NEUROSPINE INSTITUTE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Medical Secretary
- Ahenata Smith / Medical Secretary
Hena has worked for many years in administration and management roles in the General Practice sector. She has settled into Private practice where she can focus on assisting patients' and provides exceptional customer care. Hena likes to network with her local community through sports and is an avid reader in her spare time.
Job Titles:
- Marketing Consultant
- Marketing Consultant / Marketing Consultant ( BSc Biology, PGDip Health Care Management )
Allie moved to Australia in 2010 from the USA and has an undergraduate degree in Biology and a post graduate degree in Health Care Management. Allie has spent 12 years working in health care - firstly for a corporate GP organization as practice manager and the last decade in the Private Hospital sector between St John of God and most recently as Business Development Manager at Mount Hospital (Healthscope). After welcoming her third child in 2022, Allie decided to start her own business and brings a wealth of experience in Business Development and Marketing to the NSIWA team. In her spare time, Allie enjoys playing tennis and boating with her family.
Job Titles:
- National Research Grant Awarded to Ms Alana Celenza
Neurospine Institute's Research Assistant, Ms Alana Celenza, has been awarded the AO Spine National Research Grant. This grant is an $8,500 grant aimed to provide start-up funding for new spinal research projects for early and mid-career investigators. Ms Celenza is early in her research career having completed her Bachelor of Science in Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology with First Class honours and received the Vice Chancellor's Award.
Bhanu is a highly qualified physiotherapist with 15 years of clinical experience in variable settings. She completed her Bachelor's degree in Physiotherapy in India in 2006. She has since furthered her education by earning a Master's Degree in Physiotherapy in Paediatrics and received a prestigious gold medal for her achievements. She did research study on pre-term infants in Intensive Care Unit settings with a team inclusive of a Paediatrician, Intensivist, Critical Care Nurse and Respiratory Therapist. She enjoyed working in pre and post operative Adult and Geriatric Rehabilitation in Musculoskeletal, Cardiac, Respiratory and Neurological conditions. She spent the initial four years of her career in a Multi-Specialty hospital and subsequent eight years as an outpatient Physiotherapist and Professor at a renowned University in India. She has a passion to teach and still enjoys mentoring physiotherapy students as her hobby.
Carrie brings to the team over 14 years office experience with her background being in Human Resources and Medical Administration.
Job Titles:
- Physiotherapist
- Member of the Australian Physiotherapy Association
Christine is a member of the Australian Physiotherapy Association. She is motivated to be a part of the patient's journey throughout their recovery. She is currently completing her Masters in Counselling which she has found insightful when working with clients during physical rehabilitation.
Job Titles:
- Managing Director
- Practice Staff Member
Leading and coaching people to drive performance and develop people is what keeps Colin motivated. With almost three decades of senior leadership and CEO/MD experience in health and medical organisations including Abbott, Alere, GSK, MSD, Hollywood IVF, and Epichem, Colin brings with him a wealth of expertise in commercial strategy, business development and marketing in Australia and Internationally with a strong track record of commercial success and revenue growth.
Colin has extensive experience in leading teams of highly dedicated health and medical professionals focussed on achieving patient centric outcomes, working in partnership and collaboration with key stakeholders to provide solutions that make a difference.
Prior to joining NSIWA, Colin was the General Manager and Senior Advisor for Instamed Pty Ltd, a leading Independent Expert Medical Opinion Service Provider with a national footprint.
Colin also holds a number of board positions and committee responsibilities. Colin has qualifications in Pharmaceutical Manufacturing, Business Management, Human Resources and Project Management.
Daniel brings a wealth of expertise to Neurospine Institute as an integral part of our practice management team. Having recently joined us in November 2023, his background encompasses significant roles in healthcare administration.
His journey in healthcare management began as Practice Manager within a Corporate GP practice, honing his organisational and customer service skills. Before joining us, Daniel served as the 2IC Practice Manager at a Perth-based specialised Orthopaedic practice. During his tenure in the travel industry, Daniel developed his skillset of operational efficiency and has a proactive approach to operations and management.
Beyond his dedication to patient-centered care, he finds solace and passion in playing Ice Hockey during his leisure time.
Deb has worked in the medical industry as an administrator for over 30 years, in multiple areas ranging from GPs to specialist practices. She has vast experience and is passionate about helping people, providing the very best patient care possible.
Deb enjoys reading, AFL, Cricket, yoga, pilates, and spending time with her family.
Job Titles:
- Occupational Physician Registrar
Dr Adebola Adeiye joined our practice in November 2023, adding to our service offering of Occupational Health Medicine. Dr Ade completed his Medical Degree in 2006 and then relocated to Perth from Nigeria in 2012.
He worked as a GP and senior medical officer in emergency departments across various hospitals in the Wheatbelt. Dr Ade is also a fellow of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners.
Dr Berg graduated from medical school in 2008 from the UK and completed the early parts of his postgraduate medical and surgical training in the North-East of England during which time he gained Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. There he developed an affinity for spinal surgery spending time as a clinical and research fellow in spinal surgery.
He moved to the North-West of England to embark on specialist training in trauma and orthopaedic surgery gaining Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England and entry to the UK register of specialists as a trauma and orthopaedic surgeon in 2020.
Deciding he wanted to dedicate his practice to spinal surgery Andrew started his subspecialist training in the prestigious position of National Spinal Fellow in Leeds, UK.
Intent on completing further overseas fellowship training Andrew did not allow the COVID pandemic to hinder his ambitions. In February 2021 he moved, with his family, to Perth, Western Australia, to commence the WA State Spinal and Scoliosis fellowship based at Royal Perth Hospital and Perth Children's Hospital.
Throughout his training Andrew has been active in the education and research. He has gained a Post Graduate Diploma in Clinical Education and is a member of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh's Faculty of Surgical Trainers. He has presented research at numerous international conferences, published widely and was awarded the prestigious John Charnley and the Margaret Dodson Awards for a large multicentre study he led in the UK.
To further develop his experience in minimally invasive spinal surgery, motion preservation, adult deformity correction and neurosurgical techniques Andrew has joined the Neurospine Institute for further fellowship training.
Job Titles:
- Specialist Pain Medicine Physician
Dr David Hamilton is a Specialist in both Pain Medicine and Anaesthesia. He is committed to helping individuals with acute and chronic pain gain meaningful relief and regained quality of life utilising interventional multidisciplinary care. He was born in Scotland and initially pursued his interest in science, gaining a First-Class joint honours degree in Biochemistry and Immunology in 1997 and the Immunology Prize from the University of Strathclyde. To continue with his undergraduate research developing a novel TB vaccine, David was awarded the prestigious Caledonian Scholarship. On the advice of the 1996 Nobel Prize in Medicine winner, he instead turned his attention to medicine, graduating from The University of Glasgow in 2002.
David completed surgical training in the southwest of England, gaining Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 2006, before commencing training as an anaesthetist and founding a development company focussed on converting heritage barns into exclusive residential dwellings. He emigrated with his young family to Western Australia in 2013 and completed the Western Australian anaesthesia training program, gaining Fellowship in 2018. Enthused by the meaningful difference Pain Specialists can make to individuals' quality of life, David undertook further specialist training in Pain Medicine that included the interventional fellowship at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital. His current practice covers all aspects of adult pain medicine.
David enjoys time spent with the family, cycling and snowboarding.
Job Titles:
- Registered Psychologist ( Clinical Psychology Registrar )
Dr Jesscia Gaff completed her PhD in Biomedical Science at Curtin University in 2021 and has several years of experience in clinical and laboratory based medical research. We are tremendously proud of her achievement in the success of her grant application and are very much looking forward to seeing this project come into fruition, along with anticipated future achievements in her research career with our Neurospine Foundation.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Research Team
- Research Scientist
- Receives AO Spine Start Up Research Grant
Jessica completed her PhD in Biomedical Science at Curtin University. She has several years of experience in medical research with a particular focus on neurological conditions including neuropathic pain and neurocognitive impairment. She is passionate about improving patient care and quality of life.
Neurospine Foundation Research Scientist Dr Jessica Gaff stated, "we are extremely proud to see Ms Celenza succeed in her grant application and advance her career in research at the Neurospine Foundation. We are looking forward to seeing the development and completion of this novel project."
Dr Jessica Gaff, Neurospine Institute's Research Scientist has been awarded a $40,000 research grant from the AO Spine Research Commission.
I have always had an interest for science and a passion for people's well-being, that's one of the main reasons for getting into Medicine. I studied med school at Universidad Del Norte in Barranquilla, Colombia. I have always been eager for new experiences that can enrich my life and others. So, I did half my internship (6 months) at the Harrington Program at Jackson Memorial Hospital and University of Miami Hospital. After finishing medical school, I was certain that wanted to pursue a career in the surgical field in Orthopedics. But before starting my medical residency, I had the opportunity to live in Germany for 7 months allowing to learn the language and gain a new tool. I started my residency in Orthopedics at Universidad Libre, Barranquilla, Colombia and during my first year I developed an interest in spinal surgery. As a result, I made the most of every opportunity that presented to deepen my knowledge in spine surgery. Continuing with that line of interest, I did my electives in spine surgery at Hospital Universitario de San Jose, Bogota Colombia. At that point, I was convinced of my passion for spinal surgery and that I wanted to pursue a career in it. After finishing my medical residency, I was looking for a fellowship position that allowed me to grow not only in my knowledge but also as a professional. Therefore, I took a fellowship position at Centro Hospitalar São João and Hospital CUF in Porto, Portugal in 2022. Being there allowed me to broaden my knowledge in spine surgery in deformity and trauma cases. After that, I wanted to continue growing in this field and came to Australia under Dr. John Choi's teaching and training, I was able to being expose to different ground breaking techniques in spine surgery such as MISS, lateral and single position surgery, unilateral biportal endoscopy (UBE) and robotics surgery. Currently, being thrilled to join the Neurospine Institute family, and having the opportunity for learning from the best Spinal surgeons in the region. I am confident that this next step will help me to continue growing not only as surgeon, but also as a person.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Mount Hospital Medical Advisory Committee
- Neurosurgeon
Dr Michael Kern was born and grew up in Neckarsulm, a small town in Southern Germany. In 1990, following graduation from High School he moved to Berlin where he was fortunate to witness the excitement after reunification of the divided Germany. Michael was one of very few select students who were accepted into a combined University programme in both medicine and biochemistry. He graduated with a Masters in Biochemistry after extensive basic medical research on bacteria causing severe infection in humans. Michael graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at the Humboldt University of Berlin in 1999. He was awarded a PhD (Doctor of Medicine) after 3 years of experimental research on head injury. This work provided Michael with an opportunity to acquire microscopic operating skills even before the commencement of his neurosurgical training.
After one year of Neurosurgical training in Morgantown, WV and Phoenix, AZ, where Michael worked under pioneers in Neurosurgery and Spine Surgery like Dr Robert Spetzler and Dr Volker Sonntag, he returned to the Charité Hospital in Berlin. The artificial disc and the concept of motion preservation in spine surgery were invented by surgeons at the Charité hospital. For this reason, Michael has been trained in this surgery years before this technology was introduced to Australia.
Michael moved to Perth in January 2003 for what was initially planned to be a one-year fellowship. He fell in love with Australia and Perth in particular. He became an Australian Citizen in 2009. After further neurosurgical training at the Neurosurgical Service of Western Australia Michael was admitted as a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of Surgeons in 2009.
Between 2008-2010 Michael undertook post fellowship training in spine surgery, paediatric and epilepsy surgery at the Westmead Hospitals in Sydney working with Dr Andrew Kam, Dr Gordon Dandie and Dr Mark Dexter.
Michael returned to Perth in 2011 to commence private practice with a keen interest in spine surgery. He strongly believes in the benefit of a multidisciplinary approach to treatment of spine and brain diseases. He has built a network and closely works with neurosurgical and orthopaedic colleagues, neurointerventional and pain specialists, oncologists, physicians, physiotherapists, exercise physiologists and clinical psychologists. He has extensive expertise in motion preservation surgery (artificial disc and dynamic fixation surgery), fusion surgery including atlanto-axial and occipito-cervical fusion, using minimally invasive techniques, computer guidance and intraoperative imaging. He specialises in surgery for brain tumours using the most advanced intraoperative guidance and imaging technologies.
Outside work Michael loves to spend time with his wife and two daughters. He is passionate about training his dogs. His Dobermann is trained in the very difficult sport of Schutzhund / IPO. His other hobbies are racing cars, skiing and reading.
Michael is a long term member of the Mount Hospital Medical Advisory Committee, the Credentialing Committee and the Clinical Review Committee. He operates at the Mount Hospital, St John of God Hospitals Murdoch and Subiaco. He also consults every second month in Busselton .
Job Titles:
- Member of AO Spine
- Spine Surgeon
AO Spine is the world's leading and largest spine society, education provider and network for spine surgeons, spine researchers and spine allied health practitioners. It is truly global, independent and has existed for over 20 years. Its global membership now exceeds 30,000. It provides over 200 educational opportunities every year to over 13,000 spine surgeons alone. It is the pre-eminent provider of independent science-based education, continuous professional development and surgical technique instruction worldwide. It has a long track record of excellence and each of the Neurospine Institute surgeons have benefited during their training and beyond from the education it has provided.
All of our surgeons are members of AO Spine. Our fellowship Program Director, Dr Taylor is an active faculty member of AO Spine and is a member of the task force developing a curriculum for teaching reproducible and safe techniques in Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery. He has served as chairman on the flagship Davos courses held annually in Switzerland and regularly lectures in educational events globally, either in person or virtually.
"For our practice to be recognised as an AO Spine certified centre really is a great honour for us. We are only the third centre in Australia to be recognised, and the first private practice clinic. We are now able to host surgeons from around the world wishing to observe and learn new techniques during short duration "observerships" of a few weeks and to offer AO certified fellowships to our recently qualified surgical colleagues seeking a more intensive training in specific areas of spine surgery over six or 12 months duration"
Neurospine Institute along with the Neurospine Institute Foundation, a registered charity, is active in research. All surgical patients are enrolled in a prospective registry database which allows us to clearly evaluate patient outcomes across a variety of metrics and the combination of our academic credentials and teaching history along with our clinical caseload volume makes us a good choice for postgraduate and post-fellowship surgical training for spine interested surgeons.
Dr. Vijaya (VJ) Venkataraman is our founding Consultant Physician at Neurospine Institute WA and shares a public and private appointment between NSIWA and Sir Charles Gardiner Hospital. She obtained her MBBS degree in 1997 and MD in 2000 in Northern India (both with gold medal achievements). She further completed a three-year training program in cardiology and echocardiogram at Jaslok Hospital and Research Centre in Mumbai.
After her cardiology training, Dr. Venkataraman embarked on a new professional journey by relocating to the Maldives in 2004. In the Maldives, she served as a Consultant Physician at a large private hospital, specializing in acute medicine, cardiology, and provided ICU coverage during emergencies. Following her tenure in the Maldives, she moved to the United Kingdom where she worked in various locum roles for several months and successfully passed her MRCP exams and later received the FRCP Edinburgh Designation.
In 2006, she made her way to Australia, assuming the position of a Consultant Physician at both Mersey Community Hospital in Latrobe and North West Regional Hospital in Burnie, Tasmania. During her time in Tasmania, she completed her Australian Fellowship peer review period, echocardiogram peer review period, and passed her FRACP exam at John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle, New South Wales.
In 2012, she relocated to Western Australia, joining Kalgoorlie Regional Hospital (WACHS) as a Senior Consultant Physician with a special interest in Cardiology. Her responsibilities involved providing acute and sub-acute inpatient care and conducted cardiology outpatient clinics. Dr. Venkataraman represented WACHS Goldfields in cardiovascular executive advisory committee meetings and became an Associate Professor at RCS, University of WA in 2013.
Dr. Venkataraman specialises in acute medicine with special interest in cardiology (with a focus on heart failure), complex cardiac conditions in indigenous populations, rheumatic heart disease, and echocardiography. She is deeply passionate about teaching and is actively engaged in mentoring medical students and junior doctors as a medical coordinator with RCS, University of Western Australia , and as a consultant physician and supervisor.
Throughout her career, Dr. Venkataraman has maintained close collaboration with local general practitioners in Kalgoorlie. As a result of this, in 2016 she started offering after-hours private, bulk-billed clinics at Trinity Medical Centre.
In 2019, Dr. Venkataraman sought a new challenge and joined the Department of Medicine at Sir Charles Gardiner Hospital as a Senior Consultant Physician in acute medicine. Additionally, she serves as a Senior Consultant Physician at St John of God Subiaco Hospital and participates on the perioperative physician roster at Mount and Murdoch Hospital. She also displays a keen interest in perioperative medicine and post-operative recovery and has completed her Master's degree in Perioperative Medicine from Monash University in 2023 with the capstone project, "Establishing a new periop physicians service for a busy private neurosurgery practice in Perth".
Job Titles:
- Consultant
- Physician
- Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians
Dr Yee Phyo Hein is a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians and is a Consultant Physician in General Medicine.
She has a special interest in Perioperative Medicine and Geriatric Medicine. Dr. Hein undertook her Basic and Advanced Training in General Medicine in Australia. From the days when she received her primary medical degree from the Institute of Medicine (1), Yangon, Myanmar in 2007, she has been trying to seize every possible opportunity to enrich and broaden her medical knowledge and clinical experience.
With great enthusiasm and tremendous interest, she undertook various rotations in Western Australia, Victoria and Queensland to become a competent Physician. She obtained a Membership of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom (MRCP) in 2018 and a Diploma of Perioperative Medicine (ANZCA) in 2023. She was awarded the fellowship of Royal Australasian College of Physicians (FRACP) in 2019 and the Royal College of Physicians of London (FRCP) in 2023 . She is passionately committed to the highest quality care for all patients requiring medical care. Yee is also committed to the development of junior doctors by creating and delivering learning and development programs.
Outside of work, Dr Hein's particular interests include music, collecting cultural curiosities and artifacts and being the ultimate foodie.
Job Titles:
- Spine and Pain Nurse Practitioner
Jacqui has 20 years' experience in administration and management working across the worker's compensation and medical industries. She loves working with people and being able to make a difference in people's lives. She is planning to commence studying for a Bachelor of Science (Medical Research) later in the year.
Jelena has worked in a variety of administrative roles throughout her career including case management work, as an occupational health practice coordinator and also as a business owner. Jelena is currently studying at St John Ambulance to do volunteer EHS Services.
Jessica has over 6 years Medical Reception Experience working for a cosmetic surgeon. She enjoys a fast-paced role and one where she can show her passion for people and provide the best care possible. In her spare time, Jessica enjoys the outdoors and spending time with her family.
Kaydea has prior experience working in a GP practice and thrives in a fast paced environment (like ours!) She joined our team after a stent in barbering but wanted to transition back into the medical field because of her love of helping others. On the weekends, Kaydea enjoys socialising and spending time with her family.
Laurie has had a varied administrative career over the last 20 years, starting out in the WA State Government Policy Division and Dept of Human Services. She then moved into a medico-legal role for 10 years utilising her specialised knowledge in State and Federal legislation, before switching gears to a PA role at a private Psychiatry practice, prior to joining the team at Neurospine Institute.
Outside of work, Laurie is passionate about the local music & arts scene, resin jewellery making, photography, Pilates, animal welfare and permaculture gardening.
Alana has completed her Bachelor of Science in Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology with First Class Honours at Curtin University and received the Vice Chancellor's award for her cohort. She has experience in neurodegeneration and age-related diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease and hopes to develop novel strategies aimed at mitigating the onset of disease through early interventions and preventions, particularly through lifestyle and genetic avenues.
Nicole has worked in the medical industry for over nine years and is passionate about providing a high level of patient care. She holds qualifications in Pathology as well as Leadership & Management and has previously worked in a private hospital before joining Neurospine Institute.
She enjoys helping others and working within a team and has a very friendly personality.
Outside of work, Nicole loves traveling, spending time at the beach and hanging out with family and friends.
Job Titles:
- Surgeon
- Director of Spinal Surgery at Fiona Stanley Hospital Orthopaedic Department
- Spine Surgeon
Greg is the director of spinal surgery at Fiona Stanley Hospital Orthopaedic Department. This position focuses on delivering surgical training and teaching to doctors training to be surgeons. Greg is the Head of Department for Spinal and Neurosurgery at St John of God Murdoch hospital and the Coordinator of Spinal Surgery training for Western Australian Orthopaedic Surgery Trainees.
Greg has lectured in spinal and orthopaedic surgery at the three medical schools in Western Australia and is an Associate Clinical Professor at Curtin University where he has an ongoing involvement in many research projects that aim to improve the treatment of spinal conditions. He has worked with and developed links with research departments across the world including Oxford University Hospital, University College London, and The University of Western Australia. Patients under the care of Greg may be offered to take part in a trial or participate in the long-term monitoring of spinal health.
Sheri has 2 years experience as a Medical Receptionist here at Neurospine Institute. She enjoys her fast-paced role, particularly working closely with our Spinal Surgeon, Dr Paul Taylor. She is currently studying her third and final year of a Bachelor of Science (Nursing) at Edith Cowan University.
Job Titles:
- Physiotherapy Team Leader
Tatenda graduated from the University of Zimbabwe in 2002 with a Bachelors Degree in Physiotherapy. She has over 20 years of experience in her profession which has moulded her into a well-rounded physiotherapist who is capable of delivering excellent clinical management to her patients. She has worked in all the major areas of physiotherapy in a variety of settings in three countries including Zimbabwe, Australia and the United Kingdom where she has spent most of her working career so far. She believes that in order to be effective in patient management, a holistic approach needs to be adopted. Hence she enjoys combining exercise, patient education and manual therapy where indicated to manage her patients. Tatenda has a keen interest in managing patients with sporting injuries and musculoskeletal conditions including but not limited to low back pain, hip pain, knee pain, headaches and neck and shoulder pain as well as managing patients following surgery. Her passion for treating sporting injuries led her to complete a Masters Degree in Sports and Exercise Medicine at the University of Nottingham in 2008. She is a member of Australian Physiotherapy Association. Outside work she enjoys walking, swimming and watching rugby.
Wendy has worked in a variety of medical industries from natural health to GP practices and different medical specialists. Her passion is within the specialist medical area where she can show personal attention and compassion with support to patients colleagues and doctors.