Clinical Advisory Group

Steve Allsop has worked in the drug field for over 40 years and been involved in policy, prevention and treatment research and professional development for health, police, education, welfare staff, sporting and community organisations. He is Professor at the National Drug Research Institute at Curtin University having served as Director from 2005-2016. He has previously worked as the A/Executive Director, Drug and Alcohol Office, Western Australia and the Director of the National Centre for Education and Training on Addiction, Flinders University of South Australia. He has an interest in research, prevention, harm reduction, treatment and policy responses to alcohol and other drug problems. His contribution to the field has been recognised with induction into the WA Alcohol and Other Drug Awards Honour Roll, the APSAD senior scientist award in 2015 and the National Alcohol and Other Drugs Honour Roll in 2017. He has diverse professional and community memberships including:

• Chair Alcohol and other Drug Advisory Board, WA
• Member National Suicide Prevention Office Advisory Board
• Australian National Advisory Council on Alcohol and Drugs (Deputy Chair until 2022; Current member)
• Member Mental Health and Wellbeing Advisory Group, Australian Defence Force
• Director Board, Australian Drug Foundation
• Member Child Death and Domestic Violence Review Panel, Ombudsman, WA
• Member WA Country Football Commission Community Advisory Panel
• Member National FASD Strategy Advisory Group
• Deputy Regional Editor, Addiction
• Chair, WA Network of Alcohol and other Drug Agencies (until 2022)

Dr Monkhouse is a Staff Specialist Paediatrician with the Child, Youth and Family: Drug & Alcohol Service for Hunter New England Health. She also works in private general paediatric practice, keeping her skills broad across the Paediatric age range.
As a general Paediatrician with special interest in Adolescent medicine, Krista is passionate about supporting the whole family in empowering them to learn how to care for each other’s needs.

Dr Monkhouse offers holistic medical support for children and young people at DACS who are physically, emotionally or mentally unwell in relation to their carers or own substance use. In this role, she also supervises paediatric trainees and teaches medical students as a Conjoint Lecturer of the University of Newcastle. Upskilling of health professionals through multiple presentations, conferences and in-services in the area of Adolescent medicine with a focus on how her patient cohorts needs can best be met, has been a significant focus of her work. Dr Monkhouse contributes to multiple working parties with the Ministry of Health to provide clinical advice on how to address our current vaping epidemic in young people. She is also involved in multiple research projects to continue informing evidence based practices for our youth D&A population and has recently developed an Adolescent and Young Adult network in the Hunter region. Due to the significant mental health load associated with this patient cohort, the importance of maintaining a happy and healthy work-life balance is paramount for Dr Monkhouse. When not at work, she is packing in shared moments with her family to turn off her activated sympathetic nervous system and stimulate her parasympathetic system through singing, hiking, camping and travelling!