  recommended text for the Royal Australian College of General Practitioner’s  (RACGP’s) core curriculum, and  used  in exam setting for the FRACGP and AMC exams.

Associate Professor Kirsten Black (MBBS, M.Med, FRANZCOG, MSRH, PhD,  DDU)

Associate  Professor Black is an academic gynaecologist at the University of Sydney  where she is the Joint Head of the Discipline of Obstetrics, Gynaecology, and  Neonatology. In addition to clinical and teaching responsibilities, Associate  Professor Black’s research interests are in the fields of sexual and  reproductive health, benign gynaecology and medical education, with a  particular focus on contraception and reproductive health.

Associate  Professor Black also represents RANZCOG on the Medical Devices Committee of  Standards Australia, is an advisor to the Therapeutic Goods Association  Medicines Committee, and is a Member of the Therapeutic Guidelines Working  group on the 2013 Endocrinology Guidelines.

Professor Angela Taft (BA, Dip Ed, MPH, PhD)

Professor Taft is Director of the Judith  Lumley Centre (JLC; previously Mother and Child Health Research) at La Trobe  University and an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the Department of General  Practice, The University of Melbourne. At the  JLC, she leads a program of research in the prevention and reduction of  unwanted pregnancy, and her study of the over-the-counter emergency  contraceptive pill in Australia in 2010-2011 has resulted in the alteration of  training and guidelines for pharmacists. Nationally and internationally  Professor Taft is known for her expertise on intimate partner violence and its  intersection with sexual and reproductive health.

Professor Jayne Lucke (BA (Hons), PhD)

Professor Lucke is Director of the Australian  Research Centre  in Sex,  Health and Society at La Trobe University. She has expertise in  multidisciplinary research concerning sexual and reproductive health in  Australia, including patterns of contraception use and specifically the use of  long-acting reversible contraception among young women. A focus of her work has  been on explaining barriers to sexual and reproductive health service access.

Dr Kevin McGeechan (MBiostat, PhD)

Dr McGeechan is  a Senior Lecturer in Biostatistics at the School  of Public Health, University of Sydney. In addition to his  academic position, Dr McGeechan acts as a consultant statistician for Family  Planning NSW. Dr McGeechan has previously worked in a variety of private sector  and government positions, which included five years analysing general practice  data with the Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH) study and  then with the General Practice Research Network (GPRN).

Professor  Marion Haas (BPhty, MPH, PhD)

Professor Haas  is a Professor of Health Economics and Deputy Director of the Centre for Health  Economics Research and Evaluation (CHERE), University of Technology Sydney  (UTS). Her research interests and expertise are in the design and  implementation of clinical and population health research incorporating  economic evaluations, including the cost effectiveness of health interventions,  and understanding preferences and behaviours of providers and consumers in  relation to health care.

Professor Jeffrey Peipert (MD, MPH, MHA)

Professor  Peipert is the Vice Chair of Clinical Research at the Department of Obstetrics  and Gynecology, Washington   University.  He is the Principal Investigator on the Contraceptive CHOICE Project, this  being one of the largest contraceptive cohort studies ever performed in the US  – ACCORd is modelled on the CHOICE project.

Professor  Peipert's background is in obstetrics and gynecology as well as epidemiology;  he has made contributions to the fields of infectious diseases, family  planning, women’s health, and public health/prevention.

Dr Cathy Watson (RN, BA, Post Grad Dip in Adv Ng, Masters of Nursing, PhD)

Cathy Watson is a nurse practitioner with a wide experience and interest in women’s health. She completed her PhD at the Department of General Practice in the University of Melbourne where she undertook a randomised controlled trial in the area of women’s sexual health. Her enthusiasm for research in women’s reproductive health is well satisfied with involvement in ACCORd.

Catherine Savage (RN)

Cath Savage is a registered nurse who has worked in both clinical and research settings for many years. She has experience in acute mental health, drug and alcohol counselling, aged care, and psychiatric and cardiac research. She has also spent a few years working in airline customer service for something a bit different!

She is very interested in women's health and is really enjoying working on this exciting project with a great team of people.

Catriona Rowe (RN)

Catriona Rowe is a registered nurse who joined Monash University in 2006. Since then, she has worked in a number of clinical and research settings, throughout the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences. Catriona has a strong interest in research, particularly in women’s and children’s health and its contribution to policy change and improved health outcomes for the community.