Invited speakers
We are proud to introduce the following speakers
Dr Heather Armstrong
Dr. Armstrong is an Assistant Professor and Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Integrative Biosciences with the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Manitoba, Adjunct Department of Pediatrics at the University of Alberta.
Her team utilizes a field-to-bench-to-bedside approach to understanding the impact of fermentable dietary factors and ...
Dr Malcolm Arnold
National Clinical Lead
- MB ChB, FRCP, FRACP
Malcolm is a gastroenterologist who has been in NZ for 29 years having trained in the UK and currently working in the Waitaha Canterbury gastroenterology unit.
He is the national clinical lead for the National Endoscopy Quality Improvement (NEQIP) team and ...
Associate Professor Louise Barbier
Louise Barbier is an academic HPB and liver transplant surgeon with a PhD in immunology, and recently joined Auckland City Hospital’s HPB and liver transplant unit teams.
Her expertise is mostly in liver transplantation, liver metastases, liver primary tumors, hepatocellular adenomas, polycystic liver disease, ...
Professor Murray Barclay
Murray Barclay is a Gastroenterologist and Clinical Pharmacologist at Christchurch Hospital, and a Clinical Professor with the University of Otago.
His research interests include drug treatments for inflammatory bowel disease including the thiopurine drugs and biologics, therapeutic drug monitoring, and IBD genetics and pharmacogenetics.
Professor Ian Bissett
Ian Bissett is Professor in Surgery at the University of Auckland and Consultant Colorectal Surgeon at Auckland City Hospital.
He is the past chair of the NZ National Bowel Cancer Working Group, director of the National Intestinal Failure and Rehabilitation Service for Adults and co-director of the Nutrition Support Team at Auckland.
Dr Chris Cederwall
Chris Cederwall is a gastroenterologist practicing in Wellington.
His main area of interest is GI motility disorders particularly oesophageal, gastric and small bowel dysmotility.
He performs a wide range of GI motility testing in Wellington including oesophageal manometry, endoflip and body surface gastric mapping.
Dr Benjamin Cribb
Dr Benjamin Cribb is a consultant general and colorectal surgeon at Tauranga and Grace Hospital since 2022.
He completed his medical degree from Auckland university in 2008 and achieved his FRACS in 2018.
He completed the Australia and New Zealand training board in Colorectal surgery fellowship program in 2021 and is a CSSANZ member (colorectal surgical society of Australia and New Zealand).
Dr Vijay Dyavadi
Dr. Vijay Dyavadi is a 2nd year advanced training registrar working at Tauranga Hospital with a dedication to research and teaching in Gastroenterology. Today he presents intriguing inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) cases, sharing valuable insights into diagnosis and treatment. Join us in exploring IBD with Dr. Dyavadi as he shares his findings and knowledge, which he hopes will benefit patient care and education in Gastroenterology.
Dr Rowan French
General and Bariatric/Metabolic surgeon from Hamilton.
15 years experience in bariatric surgery, primary and revisional surgery.
Currently the Director of Surgery at Te Whatu Ora Waikato.
Interests include obesity phenotypes as predictors of metabolic disease, and public health issues around obesity
Professor Ed Gane
Dr. Gane is Professor of Medicine at the University of Auckland, New Zealand, Hepatologist and Deputy Director of the New Zealand Liver Unit at Auckland City Hospital.
Dr. Gane trained in hepatology at the Institute of Liver Studies, King’s College School of Medicine, London, where he completed a thesis on the then newly discovered hepatitis C virus.
Eryn Gardiner
Eryn works with whanau, for whanau who are predisposed to the CDH1 mutated gene causing stomach cancer and lobular breast cancer.
Walking with our whanau through the various stages of their CDH1 journeys, from genetic counselling and testing to post-surgery.
Professor Swapna Gayam
Swapna Gayam is an Associate Professor of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at West Virginia University, USA.
She did her medical training in India, at the Armed Forces Medical College and completed her Residency in Internal Medicine and fellowship in Gastroenterology at West Virginia University.
Dr Hannah Giles
Dr Hannah Giles is a Hepatologist (New Zealand Liver Transplant Unit) who completed her Gastroenterology training in New Zealand and undertook a Fellowship in immune mediated liver disease, transplantation and liver disease in pregnancy at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.
Subsequently worked as a Consultant at Addenbrookes in Cambridge, UK.
Dr Massimo Giola
Dr Massimo Giola obtained his medical degree in 1991 at the University of Pavia (Italy) and specialised in Infectious Diseases in 1996 (Italy).
He studied antiretroviral drugs’ pharmacokinetics during a PhD programme in Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology from 2005 to 2008 at the University of Varese (Italy).
Dr Murray Hunt
Dr Murray Hunt holds Fellowship qualifications both in palliative medicine and addiction medicine. He currently works as SMO at Waipuna Hospice, Tauranga and visiting Palliative Medicine Specialist for Rotorua Community Hospice, Rotorua.
Dr Hunt previously has held both Medical Director and Clinical Director roles in Addiction Medicine and Palliative Medicine in several large centres, and he remains passionate around workforce development.
Professor Robert Jones
Professor Robert Jones AM is Director of the Victorian Adult and Paediatric Liver Transplant Unit and a Professorial Fellow of the University of Melbourne.
He was born in New Zealand and graduated in Medicine from the University of Dunedin.
He completed his Medical Degree (MB.ChB) at the University of Otago and ...
Dr Shwan Karim
Dr Shwan Karim is a Gastroenterologist and an Interventional Endoscopist at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane.
He completed his Gastroenterology training in Christchurch, prior to seeking advance fellowships in Interventional Endoscopy in Brisbane and London.
Dr Vidya Mathavan
Dr Vidya Mathavan is a Consultant Haematologist working at Waikato Hospital.
Dr David McGouran
David McGouran is a Gastroenterologist and interventional endoscopist from Tauranga.
Dr Chris Moyes
- Qualified in UK, specializing initially in Internal Medicine and later Paediatrics
- Came to New Zealand 1979 as paediatrician at Whakatane
- Worked closely with Sandy Milne in early studies on epidemiology of Hepatitis B and on several vaccine trials in the 1980’s
Dr Ravinder Ogra
MBBS, MD, FRACP, AGAF, FASGE
Gastroenterologist and Interventional Endoscopist.
- Interventional Endoscopist at Middlemore Hospital Auckland, New Zealand.
- On the Executive committee of Australia & New Zealand Endoscopy leaders forum
Dr David Orr
Dr David Orr is a Consultant Hepatologist and Gastroenterologist, working at the New Zealand Liver Transplant Unit, Auckland Hospital and MacMurray Center, Auckland.
David completed his medical training at the University of Otago and specialist training in Auckland before undertaking a transplant hepatology and advanced endoscopy fellowship, at King’s College Hospital, London for 3 years from 2003.
Associate Professor Karyn Paringatai
Karyn Paringatai (Ngāti Porou) is an Associate Professor in Te Tumu – School of Māori, Pacific & Indigenous Studies at the University of Otago.
She has the CDH1 gene, has had a prophylactic gastrectomy, and has been leading the development a Māori research platform in CDH1 genetic research and HDGC clinical practices.
Dr Simone Peters
Dr Simone Peters is a psychophysiologist who combines private practice with a research appointment with the Gastroenterology Department Alfred Health, Monash University.
In 2010, Dr Peters completed her Bachelor of Psychology / Psychophysiology from Swinburne University before undertaking her PhD with Monash University.
Dr Amin Roberts
Dr Roberts is a Paediatric Gastroenterologist and Hepatologist at Starship, and the clinical director of the paediatric arm of the National Intestinal Failure & Rehab Service, having completed he postgraduate medical training in Auckland and Toronto, Canada.
He is actively involved and research and educational activities of the ...
Jeremy Rossak
Jeremy Rossaak is a consultant upper gastrointestinal and pancreatico-biliary surgeon at Tauranga Hospital, New Zealand.
He completed surgical training in New Zealand, completing his training as the Lister Fellow in Glasgow specialising in pancreatic surgery.
Jeremy competed his PhD on the genetics of abdominal aortic aneurysms.
Dr Kamran Rostami
Dr Kamran Rostami is well known for his research on coeliac disease and non-coeliac gluten sensitivity.
He received his MD degree from Carol Davila University Bucharest and completed his PhD at the University of Amsterdam where he defined the seronegative subgroup of coeliac disease and published the initial report on the correlation ...
Dr Cameron Schauer
Cameron is a gastroenterologist working in Auckland.
His dream to become a commercial fisherman was dashed early on in a trial period due to his susceptibility to seasickness. He is passionate about interventional endoscopy, specifically detection, identification and minimally invasive endoscopic removal of early malignancy.
He is a lecturer both at home to his 3 young children and at the University of Auckland.
Dr Teik Choon See
Dr See is a Consultant Interventional Radiologist at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, UK.
His special interest is in Interventional Oncology, Hepatobiliary and Transplant interventions. He receives national referrals for IR management of porto-mesentric vein thrombosis.
He holds/held various leadership roles in national societies including Royal ...
Dr Anurag Sekra
Anurag Sekra is a consultant gastroenterologist and interventional endoscopist practising at Middlemore hospital, Auckland.
He specialises in luminal interventional endoscopy and his interests are complex endoscopic resection of early GI cancers and third space endoscopy.
Anurag also enjoys teaching trainees.
Dr Kiri Sharp
Kiri Sharp a New Zealand registered dietitian who completed her BSc, MDiet and PhD. Kiri’s PhD focused on nutritional triggers of and dietary strategies for treatment of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver disease.
Her other areas of clinical and research interest include Coeliac Disease, Diabetes and sports nutrition. She currently practices as a Diabetes Specialist Dietitian as part of the Diabetes Integrated Team in Taranaki.
Professor Catherine Stedman
Professor Catherine Stedman completed undergraduate medical education through the University of Otago and dual specialist training in gastroenterology and clinical pharmacology at Christchurch Hospital, and Westmead Hospital in Sydney.
PhD research was in molecular pharmacology and cholestasis through the University of Sydney at the Storr Liver Unit (Sydney), ...
Dr William Thomas
Will Thomas is a consultant haematologist at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge. He was appointed in 2017 having been a junior doctor in Devon, London and the East of England.
He is the clinical lead for the East of England specialist TTP centre but also looks after patients with bleeding disorders, thrombosis, obstetric haematology and ...
Kahurangi Tipene
Kahurangi Tipene (Waikato) is a PhD candidate in Te Tumu – School of Māori, Pacific & Indigenous Studies at the University of Otago.
Her PhD is looking at the sociocultural experiences of the McLeod whānau who carry a genetic variant in the CDH1.
She has been involved in developing a Māori research platform in CDH1 genetic research and HDGC clinical practices.
Dr Catherine Wall
Dr Catherine Wall is a New Zealand registered dietitian who resides in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Dr Wall completed a PhD focused on nutritional therapy for adult Crohn’s disease in 2017.
Thereafter, she undertook a postdoctorate at King’s College London under the guidance of Consultant Gastroenterology Dietitian Professor Miranda Lomer.
Dr Chu K Yao
Dr CK Yao is an Advanced Accredited Practising Dietitian & Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Gastroenterology, Alfred Health & Monash University.
CK completed her PhD in 2017 at the Department of Gastroenterology, Monash University looking at new biomarkers to predict success of diet therapies in irritable & inflammatory bowel disease.