Academy Fellowship recognising respected TRI CEO

TRI CEO Professor Scott Bell has been elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences (AAHMS), in recognition of his outstanding
achievements and contributions.

Professor Bell’s election reflects his standing as an internationally recognised
respiratory physician and research leader who has enhanced understanding of the
mechanisms of infection and transmission in people with cystic fibrosis.

He commenced at The Prince Charles Hospital in 1996, where he established the Lung Transplant program, secured state-wide centre status for the Adult Cystic Fibrosis Centre and was its director from 1998 until 2016.

A career highlight has been Professor Bell’s leading role in developing a new global blueprint for the care of people with cystic fibrosis.

The work, published in Lancet Respiratory Medicine and cited 658 times (Scopus, October 2024), will support the care for global population of more than 100,000 people with cystic fibrosis, including 3500 Australians.

Professor Bell has also been instrumental in driving national scale-up biomedical manufacturing capability, with the construction of a new translational manufacturing facility, funded by the Queensland Government and TRI.

It will be the first facility of its kind in Australia to support mid-stage biotech companies as they mature, expand and scale-up product manufacturing for early-stage clinical trials.

Professor Bell says the AAHMS Fellowship is an honour, as well as an opportunity to provide expert advice and advocacy in conversations with the community, industry and government about pressing health needs.

“Fellows come from across the health and medical sciences to ensure we have an elected body with representation from different disciplines and areas of expertise,” he says.

“Working with such an interdisciplinary body of accomplished Fellows will be insightful, motivating and rewarding.

“Ultimately, we have been selected to work together to ensure the most pressing health issues facing society can be addressed for everyone’s benefit.”

AAHMS Fellows drive change, provide leadership, engage in debate and act as mentors to the next generation of health and medical researchers.

A key focus of the Academy during the past 12 months has been ensuring the survival of clinician scientists within the Australian healthcare landscape by advocating nationally on the crucial role they play in building research-rich health services.

Fellows include household names such as Nobel Laureate Professor Peter Doherty, burns specialist Professor Fiona Wood and University of Queensland immunologist Professor Ian Frazer – all previously named an Australian of the Year.

TRI is well represented, with TRI-based AAHMS Fellows including UQ Professors Di Yu, Gabrielle Belz, Peter Soyer, Gerald Holtmann, Ranjeny Thomas and Michael Roberts; QUT Distinguished Professors Patsy Yates and Judith Clements and the late Professor Pam Russell; Metro South Health Professors Carmel Hawley and David Johnson; and former CEO of Metro South Health Professor David Theile.

Professor Bell’s election was announced at the AAHMS Annual Meeting in Adelaide.

He was one of four Queenslanders to be admitted to the academy in 2024, alongside UQ infectious diseases epidemiologist Professor James Ward, gynaecological cancer surgeon and researcher Professor Andreas Obermair, and QIMR-Berghofer statistical geneticist Professor Stuart MacGregor.

“This demonstrates the depth and quality of Queensland researchers and the high regard for the research ecosystem we are shaping here,” Professor Bell says.

“Having Queensland represented at AAHMS also provides additional avenues for collaboration, knowledge sharing and research translation.”