BIG DATA RESEARCH IN MATERNAL, PERINATAL AND RENAL HEALTH EPIDEMIOLOGY
Dr Erandi Hewawasam
Research Fellow,
National Perinatal Epidemiology and Statistics Unit
Centre for Big Data Research in Health
UNSW Sydney, Australia
RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Sydney, Australia | June 2026
Dr Erandi Hewawasam is a Research Fellow at the National Perinatal Epidemiology and Statistics Unit within the Centre for Big Data Research in Health at University of New South Wales (UNSW). Her work focuses on maternal and reproductive health, chronic diseases (e.g., kidney disease, endometriosis), and early-life outcomes. She is the Program Manager for the Fertility Medicine Data Asset for Australia (FM-DATA), an MRFF-funded national infrastructure project linking fertility, hospital, Medicare, pharmaceutical, and perinatal datasets covering more than 40 million individuals. She also coordinates the Early Life Course Platform, integrating around 20 New South Wales and Australian federal administrative datasets to support population health research.
Before joining UNSW, Dr Hewawasam spent over five years at the Australia and New Zealand Dialysis and Transplant Registry (ANZDATA) at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) as a post-doctoral research fellow and program manager for Pregnancy and Kidney Research Australia (PKRA). In these roles, she led patient-centred research at the intersection of pregnancy and chronic kidney disease (CKD), using data linkage, registry analysis, cohort studies, and surveys to improve parenthood outcomes for Australians with CKD. Her work has informed national clinical guidelines, been embedded into renal clinical care and specialist training programs, and contributed to international nephrology education initiatives.
Dr Hewawasam has published more than 40 peer-reviewed papers in leading journals and secured more than $275,000 in competitive funding. In 2025, she received the prestigious James McWha Rising Star Award, one of University of Adelaide’s Distinguished Alumni Awards, recognising exceptional early-career alumni demonstrating leadership and significant impact in their profession and community. Alongside her research, she supervises higher degree students, mentors medical trainees, contributes to teaching, and advocates for inclusive opportunities for women in science as a UNSW STEMM Champion 2025.
Source: Supplied
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8320-3668
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Nanoparticles & microparticles to combat antimicrobial resistance
Dr Anjana Jayasree is an emerging research leader in biomaterials, tissue engineering and nanotechnology, recognised internationally for her innovative work on antimicrobial nanoparticles and regenerative therapies. A Postdoctoral Research Fellow at The University of Queensland, she operates at the intersection of materials science, drug delivery and cellular biology, developing advanced metallic-based nanotechnologies to improve both human and animal health outcomes. Her expertise spans nanoparticle synthesis, cell–material interactions, and the design of sophisticated in vitro models to investigate soft-tissue integration, osseointegration, angiogenesis and biofilm formation.
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Identification & characterisation of molecular drivers of therapeutic resistance
Professor Pieter Eichhorn is an internationally experienced cancer biologist and research leader whose career has been defined by high-impact contributions at the interface of functional genomics, translational oncology, and research infrastructure strategy.
He completed his PhD at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, contributing to the cloning of the gene associated with Cornelia de Lange Syndrome, before undertaking postdoctoral training at the Netherlands Cancer Institute in the laboratory of René Bernards. There, he performed pioneering functional genetic screens that identified key regulators of oncogenesis and therapy resistance, including critical roles for the PI3K signalling pathway in resistance to targeted breast cancer therapies.
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Forensic psychiatry research in the setting of the justice system
Prof Kimberlie Dean is Head of the Discipline of Psychiatry and Mental Health at UNSW. She was appointed to the inaugural Chair in Forensic Mental Health at UNSW in 2011, a joint appointment with Justice Health NSW. She also holds a Clinical Academic appointment as a Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist with Justice Health NSW. She is Academic Program Director for the Masters Forensic Mental Health at UNSW.
