Executive Team and Staff

The centre is lead by an Executive Team that integrates the essential scientific disciplines necessary for obesity research and education. The Executive Team is made up of the Director (A/Prof Wendy Brown) and a number of staff from within the CORE group as well as other Monash staff with an interest in obesity research and education.

Executive Team:

	Associate Professor Wendy Brown is the Director of the Centre for Obesity Research and Education.Her areas of expertise include: laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding procedures,the effects of weight loss on health and upper gastrointestinal surgery with a primary focus on oesophagogastric junction and obesity. A/Professor Brown can be contacted via her Secretary on +613 9903 0725.
	Professor Paul O’Brien Professor Paul O’Brien is the Emeritus Director of the Centre for Obesity Research and Education. His areas of expertise include: The morbidity of obesity and the health benefits of weight loss; laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding procedures; treatments for obesity and their relative effectiveness; effects of obesity and weight loss on survival. Professor O’Brien can be contacted on +61 3 9903 0725 or +61 3 9805 1555.
	Dr Anna Peeters is a VicHealth Research Fellow in the Department of Epidemiology and Preventative Medicine at Monash University. Her areas of expertise are chronic disease, aging and medical demography, with particular focus on the population implications of overweight and cardiovascular disease.
	Professor Brian Oldfield is a Professor of Physiology at Monash University. He can be contacted on Brian.Oldfield@monash.edu
	Dr Leah Brennan is a clinical, health, educational and developmental psychologist. Leah’s research interests involve the application of psychological approaches to understand, prevent and treat obesity and disordered eating (including eating disorders) and their psychosocial comorbidities in children, adolescents and adults. She is particularly interested in the development, evaluation and dissemination of evidence-based interventions for the treatment of obesity, disordered eating, eating disorders and their psychosocial cormorbidities. Dr Brennan can be contacted via email at Leah.Brennan@monash.edu
	Ms Cheryl Laurie is a senior research nurse in the Centre for Obesity Research and Education. She has had many years of experience in co-ordination and administration of clinical trials mostly associated with treatment of obesity both medically and surgically.

CORE Staff:

The Centre is further supported by a dedicated team of research and administrative staff and students:

Ms Tania Richter (CORE Administrative Manager/Secretary to A/Prof Brown)
Mr Paul Burton (Senior Research Fellow)
Dr Melissa Hayden (Research Fellow)
Ms Julie Playfair (Clinical Research Nurse)
Mrs Margaret Anderson (Data Manager)
Ms Kylie Murphy (Research Assistant)
Ms Kristine Egberts (Research Assistant – PhD Candidate)
Dr Lisa Doyle (PhD Candidate)
Dr Sarah Birks (Master of Surgery Candidate)
Ms Katrina Parker (D.Psych Candidate)
Ms Christina Prickett (D.Psych Candidate)
Ms Kymberlie Preiss (D.Psych Candidate)
Ms Tamishta Hensman (BMed Sci Student)
Ms Monica Liston (Administrative Assistant)
Ms Renate Johnson (Assistant to Paul O'Brien)