Friday 8 July 2011
The University of Western Australia
For more information about this and future events, contact Laura on (08) 9381 1333 or at laura.newey@freshstart.org.au.
Seminar Speakers
Graham Mabury, Christian Leader and Presenter of "Nightline" on Radio 6PR
Professor Neil McKeganey, Director, Centre for Drug Misuse Research, University of Glasgow
Professor Jon Currie, Director of Addiction Medicine, St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne
Professor David Clark, Director of wiredin.org.uk
Professor Gary Hulse, Director of Research and Education in Alcohol and Drugs
Dr Colin Brewer, Research Director, The Stapleford Centre, London
Dr Stuart Reece, General Practitioner, Queensland
Dr George O'Neil, Director of Medicine and Research, Fresh Start Recovery Programme
Josephine Baxter, Vice President World Federation Against Drugs (WFAD Director for Oceania)
Peter Abetz, MLA
Speaker Profiles & Presentations
Graham Mabury has pioneered rehabilitation courses for homeless young people in Perth and has received
numerous awards for similar humanitarian work in his home town. These include the Medal of the order of Australia, WA Citizen of the Year for community service, Fellow of Edith Cowan University, Advance Australia Award and Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow.
Using his skills as a teacher, Graham made the leap into the media as Education Producer at the ABC and has enjoyed an illustrious career as a radio presenter ever since.
This is Graham's 30th year as a presenter of Nightline and he has been a pastor at Mt Pleasant Baptist Church for 24 of these.
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Neil McKeganey is sociologist by training and has undertaken research into areas as diverse as dru
g abuse treatment, drug injectors and HIV, drugs and prostitution, drugs and crime, the impact of parental drug use on children, drug policy and drug prevalence.
In 1994 Professor McKeganey founded the Centre for Drug Misuse Research at the University of Glasgow, which has grown into one of the leading research groups working in the substance use field in the UK.
Professor McKeganey is a frequent commentator in the media on drug related matters. In 2008 he was invited to the White House to discuss his research particularly around young people's drug use.
Professor McKeganey is the author of over 150 academic papers and six books including "Beating the Dragon: the recovery from dependent drug use" (Prentice Hall) and most recently, "Controversies in Drugs Policy and Practice" (Palgrave).
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(Due to technical difficulties there is missing audio throughout this clip, please click on the link below to access Professor Neil McKeganey's powerpoint slides)
Jon Currie is a neurologist and an addiction medicine specialist, and is Director of Addiction Medicine
and Translational Neurobiology at St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne and holds an honorary professorship at Melbourne University. Professor Currie has a longstanding interest in the neurobiology of addiction, the acute and chronic effects of addictive substances on brain function, and he has particular expertise in the rapid translation of basic brain science and neurobiology into novel and effective medical treatments for a wide range of drug and addiction problems. He has run clinical trials on various treatments for addiction including a treatment for dependence on prescription sedatives.
Professor Currie has sat on a number of advisory committees related to the field of addictive substances including three major committees within the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).
In reviewing the drug policy of the AFL's illicit drugs policy,Professor Currie was quoted as saying "drug problems are health problems; they're not criminal problems, they're not moral problems".
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David Clark is Director of Wired In, an Emeritus Professor of Psychology, and a dedicated addiction recovery 
advocate. He launched the online community Wired In To Recovery in late 2008.
Wired In is a unique initiative that is empowering individuals, families and communities to tackle substance use problems. It maintains the Wired In To Recovery online community, has conducted a range of community activities (e.g. personal stories, research, film) and previously run a leading information portal on drugs and alcohol, 'Daily Dose'.
David has written for a highly respected bi-weekly education column in a leading UK magazine. He has conducted a range of research studies over the years, primarily focusing on recovery and treatment.
Prior to moving into this field ten years ago, David was an internationally recognised neuroscientist, having trained with a Nobel Laureate and was the recipient of a number of awards for his research.
David left South Wales to live in Perth, West Australia at the end of 2008. He recently launched Wired In Media with Perth filmmaker Michael Liu. As part of this cross-platform initiative, David is researching and writing for a documentary series on recovery.
For more information on Wired In To Recovery click here.
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Gary Hulse has worked in the area of addiction since 1987, initially in clinical services. Since 1992, he has held
an academic appointment as Coordinator of Alcohol and Drug Education and Training within the Faculty of Medicine at The University of Western Australia. Professor Hulse's research is directed at developing evidence based information which will enhance clinical practice.
Over the past few years he has made several invited presentations at international research meetings, including the USA National Institute of Drug Abuse International Forum on Building International Research on Drug Abuse, US College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD) Scientific Meeting and The International Stapleford Conference on Addiction Management.
Professor Hulse has authored a large number of academic papers, including a randomised clinical trial of an implant treatment for drug addiction, and contributed to several books. He is Chief Editor of two evidence-based clinical texts in the field of addictive substances published by Oxford University Press which have been adopted as the standard text for medical training by the Australian Medical Schools Committee of Deans.
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Colin Brewer graduated in Medicine from London University in 1963. In 1970, while working in Adelaide, South
Australia, he and Dr Lance Perrett published a much-cited neuroradiological and psychometric study of alcoholic brain damage. The findings were confirmed when non-invasive scanning techniques appeared a few years later.
Dr Brewer was lecturer and research fellow in psychiatry at the University of Birmingham and then director of the alcoholism service at London’s Westminster Hospital. He has published several papers and reviews on disulfiram. Conceptual similarities between disulfiram in alcoholism and naltrexone treatment for heroin addiction led him to an interest in opiate dependence when naltrexone became available in Britain in 1985 and he developed improved techniques for naltrexone induction.
In 1986, Dr Brewer founded the Stapleford Centre in London, which provided medical interventions for addiction (including agonist maintenance) combined with cognitive-behavioural psychosocial support. The first Stap
leford International Addiction Conference was held in 1989. The tenth was held in in February this year in Athens.
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addiction. Dr Reece is affiliated with the School of Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Western Australia. He is a member of the Society for Neurosciences and is a visiting scientist at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research. Dr Reece has provided advice to the Queensland and Australian Governments on drug addiction and its treatment.
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George O'Neil started his medical career as a gynaecologist, working in South Africa, Ireland and Scotland andreturning to Western Australia in 1979. After delivering babies to mothers who were addicted to
hard drugs, Dr O'Neil was inspired to try to find ways to help people with addictions become drug free. He founded an addiction treatment clinic in 1996 in Subiaco, Western Australia, now Fresh Start Recovery Programme.
As well as his position as Medical Director at Fresh Start Recovery Programme, Dr O'Neil works as a gynaecologist at a private fertility clinic, runs a medical device company and occasionally lectures at UWA as a visiting professor. Dr O'Neil has a strong interest in inventing medical devices and developing novel treatment methods. He has invented several devices used in obstetrics, malnutrition treatment and pain management as well as treatment delivery methods for addiction treatments.
Dr O'Neil has published a number of peer-reviewed journal papers on addiction medicine. He is a Fellow of the Australian Chapter of Addiction Medicine within the Royal Australian College of Physicians and regarded as one of Australia’s foremost experts on addiction medicine.
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(Due to technical difficulties there is missing audio throughout this clip, please click on the link below to access Dr George O'Neil's powerpoint slides)
Prior to working in the alcohol and drug sector, Ms Baxter held the position as Educational Manager in the TAFE sector in Australia, where she made a significant contribution to quality management in international programs in Bangladesh, India, Italy and the United Kingdom. During this time she completed two research scholarships in the United States. Ms Baxter entered the Alcohol and Drug sector as CEO of Life Education in South Australia in January, 2000. Two years later she was promoted to the position of National Director of Programs & Training for Life Education Australia, based in Sydney. She has worked closely with alcohol and drug rehabilitation teams at Odyssey House (Victoria). In her current position as Executive Director, Drug Free Australia, she oversees strategies incapacity building, project management and community development, focussing on drug prevention.
In 2009 Ms Baxter was elected Vice President, World Federation Against Drugs. She recently completed her 3-year term as a member of the Australian National Council on Drugs (ANCD) and is currently a member of the International Taskforce for Strategic Drug Policy.
After completing his Agriculture degree in Tasmania, Peter worked as a farm advisory officer for 6 years, with a
special interest in organic farming. He studied theology and served as a pastor in Victoria and Western Australia for 25 years. While serving as pastor in Willetton, Peter ran a drug rehabilitation support groups for some years.
Peter entered the WA parliament in September 2008, winning the seat of Southern River. He is a member of the Education & Health Standing Committee, which recently inquired into drug treatment and prevention services.
Peter’s experience and research has convinced him that the only real treatments for drug addiction are those, which help the drug addicts move towards a drug free lifestyle. Peter has a keen interest in drug policy issues.
Peter and his wife Jenny have 5 grown up children, and 5 grandchildren.
Peter, Jo and Neil were part of a syposium panel chaired by David Clark (see below)
Drug Treatment Policy Symposium
Symposium Chair: Professor David Clark
Symposium Panel: Professor Neil McKeganey, Jo Baxter, Peter Abetz MLA.
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Seminar Sponsors
We would like to thank the following organisations that supported this event through a sponsorship:
Sponsorship Opportunities
For information about how to become a Fresh Start event sponsor, click here.
To download a 2011 seminar sponsorship booking form, click here.