GERONTOLOGICAL PHYSIOTHERAPY IN FALLS PREVENTION AND PREHABILITATION
With
Dr Rik Dawson,
Gerontological Physiotherapist &
Postdoctoral Researcher,
Institute for Musculoskeletal Health, University of Sydney &
National President, Australian Physiotherapy Association
RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Sydney, Australia | August 2026
Dr Rik Dawson is a gerontological physiotherapist and health leader dedicated to improving healthy ageing through evidence-based physiotherapy, digital health and health system reform. As a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Institute for Musculoskeletal Health, University of Sydney, and President of the Australian Physiotherapy Association, he combines research and policy to improve access to high quality care for older people.
With more than 30 years of experience across clinical practice Dr Dawson founded Agewell Physiotherapy, growing it into one of Australia’s largest aged care physiotherapy providers before selling the business in 2020. He now leads TOP UP Therapy, a digital health company translating his PhD research into practice through an evidence-based strength and balance exercise platform that demonstrated that physiotherapist led telehealth exercise can improve mobility, reduce falls and help older people remain independent.
Dr Dawson provides national leadership in aged care, workforce and primary care reform and serves on several Australian Government advisory committees, including the Strengthening Medicare Implementation Oversight Committee. He is also a member of Falls Prevention Alliance Australia and the Australian Cardiovascular Alliance. His research has attracted funding from the Medical Research Future Fund, ARIIA, Dementia Australia and the Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases, with collaborations across Australia and Brazil.
Outside work, Dr Dawson is a trained opera singer with a Bachelor of Creative Arts, a certified yoga instructor and a regular volunteer leading singalongs in residential aged care. He is married to a physiotherapist, has a daughter who is a physiotherapist and a son studying psychology.
Source: Supplied
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9652-4711
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Development of novel analytical and diagnostic tools using nanotechnology and microfluidics
Dr Alain Wuethrich is an NHMRC Emerging Leader fellow and ARC DECRA awardee at the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology.
Hailing from Switzerland, research focuses on the development of novel analytical and diagnostic tools that harness nanotechnology and microfluidics; two rapidly growing fields with high potential to provide diagnostic solutions needed for precision medicine.
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Women’s health, child health & medical education in General Practice
Dr Ramya Raman is a specialist general practitioner, practice owner, medical educator and supervisor for RACGP Academic Registrars, with research interests spanning women’s health, primary care, workforce development and medical education. Her work is grounded in the realities of contemporary general practice, with a focus on translating evidence into clinical care, strengthening preventive health approaches and improving outcomes for patients and communities.
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Understanding the experience of pain for novel brain-based treatments
Associate Professor Tasha Stanton leads the Persistent Pain Research Group at SAHMRI. She is also co-Director of IIMPACT in Health at the University of South Australia, Adelaide. She is a clinical pain neuroscientist, with original training as a physiotherapist, and her research focusses on pain – why do we have it and why doesn’t it go away?
