Professor Ajesh George
Co-Founder & Director, ACIOH | Professor of Interprofessional Oral Health, School of Nursing & Midwifery, Western Sydney University | Honorary Professor, School of Dentistry, The University of SydneyBDS, MPH, PhD
Dr Ajesh George is a Professor of Interprofessional Oral Health, School of Nursing & Midwifery, Western Sydney University and Honorary Professor in the School of Dentistry at the University of Sydney. He is also the Co-Founder and Director of the Australian Centre for Integration of Oral Health, Ingham Institute- a leading national research centre. Prof George is also a visiting Professor at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (Bhubaneshwar) and the Manipal College of Dental Science (Mangalore) which are two of the leading government and private educational institutes in India. Dr George is a renowned expert globally in integrating oral health into primary care and training non-dental professionals to promote oral health. Over the last decade he has been coordinating multidisciplinary teams in implementing effective and sustainable models of care across the lifespan and his work has been recognised by key bodies including the World Health Organisation. Prof George has over $8M in funding including national competitive grants, more than 160 publications, 175 conference presentations, 22 research awards and a H-index of 38 with 4788 citations. He has 13 PhD/Masters completions and currently supervises 11 higher degree students. Prof George was recognised as one of the top 2% scientist worldwide across three years (2021, 2024-2025).
Associate Professor Bradley Christian
DEPUTY DIRECTOR, ACIOH | A/PROF IN POPULATION ORAL HEALTH | ADJUNCT FELLOW, WESTERN SYDNEY UNIVERSITYBDS, MDSc, Cert. DPH (NIH/NIDCR), PhD
Bradley Christian is an AHPRA registered specialist in Public Health Dentistry and serves as an Associate Professor of Population Oral Health at the University of Sydney School of Dentistry. He leads the Master of Dental Public Health program—the only specialist training course of its kind in Australia. In addition, he leads the Westmead Oral Health Research Hub, a collaboration with the Western Sydney Local Health District focused on integrating a Learning Health System into public dental care. He also holds the position of Deputy Director at the Australian Centre for Integration of Oral Health at Western Sydney University.
Advisory Committee
Professor Hanny Calache
HEAD, ORAL HEALTH ECONOMICS RESEARCH STREAM, DEAKIN HEALTH ECONOMICS, INSTITUTE OF HEALTH TRANSFORMATION, DEAKIN UNIVERSITY | ADJUNCT PROFESSOR, WESTERN SYDNEY UNIVERSITYBDSc, MDSc, Grad Dip (Health Admin), DPH (Doctor of Public Health)
Hanny Calache is a registered paediatric dentist, with extensive translational research experience in public dental programs in Victoria and nationally. He was the Director, Clinical Leadership at Dental Health Services Victoria. His research interests include health promotion and public health (with a special interest in oral health of vulnerable community groups throughout the life span, health economics and workforce development). He has attracted over $6 million in research grants and has supervised 7 PhD students. Prof. Calache was awarded “Health Minister’s Award for developing a capable and engaged workforce” for his work in extending the scope of practice of dental therapists.
Associate Professor Rachel Martin
DIRECTOR, NIOH | ADJUNCT ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE | ADJUNCT ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, WESTERN SYDNEY UNIVERSITYBDSc, MPH, Grad Dip Ed, FICD, FPFA
Rachel Martin is registered dentist & specialist in public health dentistry, and is committed to oral disease prevention and improving oral health, particularly for vulnerable population groups. She established NIOH with co-directors of ACIOH to ensure build collaboration for the evidence base and translation into practice of oral health within general health.
South Western Sydney Local Health District
Member PartnerFormal partner representative to be confirmed
Sydney Local Health District
Member PartnerFormal partner representative to be confirmed
Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health District
Member PartnerFormal partner representative to be confirmed
Dental Health Services Victoria
Member PartnerFormal partner representative to be confirmed