Robert Booy is Professor of Paediatrics and Child Health at the University of Sydney and affiliated as a Senior Professorial Fellow at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS) at Westmead Children’s Hospital. From 2005 to 2019 he held the position of Head of Clinical Research at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS).
Robert trained in paediatrics during the 1980s at the Royal Children’s Hospital, Brisbane, and spent much of the 1990s doing epidemiological research on life threatening infectious diseases in the United Kingdom. This included 4 years in Oxford where he completed a doctorate on the epidemiology and prevention of Haemophilus influenzae type b disease.
In 1999 Robert was appointed Professor of Child Health, Head of Department, Royal London Hospital, Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London. He returned to Australia in early 2005.
Robert has conducted extensive research into serious infections and their prevention with over 150 scientific publications to his credit.
He is on the Scientific Influenza Advisory Group (SIAG) for the Office of Health Protection, Department of Health and Ageing (DoHA) and the Chief Medical Officer’s Vaccine Advisory Group (VAG) for the Office of Health Protection, DoHA. He is also a member of the Paediatric Scientific Program Committee of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP), the Influenza Specialist Group (ISG) and the ISG Public Affairs & Advisory Committee, the Confederation of Meningitis Organisations (COMO), the Scientific Advisory Committee (sub-committee of the CHW Human Research Ethics Committee) and the NCIRS Scientific Advisory Committee.
Professor Booy has produced a number of videos on the need for immunisation – see the Chain of Protection website. In part of the following video, Polio Australia’s Gillian Thomas talks about the late effects of polio (13 mins 22 secs).