COVID-19 vaccination in 2026 – preparing for the transition to the National Immunisation Program

Kristine Macartney is a paediatrician and infectious disease specialist. She is a medical graduate of UNSW Sydney and has over 20 years of experience in vaccinology.

Kristine is a Staff Specialist in Infectious Diseases and Microbiology at the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, has a conjoint academic appointment as Professor in the Discipline of Child and Adolescent Health at the University of Sydney, and is the Senior Editor of the Australian Immunisation Handbook.  

She has experience working in the US at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where she was a founding member of the US Vaccine Education Center. Her Doctorate of Medicine was on rotavirus infection, in particular the mucosal immune response to novel vaccine candidates. She is interested in all aspects of vaccine preventable disease research, particularly policy development, vaccine safety and prevention of viral diseases.

Tran Nguyen is a Senior Medical Officer in the Research to Inform Policy team at NCIRS. She also works as a general paediatrician and paediatric infectious diseases physician at Bankstown Hospital and in private practice. Tran is an Adjunct Lecturer at the Sydney Children’s Hospital, Faculty of Medicine and Health, UNSW Sydney, and has extensive experience working in the Specialist Immunisation Clinic. Tran has been involved in many clinical trials, including vaccine trials. She is a member of the Australasian Society of Infectious Diseases.

Katie Flanagan is a clinician scientist who has worked on global health issues for more than 25 years. She has led numerous vaccine immunology trials throughout the world, including trials of novel malaria and HIV vaccines in African infants and trials of the immunological effects of commonly used vaccines in young and older people. Katie holds academic positions, including Clinical Professor at the University of Tasmania, Adjunct Professor, Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute, University of Sydney and adjunct Professor at RMIT University in Melbourne.

Kelly Trudgen is a proud Gumbaynngirr woman, currently living on Yuggera and Tuurbal Country. She has over 30 years’ experience in nursing – in both military and civilian nursing contexts – with particular expertise in advanced clinical practice, clinical leadership and health management.

Kelly is committed to adopting innovative measures to ensure optimal health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, and to building a strong Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workforce. Her lived experience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander healthcare is informed by her work across both the public- and community-controlled sectors. Kelly’s skills and knowledge are enhanced by postgraduate qualifications in Emergency Nursing, Public Health, and Emergency and Disaster Management.

Kaz Bellamy is an Infectious Diseases and Immunisation Nurse Practitioner with specialist expertise in high-risk, antenataland travel immunisation. Kaz has played a key role in developing adult and paediatric immunisation sedation pathways at Monash Health. She has extensive experience in vaccine safety and vaccine preventable disease research across both adult and paediatric populations, bringing strong clinical and research leadership to immunisation practice. Kaz is a current member of the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI).

Peter Guthrey holds the position of Senior Pharmacist, Strategic Policy at the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA). Peter supports policy development, advocacy activities, regulatory submissions and practice advice. He has driven key PSA policy work, including development of the Pharmacists in 2023 and Pharmacists in 2030 reports, and PSA’s medicine safety agenda, including the flagship Medicine Safety series.

Peter has over 18 years’ experience in pharmacy policy, regulation, advocacy, quality management and community pharmacy practice. He maintains practice as a community pharmacist, working after-hours at a Melbourne pharmacy.