Sue Sharrad has over 40 years’ experience in nursing, working in a variety of settings and in a variety of roles. Her clinical areas of speciality include Intensive Care Nursing and Parkinson’s disease Nursing. Sue has also over 10 years’ experience working in an academic setting being involved in the education of both undergraduate and post graduate students. She has published in peer reviewed journals, presented at local, national and international conferences and supervised Masters students to completion.
Sue’s research interests are motivated by improving the lives of people with Parkinson's disease, particularly those who live in regional areas of Australia. She has been successful in securing research grants... Read more
About me
Sue Sharrad has over 40 years’ experience in nursing, working in a variety of settings and in a variety of roles. Her clinical areas of speciality include Intensive Care Nursing and Parkinson’s disease Nursing. Sue has also over 10 years’ experience working in an academic setting being involved in the education of both undergraduate and post graduate students. She has published in peer reviewed journals, presented at local, national and international conferences and supervised Masters students to completion.
Sue’s research interests are motivated by improving the lives of people with Parkinson's disease, particularly those who live in regional areas of Australia. She has been successful in securing research grants from the University of South Australia, The Hospital Research Foundation Group and Pain Nurses Australia to continue research with this goal. In addition, Sue is the co-supervisor of two PhD research students with projects focused on Parkinson's disease.
Sue has initiated a monthly nurse-led Parkinson's disease clinic via the University of South Australia's health service and provides face to face or telehealth consultations. Furthermore, Sue enjoys actively engaging in educational sessions and seminars for clinicans and people with Parkinson's and carers to ensure people with Parkinson's can live well and are safe in healthcare environments.
Lastly, Sue is a member of the Rosemary Bryant AO Research Centre, Australasian Neuroscience Nurses Association (ANNA) and a member of the South Australian Department of Health and Wellbeing’s Human Research Ethics Committee.
About me
Australasian Neuroscience Nurses Association.
South Australian Department of Health and Wellbeing's Human Research Ethics Committee
About me
| Date | Title |
|---|---|
| 04/11/2025 |
Personalised care key to easing pain for people with Parkinson's, https://www.unisa.edu.au/media-centre/Releases/2025/personalised-care-key-to-easing-pain-for-people-with-parkinsons/ |
| 16/06/2017 |
Study aims to answer why growing numbers of young people are turning away from alcohol., https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-06-16/why-are-more-teenagers-turning-away-from-alcohol/8621124 |
About me
Doctor of Philosophy in Medicine (Nursing) The University of Adelaide
Master of Nursing The Flinders University of South Australia
Graduate Diploma in Intesntive Care Nursing The University of Adelaide
Bachelor of Education (Secondary Mathemathics / Sciences) University of South Australia
Current:
November 2020 Senior Lecturer in Nursing, University of South Australia.
Previous History:
February 2017 - November 2020 Parkinson's disease Nurse Consultant, The Rural Support Service
July 2018 - December 2019 Acting Advanced Nurse Educator - Clinical Development, The Rural Support Service
September 2015 - February 2017 Parkinson's disease Clinical Practice Consultant, Flinders Medical Centre
February 2007 - September 2015 Lecturer in Nursing, The University of Adelaide
May 2006 - Februray 2007 Clinical Skills Laboratory Coordinator, Medical Learning and Teaching Unit, The University of Adelaide
July 2003 - May 2006 Lecturer in Nursing, Flinders University
1984 - 2020 clinical nursing practice in a variety of setting and roles.
Education:
2020 PhD, The University of Adelaide
2005 Master of Nursing, Flinders University
1996 Graduate Diploma Intensive Care Nursing, The University of Adelaide
1991 Bachelor of Education, University of South Australia.
2025
The Hospital Research Foundation - $132,324.00. Co-investigator for the project titled “Evaluation of the Parkinson’s Nurse Specialists Service. ID 207052.” Chief Investigator Professor Marion Eckert, other co-investigators; Ms Deborah Forsythe, Professor Rajabrata Banerjee, Professor Saravana Kumar, Dr Amy Jarvis, Mr Anthony Mezzini, Mr Greg Shaplin.
Pain Nurses Australia Grant - $5000.00. Chief Investigator for the project titled “Understanding pain care provision by specialist nurses for people living with Parkinson’s disease in healthcare settings. ID 115360.” Co-investigators Professor Saravana Kumar, Dr Joanne Harmon, University of South Australia, Joanne Dalton,... Read more
Research
Excludes commercial-in-confidence projects.
Understanding pain care provision by specialist nurses for people living with Parkinson’s disease in healthcare settings, Pain Nurses Australia Ltd, 03/04/2025 - 02/04/2026
Investigating the adequacy of care delivered to people living with Parkinson’s disease in regional South Australia., The Hospital Research Foundation, 01/03/2025 - 28/02/2026
Parkinson's Nurse Specialists Service Evaluation, The Hospital Research Foundation, 01/05/2025 - 31/10/2025
Understanding pain experiences in a cohort of people living with Young Onset Parkinson’s, The Hospital Research Foundation, 01/03/2023 - 31/05/2023
2025
DVCR Seed Funding - $5000.00. Co-Investigator for the project titled “Nursing and Midwifery academics facilitation of fair and equal moderation of theoretical assessment practices in large student cohorts.” Co-investigators, Dr Joanne Harmon, Associate Professor Angela Brown, Ms Carly Jones, Ms Yvette Jones, Mrs Leah Hoendervanger, Ms Dunya Markovic, University of South Australia.
Research
Research outputs for the last seven years are shown below. Some long-standing staff members may have older outputs included. To see earlier years visit ORCID or Scopus
Open access indicates that an output is open access.
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2024 |
|
| 2016 |
|
| 2016 |
|
| 2016 |
|
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2025 |
Open access
|
| 2025 |
Open access
|
| 2024 |
Open access
2
2
1
|
| 2023 |
Open access
|
| 2022 |
Open access
|
| 2022 |
7
7
2
|
| 2015 |
1
3
|
| 2013 |
20
21
|
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2025 |
|
| Year | Output |
|---|---|
| 2024 |
|
| 2023 |
Open access
|
| 2023 |
Open access
|
| 2022 |
|
$5000.00 Grant from the Palliative Care Curriculum for Undergraduate (PCC4U) Project for a course improvement initiative entitled ‘Palliative Care Curriculum Mapping Project’.
Research
2025
The Hospital Research Foundation - $132,324.00. Co-investigator for the project titled “Evaluation of the Parkinson’s Nurse Specialists Service. ID 207052.” Chief Investigator Professor Marion Eckert, other co-investigators; Ms Deborah Forsythe, Professor Rajabrata Banerjee, Professor Saravana Kumar, Dr Amy Jarvis, Mr Anthony Mezzini, Mr Greg Shaplin.
Pain Nurses Australia Grant - $5000.00. Chief Investigator for the project titled “Understanding pain care provision by specialist nurses for people living with Parkinson’s disease in healthcare settings. ID 115360.” Co-investigators Professor Saravana Kumar, Dr Joanne Harmon, University of South Australia, Joanne Dalton, Parkinson’s Nurse Consultant, Royal Adelaide Hospital, and Parkinson’s disease Nurse Specialist, The Hospital Research Foundation.
2024
The Hospital Research Foundation Group – Parkinson’s Grant - $5000.00. Chief Investigator for the project titled “Assessing the adequacy of care delivered to people living with Parkinson’s disease ID 11265.” Co-investigators, Professor Saravana Kumar, Professor Marion Eckert, Dr Joanne Harmon, University of South Australia.
2022
The Hospital Research Foundation Group – Parkinson’s Grant - $10,000.00. Chief Investigator for the project titled “Understanding pain experiences in a cohort of people living with Young Onset Parkinson’s disease (YOPD) ID 111285.” Co-investigators, Dr Shila Panadgoo, Dr Joanne Harmon, University of South Australia.
DVCR Seed Funding - $5000.00. Chief Investigator for the project titled “Understanding the management of Parkinson's disease in rural, regional, and remote South Australia. ID 109740.” Co-investigators, Professor Marion Eckert, Professor Saravana Kumar, Dr Joanne Harmon, University of South Australia.
2021
Winner of the Tonnie Koenen Award for the paper that makes a significant comment on the practice of neuroscience nursing; Sharrad, S Jones, S & Uy, J 2021, 'Utilising academic expertise and students in the implementation of an interdisciplinary clinic for the management of Parkinson’s disease (PD) in regional South Australia - proposal', in ANNA & MDC 2021 Conference, Local Connections, Sydney, 11 November 2021.
Utilising academic expertise and students in the implementation of an interdisciplinary clinic for the management of Parkinson’s disease (PD) in regional South Australia.
Improving the quality of life of people living with Parkinson's disease by advancing pain care provision.
2020
The Hospital Research Foundation RLHN Research Grant Round – Application No HN-RHLN-04-2019, $49,980.00. Chief Investigator for the project titled “Investigation and development of a regional stroke coordinator role for South Australia”. Co-investigators: Sandra Gilbert, Nursing Director, Rural Support Service and Associate Professors David Evans, Terri Gibson, Rachael Vernon, University of South Australia.
Sue is a Parkinson's disease nurse specialist and therefore is a frequently invited speaker at Parkinson's disease Support Groups across the state, educating people living with Parkinson's disease and their families on living well with the condition.
She was also an invited author on the Australian College of Nurses Parkinson's Care course. This is a course open to post-graduate students of many healthcare disciplines.
Additionally, she was a consultant on the development of the Parkinson's SA Young Onset Parkinson’s Exchange (YOP-X) app and website, launched in 2021 and the Hospitalisation 'Grab Bag' initiative, in which a group of resources were produced to enhance the safety of hospitalised people living with Parkinson's disease.
External engagement & recognition
| Organisation | Country |
|---|---|
| Dystonia Network of Australia Inc. (DNA) | AUSTRALIA |
| Joanna Briggs Institute | AUSTRALIA |
| Lyell McEwin Hospital | AUSTRALIA |
| Macquarie University | AUSTRALIA |
| Private Individual | UNITED KINGDOM |
| Queensland Health | AUSTRALIA |
| Rockingham General Hospital | AUSTRALIA |
| SA Health | AUSTRALIA |
| Sunshine Coast Hospital | AUSTRALIA |
| University of Adelaide | AUSTRALIA |
| University of South Australia | AUSTRALIA |
| Western Sydney Local Health District | AUSTRALIA |
External engagement & recognition
| Engagement/recognition | Year |
|---|---|
Editor/Education Advisor DystoniaAustralasian Neuroscience Nurses Association Movement Disorder Chapter |
2021 |
Editor/Education Advisor Huntington'sAustralian Neuroscience Nurses Association Movement Disorder Chapter |
2021 |
Editor/Education Advisor Lewy Body Dementia/Parkinson's disease dementia GroupAustralasian Neurosciences Nurses Association |
2021 |
Editor/Education Advisor Parkinson's diseaseAustralasian Neuroscience Nurses Association Movement Disorder Chapter |
2021 |
Invited Speaker to the Parkinson's Disease Support Group Regional South AustraliaResthaven Inc |
2020 |
SA's Premiers Nursing and MidwiferySA Health |
2017 |
1. 2016/2017: $12,000.00 SA Premier’s Nursing and Midwifery Scholarship
Title of Study Program: Utilising the experiences and innovations of national and international expertise to create a sustainable model of nursing care for people living with Parkinson’s disease in South Australia.
Date of Tour: 24 August 2016 – 5 October 2016.
2. Invited to become the Australian Neuroscience Nurses Association Editor/Education Advisor for the following groups;
2010: Best Undergraduate Teacher for the School of Population Health and Clinical Practice, The University of Adelaide.
2013: High Commendation for Excellence in University Teaching, Faculty of Health Sciences, The University of Adelaide.
Teaching & student supervision
Teaching & student supervision
Supervisions from 2010 shown
| Thesis title | Student status |
|---|---|
| Bridging the Sex and Gender Gap in Parkinson's disease Research | Current |
| Closing an evidence-practice gap in Parkinson¿s disease: Improving the quality of life of people living with Parkinson¿s disease by advancing pain care provision | Current |
