AMWA Webinar Series: The COVID-19 Vaccine – Your Questions Answered

The AMWA Webinar Series has now finished. If you missed one, some or all of the live webinars, don't worry – you can watch the recordings below. 

WEBINAR ONE COVID-19 Vaccines: Successes and Remaining Challenges, Thursday March 4

Presented by Professor Jamie Triccas, Director of the Infection, Immunity and Inflammation Program in the School of Medical Sciences, University of Sydney.

Jamie is a bacteriologist who uses a multidisciplinary approach to define immunity to chronic bacterial pathogens and develop new treatments to control infection. His group has progressed tuberculosis vaccines from the initial discovery phase (e.g. antigen discovery) to the development of products that are being prepared for clinical trials. These vaccine platforms are being applied to the development of novel COVID-19 vaccines, in particular to combat emerging viral variants. He has also established vaccine programs for important Cystic Fibrosis pathogens, in particular Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Mycobacterium abscesses. In recent years he has diversified his research program to include drug discovery and development for important human pathogens, involving a large network of national and international collaborators, with a focus on tuberculosis. 

You will learn:

• How vaccines work and the goal of COVID-19 vaccination programs
• The major COVID-19 vaccines and their mode of action
• Ongoing challenges in COVID-19 vaccination, such as global vaccine distribution and the emergence of new viral variants

A recording of Jamie's presentation is available in the Members Area

WEBINAR TWO COVID-19 Vaccine Approval: Fast and Fabulous, Thursday, March 11

Presented by Joanna Kirman, Associate Professor and immunologist in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Otago University and also the Director of First Year Health Sciences. Jo received a PhD from Otago in 1999 in infectious diseases immunology and was a Fogerty International Fellow at the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institutes of Health (USA). She returned to New Zealand and led the Infectious Diseases Group at the Malaghan Institute in Wellington before taking up her current role at Otago University in 2012. Her lab’s research is focused on understanding the generation and maintenance of immunological memory to improve vaccination against tuberculosis (TB).  Jo is a member of the Bill & Melinda Gate Foundation Collaboration for TB vaccine Development.

You will learn:

• Global regulatory bodies and why each country needs to go through a different approval process
• The NZ and Australian processes and regulatory bodies
• Discussion around prioritisation and rolling approvals in the approval process

A recording of Joanna's presentation is available in the Members Area 

WEBINAR THREE COVID-19 Immunisation Programme in New Zealand – Implementation and Service Delivery, Thursday, March 18

Presented by Loretta Roberts. Loretta is the National Manager of the Immunisation Advisory Centre (IMAC), a role she has held for the past eight years. Loretta has an extensive background in nursing, education and maternal child health and has practised across a number of locations in Asia; Loretta lived and worked for eight years in Hong Kong and China. She is now based in New Plymouth but spends a great deal of time travelling between IMAC's regional offices.

You will learn:

• New Zealand immunisation programme and strategy
• New Zealand Vaccinator workforce and education
• What the next stages are
• What challenges we face in implementation
• What uncertainties exist
• Highlights or lessons learnt

A recording of Loretta's presentation is available in the Members Area 

WEBINAR FOUR Reporting on Vaccination Without Increasing Hesitancy Thursday, March 25

Presented by Prof Julie Leask.  Julie is a social scientist specialising in vaccination uptake and professor in the Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney. Julie has qualifications in public health, nursing and midwifery. Her research focuses on behavioural science in public health, specifically vaccination uptake, programs and policy. She also teaches and researches in field of risk communication in health emergencies.She is visiting professorial fellow at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance and member of the Australian Regional Immunisation Alliance. She co-founded the Collaboration on Social Science in Immunisation. Julie has a number of advisory roles with the World Health Organization (WHO) including as chair of the Behavioural and Social Drivers of Vaccination working group. She is member of the Regional Vaccine Access and Health Security Initiative Expert Advisory Group for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. She was named overall and global category winner of the Australian Financial Review 100 Women of Influence in 2019.

A recording of Julie's presentation is available in the Members Area 

WEBINAR FIVE Testing for COVID-19 and Effectiveness of Vaccinations. Thursday, April 8 

Presented by Dean Whiting, CEO Pathology Technology Australia. Dean graduated from UWA with a Master of Science in Clinical Biochemist and worked in pathology labs for 15 years. Moved to sales, marketing and executive management roles, mostly in large IVD technology companies. Has lived and worked in the USA, China and almost all Asian and sub-continental countries. Dean has an extensive knowledge of the pathology testing and technology sector. He supported the early days of Australia’s Bowel Cancer Screening program roll out. Currently heading up Pathology Technology Australia - the peak body representing companies that develop, manufacture and supply the technology and consumables so vital to testing in human health. This includes the technology used to detect and sequence the COVID-19 virus and its RNA. This has also been vital in creating some of the vaccines available today.

You will learn: 

• A general overview of COVID-19 vaccines and immunity
• Key technologies and terminologies around detection and sequencing of the COVID-19 virus and why it's important
• Vaccine validation, monitoring acceptance and challenges in their roll out

A recording of Dean's presentation is available in the Members Area.

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