Hon. Associate Professor Kathryn Goozee is the sole Director of the Kara Institute of Neurological Diseases Pty Ltd (KaRa MINDS), founded in 2015. Kathryn has more than 30 years’ experience in acute health and aged care services, holding senior positions including Director of Nursing, Clinical Nurse Consultant, Nurse Practitioner, and Director of Research. Kathryn completed her PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Western Australia in 2022, with a focus on Alzheimer’s disease prevention. As part of this work, she established and recruited 105 older people at risk of Alzheimer’s disease into a new cohort, the Kerr Anglican Retirement Village Initiative in Ageing Health (KARVIAH). Her research investigated the influence of oral curcumin in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study using blood biomarkers, cognition, and MRI/PET imaging, aligning her work with Macquarie University.

At KaRa MINDS, Kathryn leads a team of 18 staff conducting pharmacological studies for the prevention and treatment of dementia. KaRa MINDS is an official screening site for Alzheimer’s dementia Network (ADNeT) and has earned a strong reputation for recruitment and retention in clinical trials, patient safety, and high-quality data capture. Over the past decade, KaRa MINDS has conducted more than 50 clinical trials in dementia, including studies involving the recently TGA-approved monoclonal antibody therapies Leqembi™ and Kisunla™. These treatments are now accessible privately at KaRa MINDS.

Within the Dementia Research Centre at Macquarie University, led by Professor Lars Ittner, Kathryn is an invited member of the Leadership Group. She is also a Non-Executive Board Member of Scalabrini Communities Ltd and an Executive Member and Co-Chair of the Dementia Trials Australia (DTAus) network.

Kathryn has a particular interest in research translation and in delivering scientific discovery to the bedside. Connecting the community with emerging research and enabling people with dementia and those at risk to access research are key areas of focus. The work at KaRa MINDS has expanded community access to emerging treatments that are often more than 10 years away from routine clinical practice. Other areas of research interest include:

• Dementia prevention / early detection
• Models of clinical practice
• Clinical trial pathways
• Patient and carer support