NEW TREATMENTS FOR PATIENTS WITH MENTAL ILLNESS
Associate Professor Bernadette Fitzgibbon
Director of Psychiatry Research
Paratus Clinical, Australia &
Associate Professor,
Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Melbourne, Australia | November 2025
Associate Professor Bernadette Fitzgibbon is a neuroscientist with several decades of experience in researching, developing, and translating novel therapies for mental health and chronic pain conditions. This includes the application and optimisation of brain stimulation and psychedelic therapies, overseeing large multi-site intervention trials, both within Australia and abroad. Through her work, she has developed meaningful collaborations with consumers, volunteers, policy makers, and services providers, ensuring that the outcomes of her work contribute towards real-world clinical impact.
She is currently the Director of Psychiatry Research at Paratus Clinical, where she leads the delivery of clinical trials in emerging therapies for psychiatry, collaborating with academic institutions, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. She is also an Associate Professor at the Australian National University, where she contributes to novel investigator-initiated trials within interventional psychiatry and clinical neuroscience, and a consultant at The Psychedelic Consultancy: a hub to connect and support professionals navigate the legal psychedelic assisted psychotherapy ecosystem in Australia and internationally. Together, she is dedicated to changing the landscape of mental health treatments to improve the outcomes for people living with mental illness.
Source: Supplied
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5339-5304
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At the frontier of human cellular neuroscience research
Associate Professor Cedric Bardy is the Director of The Laboratory for Human Neurophysiology, Genetics & Stem Cells, located at SAHMRI. South Australia.
His current research uses preclinical, patient-derived cell models to test innovative therapeutic strategies, with a current focus on Parkinson’s disease, brain cancer and childhood dementia (Sanfilippo syndrome).
His work has established a platform to facilitate the discovery and validation of treatments for brain disorders. Their research is at the frontier of human cellular neuroscience research and translational applications that benefit global public health.
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Next Generation Condom Contraception, Dr Simon Cook
Dr. Simon Cook, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Operations at Eudaemon Technologies, has had a diverse and impactful career journey. Beginning with a background in biotechnology from the University of Wollongong, his focus on bacterial pathogenesis during his PhD led him to study Group A Strep and the streptokinase protein.
Subsequently, Dr. Cook ventured into a unique project funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, where he became involved in the development of a next-generation condom to address existing issues such as feel, odour, and taste.
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Hormone receptor positive breast cancer and therapy resistance
Prof Elgene Lim is a medical oncologist at St Vincent’s Hospital and Head of the Connie Johnson Breast Cancer Research Lab at the Garvan Institute. Following his PhD at the Walter & Eliza Hall Institute where he identified the aberrant cells in carriers of the BRCA1 mutant gene, a hereditary breast cancer syndrome as the culprit cells giving rise to breast cancer, he furthered his research and clinical training at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School. He was awarded the National Breast Cancer Foundation Practitioner Fellowship in 2014 and returned from Boston to Australia. In 2017, he was awarded the inaugural National Breast Cancer Foundation Endowed Chair, and subsequently appointed the Principal Cancer Theme Lead at UNSW.
