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Professor Suzanne Chambers appointed Executive Dean Health Sciences

Professor Suzanne Chambers AO has been appointed to the role of Executive Dean Health Sciences at Australian Catholic University (ACU).

ACU Provost Professor Belinda Tynan announced the decision on Wednesday 5 May, congratulating Professor Chambers on her appointment.

“I am delighted to be welcoming Suzanne to ACU. She brings a tremendous intellectual and practical experience as a renowned researcher and ongoing practitioner that will be inspirational for our students and staff alike.”

Most recently the Dean of Health at the University of Technology, Sydney, Professor Chambers is a psycho-oncologist and men’s health specialist. She is a highly award-winning practitioner with long experience of academic, research and leadership roles across the health sector including at Griffith University in the Faculty of Health and as the Director of the Menzies Health Institute Queensland and in the community at the Cancer Council Queensland (CCQ). She has been an Australian Research Council Professorial Future Fellow and currently leads a National Health and Medical Research Council Centre for Research Excellence in Prostate Cancer Survivorship.

Professor Chambers set out in her career as a registered nurse in Brisbane, before attaining a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Queensland; Bachelor of Behavioural Science with First Class Honours in Psychology, Griffith University; and a Doctorate of Philosophy at Griffith University.

She is also a registered psychologist, an Academic Member of the College of Health Psychology within the Australian Psychological Society, and a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Her research is internationally acclaimed, specifically in the field of prostate cancer, and has been published across refereed publications, books and in the press.

Professor Chambers was appointed an Officer in the General Division of the Order of Australia (AO) 2018 for distinguished service to medical research particularly in the area of psycho-oncology and to community health through patient care strategies to assist men with prostate cancer.

The Executive Dean of Health Sciences at ACU oversees three schools, including the largest nursing education program in Australia, supports course innovation and research, and works collaboratively with health industry partners. The faculty provides international healthcare experiences where possible, deep connections with industry partners, and internationally recognised research. Disciplines from paramedicine to public health, speech pathology and exercise science continue to be among the more popular courses, reflecting the continued growth in workplace demand for health professionals.

Professor Chambers said she was looking forward to the new challenge. “My passion is health care: health outcomes drive and direct the quality of life of individuals and their families, as well as the health and vitality of the communities we live in. I am excited to be able to support the Health Sciences Faculty at ACU in their contribution to health care in this country, but also in the difference the Faculty makes to the lives of their students, and the life changing impact of tertiary education that leads to a deeply satisfying professional career.”

Professor Chambers will take up her role on 26th July and will be based at the university’s Brisbane Campus.