PIRI Staff
PIRI Clinical & Research Staff’s Expertise
Professor Jeannette Milgrom
Executive Director
Professor Milgrom has been involved in clinical practice and research on difficulties in the mother-infant interaction and postnatal depression (PND) since 1978, and has held a Harkness Fellowship in the USA as well as an O’Rouke Fellowship in Paris for work with families and infants. She has developed a model centre for families and infants, the “Infant Clinic”, and her signature programs include the HUGS intervention program targeting the parent-infant relationship and her postnatal depression treatments. Read more…
Dr Alan Gemmill
Deputy Director, Research and Senior Research Fellow
Dr Alan Gemmill has strong interests in reproductive biology, human health, psychology and biomedical statistics. His published work has modelled the reproductive ecology of infectious, disease-causing organisms in the light of modern evolutionary theory and has focussed on direct experimental tests of theoretical predictions. In recent years his interests have covered diverse biomedical topics from the genetics of malaria parasite to issues of mother-infant mental health. As Deputy Director Research of PIRI, Read more…
Dr Charlene Holt
Research Fellow
Dr Holt graduated with a Bachelor of Social Science (Psychology) at RMIT University, Melbourne in 2001 and a Postgraduate Diploma in Psychology at the University of Melbourne in 2002. She completed her Doctor of Clinical Psychology degree at La Trobe University, Melbourne in 2007. Dr Holt joined the PIRI team in February 2006. Dr Holt is responsible for coordinating the Group-based treatment for PND study (including HUGS), the Motivational Interviewing project and the Community HUGS program.
Dr Yafit Hirshler
Research Fellow
Dr Yafit Hirshler graduated with a Bachelor of Life Sciences at Bar-Ilan University, Israel in 2002. She completed her Doctor of Neuroscience degree at Bar-Ilan University, Israel in April 2010. Dr Hirshler joined the PIRI team in October 2018 and is responsible for coordinating the Beating the Blues Before Birth study.
Dr Andre Rodrigues
Research Fellow
Dr. Andre Rodrigues has a PhD with Monash University in Health Behaviour Change and Chronic Disease Prevention. He has worked at the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute and Monash IVF Group and is interest in chronic disease prevention, health behaviour change and maternal-fetal health. Andre joined the PIRI team in November working across various projects within the eMental Health space.
Mrs Sarah Maher
Research Assistant
Sarah has BSc (Behavioural Science), Grad Dip (Clinical Research) 10 years’ experience working in research at St Vincent’s Hospital, Department of Anaesthesia, where she coordinated projects investigating post-operative delirium and cognitive changes in elderly patients.
Ms Rachel Watts
Clinical Psychologist
Rachel graduated from Melbourne University with a Bachelor Science in 1990, and completed a Graduate Diploma in Applied at Science at RMIT in 1991. At PIRI, Rachel works as a Clinical Psychologist, and she coordinates the Getting Ahead of Postnatal Depression groups. Read more…
Ms Jennifer Ericksen
Senior Clinical Psychologist
Appointed a Board Director in 2001 and Consultant Senior Clinical Psychologist
Jennifer Ericksen is a Consultant Senior Clinical Psychologist, Program and Training Manager at the Parent-Infant Research Institute, Austin Health. She has specialised in developing and evaluating clinical interventions for mothers and fathers experiencing anxiety and depression during the child bearing years. Jennie has provided training to Maternal and Child Health Nurses, Psychologists, General Practitioners and Midwives and was previously Manager of Perinatal Mental Read more…
Dr Carmel Ferretti
Clinical Psychologist
Dr Carmel Ferretti is part of the PIRI’s PremieStart team and completed a PhD in Psychology at the University of Melbourne in 2016. Her study evaluated a transactional model of factors predicting maternal sensitivity in a preterm population at 2 years of age and its relationship to child cognitive functioning at 2 years. She has extensive experience working developmentally with young children and in particular premature children and has been part of the PIRI team for the past 10 years.
Dr Tamsin Kane
Clinical Psychologist
Tamsin completed a Bachelor of Arts Degree at Monash University majoring in Psychology and graduated with a Doctorate of Clinical Psychology from Deakin University in 2000. At PIRI, Tamsin is working as a Clinical Psychologist facilitating the Getting Ahead of Post Natal Depression groups.
Dr Michele Burn
Research Psychologist
Dr Michele Burn completed a Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Deakin University. Her doctoral thesis focused on the impact of family-based child mental health interventions on parental mental health and wellbeing. Michele has experience working in both public and private practice settings with children, youth and adults, and she has a keen interest in perinatal and infant mental health. In her role at PIRI, Michele works as a research psychologist across several projects including PIRI’s clinical trials and eMental Health programs. Michele is also a psychologist in the BUPA Parent and Baby Wellbeing program where she provides treatment support for expecting and new parents.
Ms Elizabeth Loughlin
Dance Therapist
Ms Loughlin is a professional dance therapist who has worked with mothers and infants in dance in the community, studio and clinical setting for many years. At the Austin Health Infant Clinic, she offers dance and movement with music as a therapeutic intervention for mothers with postnatal depression and their infants. The aim is to build on the mother’s intuitive processes that may have been dampened by postnatal depression and to encourage expressive communication between infant and mother.Read more…
Professor Helen Skouteris
Honorary Senior Research Fellow
Helen Skouteris is the Monash Warwick Alliance Professor of Healthcare Improvement and Implementation Science at Monash University. Helen is focused on establishing long term collaborative research and education/training programs in healthcare improvement, and implementation science/health services research. Helen has a strong track record in longitudinal multi-factorial research, randomised controlled trials, implementation research and higher degree research supervision. Her work has been focused extensively on maternal and child health, as well as on social service and educational sector improvement.
Dr Melissa Buultjens
Honorary Research Fellow
Melissa Buultjens is a midwife who shares her time between working clinically, and as a lecturer in the School of Public Health at La Trobe University. Melissa’s recently completed her PhD which involved evaluating the efficacy of a multi-facet group programme for primiparous women making the transition to parenthood compared with routine primary care. The program combines information on mood/coping with nutritional, physiotherapy and lifestyle advice and aims to reduce the incidence of emotional distress 3 months postpartum and facilitate the transition to motherhood. Professor Milgrom was a co-supervisor for Melissa’s PhD and she continues to contribute to the work of PIRI.
Dr Holly Andrewes
Research Psychologist
Dr Holly Andrewes completed Masters and PhD in Clinical Psychologist at the University of Melbourne. She has experience working in public and private settings with individuals spanning all ages. Holly has a special interest in perinatal and infant mental health with parents experiencing both acute and chronic mental illnesses. She previously worked at the Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Initiative (PIMHI) at Austin Health and provides annual Berry street trainings in the area of infant mental health. In her role at PIRI, Holly works as a research psychologist across a number of projects and research trials. She also coordinates the BUPA Parent and Baby Wellbeing program and provides treatment to expecting and new parents experiencing a range of mental health problems.
