"Robyn came highly recommended by her peers, and has been an absolute pleasure to work with. Her analysis was fast and meticulous, and she definitely went out of the way to understand the background of what the study was about. Having been through the torture of statistics for several publications now, and hearing similar stories from my peers, I would have no hesitations recommending her services and look forward to further collaborations with her in the future."

- Dr Nicholas Lai, Oncology registrar

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry for Fisheries Research and Development Corporation, Australian Prawn Farmers Association and Australian Barramundi Farmers Association

Delivered as consultant epidemiologist, Ausvet

 Increasing the sensitivity of Australia’s aquatic animal disease surveillance system is a national priority outlined in AQUAPLAN 2022-2027. We developed scenario tree models to estimate the confidence of freedom from infection and determine the sensitivity of early detection surveillance for two important aquatic animal diseases, infection with white spot syndrome virus in the Australian prawn aquaculture industry and infection with megalocytiviruses in the Australian barramundi aquaculture industry. These models were used to identify critical points in the system to which interventions could be targeted to improve Australia's aquatic animal disease surveillance. 

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

Delivered as consultant epidemiologist, Ausvet

While live animal movements into Australia are strictly regulated, insect movements continue to pose a potential incursion risk. We conducted qualitative, semi-quantitative and quantitative risk assessments  to better understand the risk of lumpy skin disease virus incursion to Australia via non-regulated pathways. Our findings provided further insight into the risk of lumpy skin disease to Australian cattle industries and helped to optimise surveillance approaches by identifying key places and times for targeted surveillance activities.

Animal Health Canada

Delivered as consultant epidemiologist, Ausvet

CanSpotASF is Canada's national surveillance program for African swine fever. We conducted a comprehensive surveillance system evaluation to assess the program’s effectiveness and efficiency, and to provide recommendations for its improvement. 

Collaborating across ACT Health, ACT Pathology, and the Australian National University, we applied genomic epidemiology approaches to the COVID-19 response in the Australian Capital Territory. This work used pathogen genomics to support outbreak investigation and transmission tracing, enabling more precise identification of infection pathways and clusters. The integration of genomic data with public health information informed timely, evidence-based response measures.

At CSIRO, we conducted research on the epidemiology of rabbit caliciviruses to support their use as biocontrol agents in Australia, with a focus on understanding viral evolution and pathogenesis. This work integrated genomic epidemiology, in vivo pathogenesis studies, diagnostic test development and validation and advanced 3D cell culture systems, alongside providing veterinary oversight for small animal research facilities at the Black Mountain site. This research improved our understanding of how these viruses behave in wild rabbit populations and informed their strategic use in vertebrate pest management.