Associate Professor Doug Brown AM

Director

Doug is the Founder of the Spinal Research Institute and joined the Board in April 2013.

Doug is a Physician with over 30 years of experience in the management of spinal cord injury. A leader in his field, Doug is passionate about improving the treatment and care of people with spinal cord injury globally, and has held positions at national and international organisations. He is former director of the Victorian Spinal Cord Service, a Past President of the International Spinal Cord Society and is recognised internationally for his contribution to the field.

He has contributed to significant advances in management of spinal cord injury through a wide range of research projects. His research interests include the impact of psycho-social evaluation on rehabilitation of patients with sub-acute injury, new insights into hypertension in spinal cord injury, functional electrical stimulation (FES) treatments to prevent the development of osteoporosis and muscle wasting, employment post injury, the pathophysiology of neuropathic bladder and bowel and treatments to improve their management, and management of sleep disordered breathing in spinal cord injury.

Through his most recent initiative, the world’s first online collaborative platform dedicated to spinal cord injury –the Spinal Cord Research Hub (SCoRH) – he hopes to transform international spinal cord research culture into a more collaborative one that translates research outcomes into practice much sooner, thus improving the everyday lives of people with spinal cord injuries.

In 2021 Doug was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in recognition for his significant service to medicine, particularly to spinal cord injuries.