MCRI Neonatal Advanced Ventilation Workshop and BPD Symposium

Professor Sherry E. Courtney

Professor of Pediatrics

Director of Clinical Research for Neonatology

University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences/Arkansas Children’s Hospital

Dr Sherry Courtney is a Professor of Neonatology and experienced clinical trial researcher. She is currently a Professor of Pediatrics and Director of Clinical Research for Neonatology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

Dr Courtney’s research interests include neonatal pulmonology and supportive ventilation of the neonate. Currently, as Director of Clinical Research for Neonatology, Dr Courtney directs a variety of multi-centre clinical trials and mentors many neonatal fellows. These studies not only include investigations into the lung and the treatment of lung disease, but also include clinical trials involving new drug therapies and feeding practices.

Dr Huayan Zhang

Attending Neonatologist

Director, Newborn and Infant Chronic Lung Disease Program

Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

Dr Huayan Zhang graduated from Capital University of Medical Sciences in Beijing in 1991 and received paediatric residency training in the Paediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care unit at Beijing Children’s Hospital for five years. She moved to the United States in 1996 and studied the influences of environmental factors on child development at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. She completed her second pediatric residency training at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in 2003 and fellowship training in Neonatal-perinatal medicine at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) in 2006.

Dr Zhang is currently an Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and will be promoted to Professor in July 2024. She joined Guangzhou Women and Children Medical Center as the Chief of Neonatology in August 2018, while continuing to serve as the Director of the Newborn and Infant Chronic Lung Disease (NeoCLD) Program at CHOP. In addition, Dr Zhang is a member of the Society of Pediatric Research, American Academy of Pediatrics, and serves as an executive committee member for the BPD Collaborative. She is also a member of the advisory board and executive committee for the Chinese Neonatal Network.

Dr Zhang’s clinical and research interest is in the prevention and management of infant chronic lung disease. In 2010, she established the NeoCLD program at CHOP and developed it into one of the world's largest infant CLD programs dedicated to treating severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). She is recognised as a Master Clinician at CHOP and is a well-known expert in the management of BPD globally. Over the years, Dr Zhang has been heavily involved in training and supervising medical students, house staff, neonatal intensive care post-doctoral fellows and Chinese visiting physicians, as well as CHOP’s international collaboration activities in China.

Professor Peter Dargaville

Director, NICU, Royal Hobart Hospital

Professor Peter Dargaville trained in neonatology at The Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, and at the University of California, San Francisco. In 2000, Professor Dargaville was awarded an MD from the University of Melbourne for research examining pulmonary surfactant and its abnormalities in ventilated infants with lung disease. Professor Dargaville now continues as a clinician-researcher at the Royal Hobart Hospital and Menzies Institute for Medical Research, UTAS.

The major focus of his research is the development and implementation of new therapies for neonatal lung disease. Professor Dargaville was Chief Investigator of the NHMRC-funded OPTIMIST-A trial, a multinational RCT of minimally invasive surfactant therapy in preterm infants with RDS. Having co-invented an algorithm for automated control of oxygen therapy in infants receiving supplemental oxygen, Professor Dargaville now leads a program of research on automated oxygen control in preterm infants which will be funded by an NHMRC leadership category 2 Investigator Grant during the years 2025-2029.

Other current research themes include the detection, prediction and curtailment of apnoea, and the exploration of mechanisms of lung injury in preterm infants.

Professor David Tingay

Group Leader, Neonatal Research, Murdoch Children's Research Institute

Professor David Tingay leads MCRI's Neonatal Research group and is a clinical neonatologist and respiratory physiologist at the Melbourne Children’s Campus.

MCRI’s Neonatal Research group is an interconnected program of molecular, imaging and clinical science, that aims to better understand lung injury and develop new neonatal critical care respiratory support strategies.

Professor Tingay is the current Chair of the Respiratory Failure Section of the European Society of Paediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care. He is also the lead investigator of the international POLAR Trial of PEEP to support the preterm lung at birth and the BLUEPRINT Study to map the phenotypes and evolution of early preterm respiratory health.

Professor Tingay is a commissioner for the Lancet Commission on the Future of Neonatology and has been a member of international and national leadership groups in neonatal ARDS, chest imaging and COVID-19.

Dr Arun Sett

Honorary Fellow at Murdoch Children's Research Institute and The Royal Women's Hospital

Neonatologist at Joan Kirner Women and Children’s Hospital

Dr Arun Sett is a Victorian-trained neonatologist and clinician-researcher, currently working as a consultant neonatologist at Joan Kirner Women’s and Children’s Hospital. Dr Sett leads several research projects in the NICU, including being the imaging lead and Joan Kirner Site Principal Investigator for the BLUEPRINT Study.

Additionally, he holds a Research Fellows role at MCRI and The Royal Women’s Hospital, Melbourne. Dr Sett's recently submitted PhD explored the use of lung ultrasound to guide neonatal respiratory support. His doctoral work encompassed a blend of pre-clinical translational research and clinical studies, showcasing his multidisciplinary expertise. His research has been recognised globally and resulted in research awards, including the Australian Society of Ultrasound Emerging Enthusiast and Young Investigator awards, and the World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology Young Investigator Award.

Dr Sett has been recognised as ASUM Emerging Enthusiast and his contributions were acknowledged with the Young Investigator award at WFUMB2022. Beyond his groundbreaking work in lung ultrasound, Dr Sett's other research interests include electrical impedance tomography, neonatal respiratory physiology, point-of-care ultrasound and neonatal haemodynamics.