Concurrent Session 4B: People & Practice: Stigma, Capability & Workforce Reform
Tracks
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| Wednesday, November 11, 2026 |
| 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM |
Speaker
Mr James Dunne
Policy and Projects Coordinator
Australian Alcohol and other Drugs Council
Industrial advocacy and wins for the lived-living experience workforce: The role of AOD sector peak bodies and partnership
9:05 AM - 9:15 AMBiography
James is the Policy and Projects Coordinator for the Australian Alcohol and other Drugs Council. Over the course of 15 years, he has worked in policy and research roles within government, non-government organisations and universities in Australia, Scotland and Hong Kong.
Dr Suzie Hudson
Clinical Advisor
NSW Ministry Of Health
Building Suicide Prevention Confidence in the AOD Workforce: A Collaborative, Practice Focused Training Model
9:25 AM - 9:35 AMBiography
Dr Suzie Hudson is an accredited Mental Health Social Worker and has over 25 years’ clinical experience in the fields of substance use, mental health, forensics, research and evaluation. She has a PhD and is the current Clinical Advisor at the CAOD while continuing private counselling, consultation and clinical supervision.
Mr James Dunne
Policy and Projects Coordinator
Australian Alcohol and other Drugs Council
Building FASD informed practice in the alcohol and other drugs workforce
9:35 AM - 9:45 AMBiography
James is the Policy and Projects Coordinator for the Australian Alcohol and other Drugs Council. Over the course of 15 years, he has worked in policy and research roles within government, non-government organisations and universities in Australia, Scotland and Hong Kong.
Dr Lauren Monds
Senior Lecturer
University of Sydney
If We Build It, Will They Come? Developing an AI-Based Virtual Patient for Addiction Medicine Education
9:45 AM - 9:55 AMBiography
Dr Lauren Monds is a Senior Lecturer in Addiction Medicine at USyd, and Research Lead for Drug and Alcohol Services, Northern Sydney Local Health District, NSW Health. Her research focuses on acute intoxication, cognitive impairment, and violent crime.
Dr Holly Wilson
Research Assistant
University Of Auckland
Responding to FASD in Youth Justice Settings: Staff Knowledge, Confidence, and Training Needs in Aotearoa New Zealand
10:10 AM - 10:15 AMBiography
Holly Wilson is a Research Fellow in the School of Population Health at the University of Auckland. Her research focuses on understanding and improving support for individuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and their whānau. Holly’s work centres on Hauora, lived experience, and digital solutions to enhance wellbeing.
Dr Liam Acheson
Postdoctoral Fellow
National Centre for Clinical Research on Emerging Drugs
Stigma towards people who use drugs in frontline non-clinical healthcare workers
10:15 AM - 10:20 AMBiography
Liam is an early career researcher with NCCRED, NDARC and SVHS. Their research focuses on clinical trials of pharmacological interventions to manage methamphetamine use and withdrawal. They are also interested in health systems research, sleep and substance use and stigma towards people who use drugs.
