Supervisor research projects

A/Prof Bruno Saragiotto

Dr Bruno T Saragiotto is a physiotherapist and senior lecturer at the discipline of physiotherapy at UTS. Bruno has published over 90 research articles and has over 3,000 citations on his work. The overarching focus of his research is on telehealth for chronic pain conditions, innovation in rehabilitation, and implementation science.

He is also an editor at the Cochrane Musculoskeletal group and associate editor at the Brazilian Journal of Physical Therapy and the Chiropractic and Manual Therapy journal. He hosts the podcast Physio Frontiers that aims to bridge the gap between research and practice, and co-leads the PEDro Brazil, which is a satellite of the Physiotherapy Evidence Database in Brazil.

Bruno is passionate about teaching physiotherapy and supervise research-focused master and PhD students. Bruno has strong collaborations in Australia, Canada, Brazil, USA, Netherlands, Denmark, and New Zealand.

Current research projects

The REABILITADOR trial: Evaluation of the efficacy of an internet-based pain education and exercise program for chronic musculoskeletal pain in comparison with online self-management booklet: a randomised controlled trial with assessor-blinded, 12-month follow-up, and economic evaluation.
The EDUCADOR trial: Implementation of an Online Pain Education for Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain in the Brazilian Public Health System: a Hybrid Type III Randomised Controlled Trial with Economic Evaluation.
Telehealth curricula for higher education: A Delphi project on the development of skills and competencies to teach telehealth at higher education.
Telehealth terminologies and research priorities in the musculoskeletal field: A Delphi project to develop a consensus on the most appropriate terminology for telehealth and development of a research agenda for telehealth.
The effectiveness of telerehabilitation for chronic pain conditions: Umbrella project for three Cochrane reviews on low back pain, neck pain and osteoarthritis.
The Cochrane Exercise Network for low back pain: Umbrella project for 9 Cochrane reviews on exercise for low back pain and a living network meta-analysis.

Dr Joshua Pate

Current Research projects

A child’s concept of pain. Building upon my PhD findings there are a range of studies underway using the Concept of Pain Inventory (COPI).
Bridging the gap between the health and education sectors regarding paediatric pain. My PhD student Rebecca Fechner is leading the charge into research in schools about the potential role of teachers engaging with the latest pain science research.
Upskilling and training non-technical skills of community clinicians working with children challenged by chronic pain. My PhD student Jen Norton is undertaking her PhD to explore how variables like empathy influence clinical interactions, in the context of improving future professional development education.
PainSmart: Integrating education and clinical care for adolescents with pain. This $1.24 million grant led by Prof Steven Kamper involves a large multi-site randomised-controlled trial in schools.
A gamified sensory training technology for youth with chronic pain (‘TrainPain’). This US$150,000 (~AU$255,000) grant led by Prof Laura Simons involves a collaboration with the paediatric pain clinic affiliated with Stanford University.
Physiotherapy Student Surveys (PhySS). This larger ongoing series of projects involves longitudinal assessments of MPhysio student attributes and beliefs
PETAL (Pain Education Team Aspiring better Learning) group. I am part of this large, ambitious, collaborative project.
Pain Online. The way that pain is portrayed in the media and online may not be evidence-informed, and so this series of projects relates to concepts like ‘Dr Google’.

Future projects

Public pain messaging. The latest evidence around potentially helpful messages about pain has not yet reached broader society in a way that other initiatives has (eg. ‘Slip Slop Slap’, tobacco cessation, seatbelt wearing). This line of research involves mixed methods and a co-design approach to public pain-related messaging.
Virtual Reality for people challenged by persisting pain in rural and remote Australia. In a large multidisciplinary collaboration we are working toward equipping rural clinicians with the latest technology to improve health outcomes.
Paediatric pain clinical studies. Several brilliant collaborative efforts are commencing in the field of childhood pain

I am interested in discussing any projects broadly related to those listed above. So please do feel free to reach out.

Dr Peter Stubbs

My overall research goals are to improve physiotherapy practice, enhance research ‘literacy’ in students/practitioners and better patient outcomes. With this in mind, my research interests include:

Neurorehabilitation (particularly acquired brain injury)
UTS-Physiotherapy STUDent SurveY (PHYSS study): Assessing student knowledge / perceptions on areas of Physiotherapy taught in the UTS Masters of Physiotherapy program
Research databases: Developing, omplementing, evaluating and using research databases to improve patient outcomes
Meta-epidemiological research: including abstract spin, trial pre-registration and quality of reporting of systematic reviews
Emerging techniques/technologies: (i.e., Virtual Reality, Blood Flow Restriction and Robotics) to improve strength and function in older people and people following neurological injuries
Neck pain: Investigating the effectiveness of interventions for neck pain in people with work related neck pain.

I would love to chat to or work with anyone (student or academic) who has similar goals and interests.

Dr Anthony Nasser

Anthony's research focuses on musculoskeletal pain and injury with an emphasis on sport and physical activity, where there is a need for evidence-based approaches to assessment, management and prevention.

Dr Poonam Mehta

Dr Poonam Mehta is an early-mid career academic and researcher with nearly seven years of teaching experience.

She is a trained Pediatrics physiotherapist and has completed her undergraduate degree (Bachelors of Physiotherapy- 2007) and Masters Study (Masters of Physiotherapy in Pediatrics- 2009) in India.

After working as a Lecturer in India (2009-2011), she moved to New Zealand to start her PhD at the School of Physiotherapy, University of Otago. Her doctoral research was in the area of Neuropathic pain and was completed in 2015 with a thesis entitled “Neuropathic pain: Outcome measures and their psychometric properties”. This study focused on identifying reliable and valid outcomes measures for diabetic neuropathic pain. During her PhD, she worked as a distant lecturer at the Angelia Ruskin University, Chelmsford, Essex, UK.

After her graduation, Poonam worked as an Assistant Research Fellow at the National Science Challenge- Ageing Well, hosted by the University of Otago, New Zealand (2017-2018).

Poonam has her teaching interests in Outpatient rehabilitation and Prevention and Rehabilitation in the Community. Her research interests are in health and wellbeing throughout the span of ageing; her approaches have included Systematic reviews, clinical trials, qualitative research, and observational longitudinal studies.

Elise Robinson

Elise Robinson is available as a Master of Research supervisor.

A/Prof Rafael Zambelli de Almeida Pinto

Rafael is an Associate Professor leading many research projects.

Contact him: Rafael Zambelli de Almeida Pinto.

Dr Mark Overton

Dr Mark Overton is a Senior Lecturer and Physiotherapist who has worked clinically in an interdisciplinary pain management and rehabilitation team for 10+ years. He completed his PhD at the University of Otago in New Zealand, where he led the Understanding Knee Osteoarthritis Pain Experiences (U-KOPE) study. This study involved collecting psychosocial and lifestyle factors related to the knee osteoarthritis pain experience using an intensive smartphone daily diary method (Ecological Momentary Assessment). Participants in this study also underwent Quantitative Sensory Testing to assess their ‘pain sensitivity’ and explore potential predictors of knee osteoarthritis outcomes.

His research has been published in Pain Reports, Osteoarthritis & Cartilage Open, The Clinical Journal of Pain, Frontiers in Pain Research, Musculoskeletal Science and Practice as well as the New Zealand Journal of Physiotherapy.

Mark’s current areas of interest include:
-    Pain
-    Knee osteoarthritis
-    Quantitative Sensory Testing
-    Smartphone Ecological Momentary Assessment
-    Psychosocial and lifestyle factors involved in the pain experience
-    Physical activity, exercise and education interventions
-    Supported self-management interventions
-    Interprofessional rehabilitation
-    Occupational health.

Please feel free to get in touch to discuss opportunities for collaboration and/or supervision. Read more about Mark Overton.

Lucy Robertson

Lucy Robertson is available as a Master of Research supervisor.

Contact Lucy Robertson.

Jack Reeves

Jack Reeves is a Lecturer of Physiotherapy of the UTS Graduate School of Health and a PhD candidate at the University of Sydney (USYD). His PhD research evaluates the effectiveness of pulmonary telerehabilitation for people with persistent respiratory sequelae following COVID-19. He also has a research interest in avoiding postoperative pulmonary and other complications in patients undergoing major surgeries, including cancer surgeries.

Jack is open to Master of Research students in cardiorespiratory physiotherapy.