Dr Maryke Steffens is a Research Fellow at the Australian National
Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS). Dr Steffens
completed her PhD with Macquarie University’s Australian Institute of Health
Innovation in 2021. Her research focused on strategies to address poor
quality vaccination information and misinformation on social media and in other
types of written communication. Dr Steffens co-leads the NCIRS Social
Science Unit, which uses mixed research methods to understand barriers to and
drivers of immunisation, and to develop resources to support vaccination
conversations between providers and patients. Dr Steffens works closely with a
team of social scientists across multiple organisations to implement the
National Vaccination Insights project to measure barriers to vaccination in
different population groups. In its first year, this project measured barriers
to vaccinations for children < 5 years (including influenza) and barriers to adult
influenza vaccination, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. The project
also worked with vaccination stakeholders to interpret findings and suggest
strategies to address the barriers identified in the surveys. The project aims
to repeat this research annually, as well as work towards expanding the
research scope to measure barriers in further populations, including adolescents
and pregnant women.
Julie Leask is a social scientist and professor in the School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, where she co-leads the Social and Behavioural Insights research group. She holds a Diploma in Health Science (Nursing) from the University of Technology Sydney (1990), a Certificate of Midwifery Theory and Practice from the Northern Sydney Area Midwifery School (1992), a Master of Public Health from the University of Sydney (1998) and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) also from the University of Sydney (2002). She is a member of the University of Sydney Institute for Infectious Diseases, an affiliate of the School of Nursing and Midwifery, and a visiting professorial fellow at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance. She currently holds an NHMRC Investigator Leadership Fellowship. Her research focuses on the social and behavioral aspects of vaccination and the prevention of infectious diseases.
Margie Danchin is a consultant pediatrician at The Royal Children’s Hospital, and a Clinician Scientist at the University of Melbourne, and Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI). She completed a clinical fellowship in Toronto, Canada in 2005 and her Ph.D. in 2006, subsequently gaining expertise in vaccine clinical trials and vaccine safety as part of the RV3-BB Rotavirus Vaccine program and Vaccine and Immunisation Research Group (VIRGO), MCRI. She has received fellowships from NHMRC and the University of Melbourne and currently holds a 2021 to 2026 Melbourne Children’s Clinician Scientist Fellowship. She is a member of the International Pediatric Association (IPA) Vaccine Trust Project Program Advisory Group (PAG), the steering committee for the MCRI COVID Governance Committee and Melbourne Children’s Global Health. She received several awards for impact and leadership around vaccination during the pandemic including the PHAA President’s Award & Finalist Research Australia Advocacy Award as Chair, COSSI steering group, 2022; BioMelbourne Network Board of Directors Award, 2021 and the University of Melbourne MDHS Dean’s Award, 2021. 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.
