People

Sharon has more than 42 years of experience working in the health sector across a range of rural regional and tertiary health care services in the public sector for both Queensland and South Australia. She is an experienced and professional health leader who has delivered senior leadership, strategic, and operational expertise with strength and knowledge around corporate governance, community engagement, community and institutional (forensic) mental health, strategy and planning underpinned by years of primary, secondary, and tertiary health delivery and leadership. Having recently retired from her role as Executive Director People Strategy and Governance with Townsville Hospital and Health Service, she is a passionate advocate for strengthening partnerships and the delivery of health services to people across northern Queensland. Sharon is a Registered Nurse and Midwife by background, holds a Masters Degree in Health Administration, and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. She has most recently been a member of the Cootharinga North Queensland Board. Sharon is the Deputy Chair of North Queensland Primary Health Network.

Dr Scott Davis is a distinguished leader with extensive expertise in healthcare management and translation research. His previous work has driven significant improvements in patient care and innovation in health services. He has served on Boards including CRC Northern Australia, COUCH, and Torres and Cape HHS. At TAAHC, Dr. Davis will lead the charge in expanding research initiatives and forging strategic partnerships to further enhance the centre’s impact on tropical health challenges.

Professor Jones is an Emeritus Professor and HDR StatsHelp Coordinator, James Cook University (JCU). She was previously Director, Research Development, Division of Tropical Health and Medicine, JCU. She joined TAAHC in late 2022 as the Senior Statistical Consultant for the TAAHC Study design, Epidemiology and Biostatistics Support Service.

Prof Jones’ research experience and publications are primarily in ecology, behaviour, entomology, and in modelling biological systems.  She previously worked in research and/or teaching positions at CSIRO (Entomology Division), University of Western Australia, University of British Columbia, University of California at Davis and JCU. Joining JCU as a lecturer in 1977, Rhondda subsequently became Head of JCU's Department of Zoology and the School of Biological Sciences and has supervised over 60 PhD, Masters and Honours student theses.  Prof Jones was also Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Deputy Vice Chancellor at JCU from 1994 until her retirement in 2000; acting Deputy Vice Chancellor at the University of Central Queensland in 2001, acting Dean of Science and Engineering at JCU in 2003, and held various tertiary education consultancies between 2002 and the present.  From 2008 to 2014 Prof Jones worked primarily in a research development role for the then Faculty of Medicine, Health, and Molecular Sciences at JCU and in the provision of data analysis and modelling advice to research students and staff. Other experience includes membership of the Sugar Research and Development Corporation & Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority boards, Australian Research Council funding panels, and several state and federal advisory groups.

Rhondda was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2020 Queen's Birthday Honours List.

Dr Rae Thomas is an Associate Professor in Evidence-Based Practice and commenced as the Research Education Lead for the Tropical Australian Academic Health Centre in April 2022 . She has taught hundreds of clinicians and researchers in evidence-based practice, research translation skills, conducted research mentoring, co-developed clinician-led research projects, conducted project consultation, and provided HDR and post-doctoral supervision.

Her research has focused on reducing the gap between research evidence and clinical practice. Rae’s passion is to improve evidence-based decision making in clinical practice and to use community engagement strategies to improve health systems and policy. Her program of research has included developing, implementing, and evaluating randomised controlled trials, exploring processes in health decision making, and translating evidence to practice and policy.