Three new Council members

A/Prof Paul Griffin
Full-time Salaried Medical Practitioner Representative
Infectious Diseases Physician and Clinical Microbiologist
FRACP FRCPA FACTM AFACHSM FIML MBBS BSc (Hons)

A/Prof Paul Griffin is an Infectious Diseases Physician and Director of Infectious Diseases at Mater Health and Head of the Mater Clinical Unit and Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Queensland. He has Fellowships in Infectious Diseases from the College of Physicians, in Clinical Microbiology from the College of Pathologists and from the Australasian College of Tropical Medicine and is the chair of the Advanced Training Committee for Infectious Diseases with the College of Physicians. 

Paul has an active interest in clinical trials and has been the principal investigator on more than 125 clinical trials mostly in infectious diseases including malaria human challenge studies and novel vaccines, including eight vaccines for COVID-19. As a Clinical Microbiologist, he maintains an active interest in diagnostic microbiology with a focus on clinical applications of faecal microbiome metagenomic sequencing. 

"I am very grateful for the opportunity to represent salaried medical practitioners on the AMA Queensland Council. Having a full-time role that includes public and private hospital-based practice as well as teaching and research, I feel I am in a good position to be able to represent this important sector of the medical workforce. I plan to ensure the challenges as well opportunities in this space are shared with the AMA council and to support the important work of the AMA more broadly."

Dr Sandra Hirowatari
General Practitioner Representative
GP
BSc MD CCFP FRACGP FCFP

Dr Sandra Hirowatari is a semi-retired GP doing rural locums in two countries, Australia and Canada. She is of Japanese-Canadian descent, born in Vancouver and lives in Cairns. She is a Fellow of the RACGP and the College of Family Physicians of Canada, and a past Board member for British Columbia College of Family Physicians of Canada, RACGP (SA), Adelaide North Division of GP. She's a past Councillor AMA WA, past Chair AMA Council of Rural Doctors, past Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service Council Member. Dr Hirowatari is currently a Rural Councillor for the Australian Federation of Medical Women; a Clinical Instructor for the University of British Columbia; and on roster at the Cairns Base Hospital and Vancouver General Hospital as a Forensic Sexual Assault Examiner.

"My personal mission statement is to be a source of illuminating empowerment for my patients and colleagues. I believe those of us in advocacy roles have some common motivating forces.  We have felt anger at injustices, we hold with great respect those advocates who work to equalise inequities, and we feel we need to speak for those who do not have a voice. I feel AMA Queensland aligns with my personal mission statement."

Dr Mikaela Seymour
North Area Representative
Public Health Advanced Trainee
BMedSci MD Msci MPTHM GDipGHE

Dr Mikaela Seymour is a Public Health Advanced Trainee in North Queensland. She was previously Deputy Chair of the AMA Queensland CDT, Chair of the JMOFQ and received the AMA Doctor in Training of the Year Award in 2018. Dr Seymour has spent a number of years working overseas in the Pacific and Asia in remote and rural primary care and project management, and was a previous technical advisor for the Australian Regional Immunisation Alliance. 

“My experiences in health system strengthening programs have demonstrated to me the importance of doctors’ participation and leadership in advocating for health reforms. The challenges facing doctors today demand strong advocacy for optimal conditions to support community care. Together we can fight for these conditions through AMA Queensland. Being a North Queenslander, I understand and appreciate the unique challenges we face and look forward to representing these at the AMA Queensland Council.”