Dr Brennen Mills, PhD
Dr Brennen Mills is a teaching and research academic employed as a lecturer in the School of Medical and Health Sciences (SMHS) at Edith Cowan University. Dr Mills teaches research methods across Paramedicine, Public Health, Speech Pathology and Biomedical Science within the School.
Dr Mills’ primary interest is better preparing health workers for practice — be this through exposing students to realistic practice environments, simulating potentially stressful or rare circumstances, or providing training interventions through in-situ simulation or immersive technology. On top of this-simulation-based research, Dr Mills is also involved in a variety of other research programs ranging from improving marksmanship training for police recruits, to gauging the general public’s knowledge of when it is (and is not) appropriate to call for emergency ambulance assistance, to providing interventions to improve the nutrition knowledge of early childhood carers.
Dr Mills was part of the research team selected for the National Health and Medical Research Council’s (NHMRC) ‘Ten of the Best 2014’ publication, for an NHMRC funded project investigating the merits of an “Equivalent Walking Time’ front-of-package food label. Dr Mills is the Chair of the SMHS Research Ethics subcommittee and co-supervises three PhD and two masters by Research students. Dr Mills also maintains professional memberships with Simulation Australia; the West Australia Simulation in Healthcare Alliance and the VRAR Association.
Ms Sara Hansen, RN MSN
Ms Hansen is the Simulation Centre Educational Coordinator of the ECU Health Simulation Centre. She holds a master’s degree in Nursing and has been extensively involved in simulation-based education and evaluation for over 10 years in both the United States and Australia.
In her role, Ms Hansen develops and supports simulation-based programs within the School of Medical and Health Sciences and coordinates delivery of high-fidelity commercial simulation programs with a variety of industry partners. Ms Hansen is an active member of the ECU immersive technology research team focusing on the development and application of immersive technologies to enhance quality and safety in healthcare and other high-risk industries.
Ms Hansen has significant contract and course management experience for high-value clients including, most recently, the Department of Health, Western Australia, the Australian Resuscitation Council (ARC), the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (ANZCA), and the Australian Healthcare Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).
Ms Hansen maintains professional memberships with Simulation Australia and the West Australia Simulation in Healthcare Alliance and holds accreditation from Mental Health First Aid Australia.
Ms Alecka Miles, MEH, PhD Candidate
Alecka Miles is the Course Coordinator of the Master of Paramedic Practitioner and Community Paramedicine courses at Edith Cowan University. She is a registered Paramedic who works clinically at a GP clinic in Perth and in the Kimberley Ambulance Service Western Australia. She has a Master degree in Emergency Health and is a PhD Candidate at Western Sydney University working on a project called ‘Decentring’ the ambulance in Paramedicine: An exploration and consensus of key stakeholder expectations, enablers, and impediments to paramedic role legitimisation in primary health care contexts in Australia and New Zealand. In her academic role at ECU Alecka has been involved in simulation-based research in practice environments using in-situ simulations as well as immersive technology.
Dr Stephen Bright, PhD
Dr Bright has worked as a psychologist within the Mental Health & AOD field for the past 15 years. He is currently Senior Lecturer of Addiction at Edith Cowan University. Stephen is a strong advocate of harm reduction and an evidence-based approach to AOD legislation. Stephen is a leading Australian voice on the role of drug policy on emerging drug trends such as synthetic cannabis and darkweb marketplaces.
Dr Lisa Holmes, PhD
Dr Lisa Holmes has an extensive education and training background in tertiary and workplace environments. Her research focus areas are education, workplace training and the mental health and well-being of staff and students. She has published guidelines for embedding mental health and well-being across accredited undergraduate paramedicine courses, in addition to developing interactive activities for both students and staff well-being. Recently she has introduced wellness dogs to reduce the anxiety and stress of students and staff. She is also an active accredited Mental Health First Aid Trainer.
Mr Joshua Johnson, B.Sc., PhD candidate
Mr Johnson is a Research Assistant within the School of Medical and Health Sciences at Edith Cowan University. Mr Johnson graduated from a Bachelor of Science (Paramedical Science) in 2019 and is currently a PhD candidate. His research interests focus on utilising immersive technology to enhance training and safety in healthcare. Mr Johnson is currently involved in the creation of a virtual reality training program designed to support aggression and violence de-escalation training for front line emergency department workers and students.
Mr Wyatt de Souza, B.comm
Mr Wyatt de Souza is a Research Assistant and virtual reality software developer. Mr de Souza worked in the commercial sector developing virtual and augmented Reality tools and simulations while at the Perth company, Viewport. He has worked on projects for clients such as the Department of Parks and Wildlife, Rio Tinto and Austin Engineering.
Dr Jemma Berry, PhD
Dr Berry Jemma is a Senior Lecturer in Genetics and Forensic Science within SMHS. As a STEM educator with a background in medical research, Jemma strives to provide authentic learning opportunities, enthusiastically embracing technology and innovation to help inspire and develop a passion for life-long learning. Jemma has been recognised for her work in this area, receiving a WiTWA award in 2021, and being nominated for an ECU Vice Chancellor's Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning in 2022.
Higher Degree Research - PhD Projects
- Aggression and violence de-escalation training using virtual reality technology for front line emergency department healthcare professionals and students
- Out-of-hospital immersive birthing simulation training for paramedics and ambulance officers using virtual reality technology
Higher Degree Research - Masters Projects
- Efficacy of smart-bag ventilations compared to standard adult and paediatric bag-valve ventilations during cardiopulmonary resuscitation
- Operational preparedness for medical management of major incidents: A comparison of traditional and digital mass casualty training modalities for out-of-hospital responders
- Pilot evaluation of a novel pandemic preparedness serious game for paramedics and paramedicine students
- Pilot evaluation of a novel pandemic preparedness serious game for nurses and nursing students
- The use of simulation-based learning experiences to decrease anxiety and increase confidence and preparedness for clinical placements for speech pathology students
