Meet our team
COPPER Centre Co-Directors:
Dr Christopher Freeman is a Clinical Senior Lecturer at University of Queensland, a Consultant Practice Pharmacist at Camp Hill Healthcare and is a National Director (Vice President) at the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) and the Australian Association of Consultant Pharmacy (AACP). He is appointed as the Co-Director of the Centre for Optimising Pharmacy Practice-based Excellence in Research (COPPER) and as the Alternate Chair of the Research Strategies Committee both within the School of Pharmacy at UQ. In 2016 Dr Freeman was appointed as Stream Leader in the Evidence and Innovation in Clinical Care Theme for the Brisbane Diamantina Health Partners (NHMRC Advanced Health Research and Translation Centre).
Dr Freeman has a Bachelor of Pharmacy from James Cook University, a Graduate Diploma in Clinical Pharmacy and PhD from the University of Queensland. He is nationally recognised, with a growing international reputation, for his experience in conducting health services research relating to pharmacy practice. Dr Freeman has been a productive researcher publishing more than 30 peer-reviewed publications and has been awarded over $1.4m in pharmacist practice and health service research funding. His research has informed policy and practice in relation to reducing the use of inappropriate medications and the implementation of pharmacists as members of the multidisciplinary primary care team.
As evidence of his national standing as an expert in his field, he has and continues to serve on a number of external advisory committees including his role as an expert in developing Antimicrobial Stewardship Clinical Care Standard for the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care and the QLD pharmacist immunisation pilot which has pioneered pharmacist delivered vaccination across Australia.
In 2012, Dr Freeman became the first Australian pharmacist to obtain specialisation in ambulatory care pharmacy under the Board of Pharmacy Specialties (United States) and in 2015 was credentialed as an Advanced Practice Pharmacist. Dr Freeman was awarded the PSA Young Pharmacist of the Year in 2011 and the AACP Consultant Pharmacist of the Year in 2014.
Associate Professor Neil Cottrell has been a researcher in the School of Pharmacy at the University of Queensland since 2001 and completed his PhD in 2010. His research themes explore medication adherence and novel models of pharmacy practice. Specifically, his research focuses on: how beliefs towards illness and medicines impact on medication adherence; developing and testing practical methods to support medication adherence in patients; pharmacist communication skills and impact on patient decision making and investigating the placement of a pharmacist in a general practice surgery in a non-dispensing role.
COPPER Associate Directors:
Associate Professor Alexandra Clavarino is a member of the management committee and also an expert on survey design and qualitative research methodologies. She has over 20 years’ experience in the successful acquisition, implementation and completion of competitive research funding, with a background in medical sociology and public health and more recently in pharmaco-epidemiology. Her specific training and expertise is in qualitative (ethnographic) and survey-based research and secondary analysis of longitudinal, life course data.
Dr Adam LaCaze is a lecturer in the School of Pharmacy and participant on the management committee. His research focuses on the use and application of evidence to clinical decision-making with many publications in philosophy of science and biomedical journals.
Dr Meng-Wong Taing is a member of the management committee and lecturer in the School of Pharmacy. He brings expertise in study design in primary care pharmacy settings and biostatistics. His current research themes have a strong commitment in facilitating extended roles for pharmacists and other health care providers to improve patient outcomes. He is particularly interested in further developing evidence for pharmacists working in collaborative oral healthcare models in Australia.
Dr Samantha Hollingworth participates on the management committee and is a senior lecturer in the School of Pharmacy at UQ. She has developed a comprehensive research program focussed on pharmacoepidemiology - the use of medicines in populations. She has worked with an extensive network of clinicians and health professionals to investigate the use of medicines and adverse effects in cancer, psychiatry, neurology, internal medicine, and general practice. Sam is also involved in research projects with economic evaluations and health technology assessment. She has an active interest in health systems and health services research, with a particular focus on low and middle income countries and non-communicable diseases.
Prof Mieke Van Driel is a participant on the management committee and is a Professor of General Practice in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Queensland. Her research focuses on translation of evidence into clinical practice, with experience in both quantitative and qualitative research designs including cluster methodology. Professor van Driel has conducted and participated in several randomised controlled clinical trials and has a strong track record in systematic reviews and research methodology. Her involvement in COPPER builds on her expertise and track record in evidence-based practice and implementation research with a specific focus on primary care.
Additional COPPER group members:
Dr Bernadette Chevalier is a Post-Doctoral Fellow and Acting Manager of COPPER. Bernadette has recently completed her PhD that investigated the effectiveness of communication between hospital pharmacists and patients during medication counselling using mixed, qualitative (focus groups, observing/recording interactions, semi-structured interviews), and quantitative methods (surveys/questionnaires). She has expertise in recruiting participants, survey design and qualitative and quantitative data analysis. Bernadette has published several papers in peer-reviewed journals in pharmacy practice and pharmacist-patient communication.
Dr Holly Foot is a Post-doctoral Research Fellow coordinating the REMAIN HOME study. This is a multi-centre study involving both primary and secondary care environment. Dr Foot completed her PhD in medication adherence in individuals with chronic conditions. She has experience in patient recruitment within community pharmacy, survey design and quantitative data analysis.
Ms Leigh McKauge is a lecturer and student placements coordinator in the School of Pharmacy at UQ.
Ms Priya Iyer is a PhD student at UQ interested in pharmacogenomics.