Keynote Speaker

Prof Tarun Weeramanthri
Chief Health Officer, Department of Health,
Government of Western Australia (Australia)

Professor Weeramanthri is the Chief Health Officer for the Government of Western Australia. In 2014, he received the Sydney Sax Medal, the pre-eminent prize awarded by the Public Health Association of Australia, for his notable contribution to the protection and promotion of public health in Australia.

Professor Weeramanthri, through his leadership, has framed the Australian rare disease debate as a significant unmet public health issue. Specifically, the Public Health & Clinical Services Division (PHCSD) has led the development of the WA State Strategy for Rare Diseases and has sponsored the discussion at the Australian Health Ministers’ Advisory Council (AHMAC) on the need for a National Plan for Rare Diseases. PHCSD are members of the International Rare Diseases Consortium (IRDiRC) and the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health (GA4GH). Tarun is a Chief investigator on the European Commission Framework Program 7 RD-Connect grant to develop an integrated platform connecting databases, registries, biobanks and clinical bioinformatics for rare disease research. Further to these rare diseases efforts, the PHCSD is the Australian portal for Orphanet, the global portal for rare diseases and orphan drugs. These efforts are consistent with his desire to integrate the new genomics knowledge into robust public health frameworks, and ensure the effective translation of new knowledge into improving the health of all Australians.