10th Annual Immunisation Forum 2026

Robert Booy is honorary Professor of Paediatrics and Child Health at the University of Sydney. From 2005 to 2019 he held Senior roles at NCIRS. He is a medical graduate of the University of Queensland (1984), trained in paediatrics at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Brisbane and has held a range of positions in the UK. Professor Booy’s research interests extend from understanding the genetic basis of susceptibility to, and severity of, infectious diseases, especially influenza, RSV and invasive disease caused by encapsulated organisms; the clinical, public health and social burden of these diseases; and means by which to prevent or control serious infections through vaccines, drugs and non-pharmaceutical measures. Over the past 20 years, Professor Booy has been increasingly recognised as an expert in the respiratory virus field, supervising many studies addressing the burden and prevention of influenza disease in children and adults in the UK, Australia and among Muslim pilgrims to Saudi Arabia. In addition he has led intervention studies with new vaccines, new vaccine delivery methods and alternate methods for preventing disease and transmission such as antivirals and personal protective equipment. Professor Robert Booy is a Director at the Immunisation Coalition.

Jim Buttery is the inaugural Professor of Child Health Informatics at the University of Melbourne based at the Melbourne Children’s Campus Centre for Health Analytics. He is the Chief Research Information Officer and an infectious diseases physician at the Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne. He is also the Head of Epidemiology and Signal Detection of SAEFVIC, the Victorian Immunisation Safety Service, and Head of the Epidemiology Informatics Research Group, at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, and the co-director of the Global Vaccine Data Network. Jim leads an epi-informatics team of epidemiologists, data analysts and statisticians whose research revolves around innovative use of real-world data to answer important questions in infectious diseases epidemiology, vaccine safety and effectiveness.
These innovations include Introducing Australia’s first state based public facing vaccine safety report, updated weekly, to inform the public and maintain vaccine confidence (Saefvic.online/vaccinesafety), development of syndromic vaccine safety surveillance methodologies, including de-identified telephone help line and GP data network surveillance which have been incorporated into DHHS Victoria surveillance, and the establishment of the Vaccine Safety Health Link (VSHL). VSHL is a statewide Victorian prospective vaccine safety datalinkage project linking Victorian Australian immunisation Register data to hospital admissions, emergency presentations, perinatal, births and deaths and primary care datasets. This is the only vaccine datalink system in Australia incorporating perinatal and GP data.
To understand the full impact of common viruses upon human health, he has established Snotwatch, a novel population wide spatiotemporal platform to link viral exposures to health outcomes, and understand the full health and economic burden of these viruses. Initial studies have shown new associations with febrile seizures, Kawasaki Disease, childhood hepatitis and chilblains. Using pathology, environmental exposures, and hospital, ED and GP datasets, we are generating new insights into common respiratory viruses.

Associate Professor Aditi Dey is a Senior Research Fellow/Manager Surveillance at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance. She is a conjoint Associate Professor at the University of Sydney. Her research interests are in the areas of coverage of vaccines, surveillance of vaccine preventable diseases and program evaluation.

Margie is a consultant paediatrician at the Royal Childrens Hospital and Clinician Scientist, University of Melbourne, and Murdoch Childrens Research Institute (MCRI). As leader of the Vaccine Uptake Group, MCRI, her research focuses on vaccine confidence and uptake, particularly amongst high risk-groups and in low and middle-income countries, and on effective risk communication. In Australia, she is a member of the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) and chair of the Social Science Advisory Board and a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee, National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS). She is committed to efforts to improve vaccine confidence and uptake in the Asia Pacific Region and she works closely with DFAT to provide technical immunisation support for the region. She is Chair, Australian Regional Immunisation Alliance (ARIA) and on the steering committee for Melbourne Children’s Global Health.

Professor Paul Van Buynder is a Public Health Physician and past Chairman of the Immunisation Coalition. He is a professor in the School of Medicine at Griffith University in Queensland. He has held senior public health positions in a number of Australian states, in two Canadian jurisdictions and at the Centre for Infections in the UK. He has held personal appointments on sub-committees of National Immunisation Technical Advisory Committees in three continents. Paul is a reviewer of over 10 journals and has over 80 referred book chapters and articles.

Anna Theophilos is a Melbourne-based community pharmacist, pharmacy owner, and passionate advocate for equitable access to vaccination. With 17 years’ experience as a pharmacy owner, Anna has dedicated her career to building practical, scalable solutions that improve health outcomes for some of Australia’s most vulnerable populations.

Her passion for vaccination access was ignited after confronting national data showing alarmingly low coverage rates among Australians aged 65+, particularly those in residential aged care or living with specific care needs. “I was horrified by the gap,” Anna recalls, “and realised something needed to change – urgently.” Determined to close this gap, Anna developed innovative models for delivering pharmacist-led vaccination programs in aged care facilities, ensuring residents could access life-saving vaccines without the logistical and administrative barriers that too often stand in the way. Her programs have been recognised for their ability to simplify processes for facilities, improve compliance, and achieve outstanding uptake rates.

As a member of the TerryWhite Chemmart Advisory Group, Anna works at a national level to shape strategies that strengthen community pharmacy’s role in preventive health. She collaborates closely with government, industry partners, and professional bodies to drive policy and operational changes that make vaccination more accessible to older Australians and those with complex care needs.
In 2025, Anna was appointed the inaugural PSA National Vaccination Ambassador – a role that allows her to amplify the profession’s voice, champion evidence-based immunisation, and inspire pharmacists nationwide to lead the way in protecting public health.

Dr Jones is a General Practitioner at the Windmill Hill Medical Centre, Launceston and a Director of the Immunisation Coalition  (IC).
As a GP with more than 35 years’ experience, Dr Jones has an in-depth knowledge of the health issues facing Tasmanians. Dr Jones was a Board Member of the General Practice North where she served for two years as its Chair, and was a Board member of General Practice Tasmania for eight years. She has a special interest in immunisation and sits on various immunisation advisory and reference groups. She was also the Media Advisor and GP Advisor on Immunisation, and was  the Tasmanian Medicare Local spokesperson on Immunisation.
Dr Jones graduated with a BMedSc and MBBS from the University of Tasmania.
She is involved with education of General Practitioners with Primary Health Tasmania and undergraduate medical students at the University of Tasmania.

Dr Jones is a General Practitioner at the Windmill Hill Medical Centre, Launceston and a Director of the Immunisation Coalition  (IC).
As a GP with more than 35 years’ experience, Dr Jones has an in-depth knowledge of the health issues facing Tasmanians. Dr Jones was a Board Member of the General Practice North where she served for two years as its Chair, and was a Board member of General Practice Tasmania for eight years. She has a special interest in immunisation and sits on various immunisation advisory and reference groups. She was also the Media Advisor and GP Advisor on Immunisation, and was  the Tasmanian Medicare Local spokesperson on Immunisation.
Dr Jones graduated with a BMedSc and MBBS from the University of Tasmania.
She is involved with education of General Practitioners with Primary Health Tasmania and   undergraduate medical students at the University of Tasmania.

Dr Sarah Chu graduated from the University of Queensland in 2004 with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery. She is a member of the International Society of Travel Medicine and has a Certificate in Travel Health; she enjoyed providing travel medicine services at The Travel Doctor TMVC Brisbane before COVID-19 and is an accredited Yellow Fever doctor. In addition to being awarded a Fellowship from the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, she is a Fellow of The Australasian College of Tropical Medicine, Fellow of The Australasian College of Tropical Medicine (Faculty of Travel Medicine), Associate Member of the Faculty of Travel Medicine Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow; Dr Chu also holds a Diploma in Dermatology from the Australian Institute of Dermatology, and a Diploma in Child Health from Westmead Children’s Hospital and the University of Sydney. She enjoys practising yoga and is a registered level 1 yoga teacher with Yoga Australia. Dr Chu recently completed Physician Board Certification in Lifestyle Medicine with the International Board of Lifestyle Medicine. She is a Senior Lecturer for the University of Queensland and enjoys teaching the next generation of doctors-in-training.

Sarah McGuinness is an infectious diseases clinician and researcher based at Alfred Health and Monash University in Melbourne. Her research focuses on improving ways to prevent infectious diseases in at-risk populations. She has a special interest in travel and tropical medicine and leads the hospital-based travel clinic at the Alfred Hospital. 
She is a co-author of the Manual of Travel Medicine (4th edition) and co-facilitates an annual Travel Medicine Masterclass for Australasian travel health providers. She is an editorial board member of the Journal of Travel Medicine and an active member of the Australasian College of Tropical Medicine and International Society of Travel Medicine, serving on various committees and frequently presenting on travel medicine topics.

Robert Booy is honorary Professor of Paediatrics and Child Health at the University of Sydney. From 2005 to 2019 he held Senior roles at NCIRS. He is a medical graduate of the University of Queensland (1984), trained in paediatrics at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Brisbane and has held a range of positions in the UK. Professor Booy’s research interests extend from understanding the genetic basis of susceptibility to, and severity of, infectious diseases, especially influenza, RSV and invasive disease caused by encapsulated organisms; the clinical, public health and social burden of these diseases; and means by which to prevent or control serious infections through vaccines, drugs and non-pharmaceutical measures. Over the past 20 years, Professor Booy has been increasingly recognised as an expert in the respiratory virus field, supervising many studies addressing the burden and prevention of influenza disease in children and adults in the UK, Australia and among Muslim pilgrims to Saudi Arabia. In addition he has led intervention studies with new vaccines, new vaccine delivery methods and alternate methods for preventing disease and transmission such as antivirals and personal protective equipment. Professor Robert Booy is a Director at the Immunisation Coalition.