Person

Stanley, Fiona Juliet (1946 - )

AC FAA FFPHM FAFPHM FFCCH FRAP FRACOG FASSA

Born
1 August 1946
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Occupation
Paediatrician and Epidemiologist

Summary

Fiona Stanley is Founding Director of the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research in Perth, Western Australia, inaugural Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth and Professor of Paediatrics, University of Western Australia. She is one of Australia's best regarded paediatricians and epidemiologists, and a major force behind improving health conditions in Australia's Aboriginal populations.

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Details

Fiona Juliet Stanley moved to Perth with her family in 1956. After completing her secondary studies she took up medicine at the University of Western Australia. As part of her studies, she did a clinical post at the Aboriginal Clinic in East Perth. The poor health of many of the patients, especially the children, inspired Stanley to concentrate on paediatrics, epidemiology and public health. To further her knowledge and training, she worked in the UK and USA for six years, and completed a Masters degree at the University of London. Upon returning to Australia Stanley established research programs at the University of Western Australia and the Health Department of Western Australia. She also was instrumental in the creation of Perth's Telethon Institute for Child Health Research.

Two of Fiona Stanley's most significant discoveries are that a maternal diet rich in folic acid can prevent spina bifida in babies and that cerebral palsy is not only the result of birth trauma. It may also be caused by other factors including infections or blood incompatibilities. Stanley is also recognised for her considerable contribution to Aboriginal maternal and child health in Western Australia. She has served on many scientific boards and has received many awards, including the Companion of the Order of Australia for her contribution to child and Aboriginal health and health research.

Chronology

1970
Education - Bachelor of Medicine (MB) and Bachelor of Surgery (BS), University of Western Australia
1976
Education - Master of Science in Epidemiology (MSc), University of London
1976 - 1977
Career position - Visiting Scientist at the National Institutes of Health, USA
1976 - 1988
Career position - Member of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine at the Royal College of Physicians in the UK (MFPHM)
1978 - 1979
Career position - Senior Medical Officer in Child Health at the Health Department of Western Australia
1980 - 1988
Career position - Deputy Director of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Research Unit Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine
1986
Education - Doctor of Medicine (MD), University of Western Australia
1988 - 1990
Career position - Director of the NHMRC Research Unit Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine
1989 -
Career position - Founding Director of the TVW Telethon Institute for Child Health Research (formerly the Western Australian Research Institute for Child Health)
1989
Career position - Fellow of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine (FFPHM) at the Royal College of Physicians, UK
1990 -
Career position - Professor of Paediatric sat the University of Western Australia
1991 -
Career position - Foundation Fellow, Faculty of Community Child Health (FFCCH)
1992
Career position - Chairman, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare Board
1994 -
Career position - Fellow, Royal Australian College of Physicians (FRACP)
1995 -
Career position - Fellow, ad eundem, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynocologists (FRACOG)
1996 -
Award - Fellow, Academy of Social Sciences in Australia (FASSA)
11 Jun 1996
Award - Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) - for service to maternal and child health research, particularly in peri-natal and infant problems, and for her contributions to improving aboriginal and community health
1998
Award - Honorary Doctor of Science (DSc), honoris causa, Murdoch University, Western Australia
2002
Award - Fellow, Australian Academy of Science (FAA)
2003
Award - Centenary Medal - For outstanding advocacy to improving the health of the general population
2003
Award - Australian of the Year
2008
Award - Doctor of Medicine (MD), honoris causa, University of Melbourne
2009
Award - Honorary Bragg Member, Royal Institution of Australia
2012
Award - Doctor of Laws (LLD), honoris causa, University of Melbourne

Related Corporate Bodies

Archival resources

National Library of Australia Manuscript Collection

  • Biographical cuttings on Fiona Stanley, Dr., medical researcher, Cuttings Files BIOG; National Library of Australia Manuscript Collection. Details

Published resources

Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation Exhibitions

  • McCarthy, Gavan; Morgan, Helen; Smith, Ailie; van den Bosch, Alan, Where are the Women in Australian Science?, Exhibition of the Encyclopedia of Australian Science and Innovation, First published 2003 with lists updated regulary edn, Australian Science and Technology Heritage Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, 2003, https://eoas.info/exhibitions/wisa/wisa.html. Details

Journal Articles

  • Bower, C;; and Stanley, F. J., 'Dietary folate as a rick factor for neural-tube defects: evidence from a case-control study in Western Australia', Medical Journal of Australia, 150 (1989), 413-9. Details

Resources

Resource Sections

See also

  • Gregory, Ann T., 'Jewels in the crown: the Medical journal of Australia's 10 most cited articles', Medical journal of Australia, 181 (1) (2004), 9-12. Details
  • Herd, Margaret ed., Who's who in Australia 2002 (Melbourne: Crown Content, 2001), 2020 pp. Details

Rosanne Walker and Annette Alafaci

Created: 30 June 1997, Last modified: 24 August 2023

EOAS ID: biogs/P002686b.htm

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