Head of Cardiology, Royal North Shore Hospital. Professor of Medicine, University of Sydney.

Dr Aaisha Ferkh is a Consultant Cardiologist with expertise in advanced cardiac imaging. She completed her PhD at the University of Sydney, focusing on atrial cardiomyopathy and novel echocardiographic techniques. She recently undertook a two-year Advanced Cardiac Imaging Fellowship at St Paul’s Hospital, Vancouver, with a focus on multimodality and structural heart imaging, including echocardiography, cardiac CT, and cardiac MRI. Dr Ferkh’s clinical and research interests include valvular heart disease, atrial myopathy, and the integration of advanced imaging into routine clinical practice to improve diagnostic accuracy and patient outcomes. She practices in Western Sydney, focusing on patient-centred, culturally- responsive care and improving access to advanced cardiac imaging.

Dr Nicola Straiton is a nurse and Senior Research Fellow in Implementation Science at the Nursing Research Institute, a collaboration between St Vincent’s Health Network Sydney, St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, and Australian Catholic University. Her research focuses on cardiovascular disease, health services research, frailty and implementation science. In the three years since completing her PhD, Dr Straiton has secured over $27.3 million in competitive research funding across 12 grants, including five as Chief Investigator. She has delivered >20 invited national and international presentations and received five awards recognising research excellence and leadership. Dr Straiton is committed to advancing evidence translation into clinical practice and building research capacity among clinician researchers.

A/Prof Roy is a structural and interventional cardiologist from St Vincent’s hospital in Sydney. He is the current director of the Coronary Care Unit and Director of cardiology advanced training. A/Prof Roy is a high volume TAVI operator having performed over 2000 TAVI procedures and has proctored many procedures both nationally and internationally. A/Prof Roy has been an investigator in multiple TAVI trials and first-in-man investigations. A/Prof Roy is a TAVI proctor for both Medtronic and Edwards lifesciences and sits on multiple medical advisory boards.

David Muller is Professor of Medicine at the University of New South Wales, Director of Interventional Cardiology Services at St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, and a faculty member of the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute. After graduating from the University of Melbourne, he completed his Advanced Training in Cardiology in Melbourne and Interventional Cardiology Fellowship at the University of Michigan Medical Centre. His current major research interests include transcatheter therapies for structural heart disease, the physiological and haemodynamic responses to transcatheter valve interventions, and optimizing the outcomes of complex coronary interventions. He has published widely (>500 peer reviewed papers, abstracts and book chapters) and is a regular speaker at international Cardiology meetings. He has held leadership roles in multiple international device trials, including first-in-human studies, and has been a member of numerous state and federal government Advisory Committees.

Dr Elizabeth Shaw is a Structural and Interventional Cardiologist who has a special interest in chest pain, women’s heart health and valvular heart disease. She is the first female Cardiologist to be accredited to perform Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantations (TAVIs) in Australia. She is the Director of Cardiology at Sydney Adventist Hospital. She also works at Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Hospital and Northern Beaches Hospital. Dr Shaw has passion for teaching and research and is a Senior Lecturer at The University of Sydney’s Medical School. Dr Shaw is on the steering committee for Australia and New Zealand Endovascular Therapies (ANZET) and is passionate about encouraging junior doctors to pursue their chosen field. She is a founding member of the Women in Interventional Cardiology of Australia and New Zealand group. Dr Shaw has delivered multiple presentations at both national and international conferences in her research area of coronary artery disease, Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy as well as the treatment of aortic stenosis and other structural heart disorders.