RETAINING A CLINICAL PERSPECTIVE IN MACRO LEVEL CHANGES
With
Dr Shona Sundaraj,
Group Medical Director
Medibank
PEOPLE IN HEALTH CARE SEGMENT
Filmed in Sydney | August 2026
Dr Shona Sundaraj BAppSc (Phty), MBBS, FRACGP, MBA is Group Medical Director at Medibank, bringing over two decades of clinical and systems experience to strategy, research and stakeholder engagement. She leads the Medibank Better Health Research Hub and Chairs the Health Research Governance Committee, guiding stakeholder engagement, competitive grant rounds and partnerships with universities, translational research centres and peak bodies to support evidence based improvement in care.
Shona combines frontline clinical insight with corporate experience across health, insurance and primary care. Shona was awarded an Imperial Excellence Scholarship and completed her MBA through Imperial College Business School. She has completed executive leadership study at Harvard University. Her previous roles include senior medical positions at Zurich Financial Services and TAL, where she contributed to product innovation, risk mitigation and preventative health initiatives. She has led primary care operations through COVID19 period in primary care.
Her work is shaped by a lifelong commitment to healthy ageing as a life course priority, and to translating evidence into accessible, person-centred models of care. She has chaired both Sustainability and Research Governance groups, driven AI-enabled prevention pilots, supported medical education and worked in community volunteer clinics for vulnerable people experiencing homelessness.
A Sydney native, Shona is a mother of two and enjoys running and walking her two dogs along the harbour and beaches. Her focus in her roles as Senior Executive leader at Medibank, non-executive director and invited speaker is the practical impact that collaboration can have on the health of Australia.
Source: Supplied
Media access credit: Women’s Health MedTech Summit Australia 2026 | Medical Technology Association of Australia (MTAA)
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New clinical research entity first to operate across both Australia and New Zealand
Over the past 30 years, 18,000 clinical trials that have been registered in Australia, with the sector contributing $1.4 billion to Australia’s economy annually. Trials are a critical aspect of evidence-based medicine, and are essential for testing how new treatments, tests and vaccines will work. In New Zealand they contribute $146 million to the New Zealand economy.
To capitalise on this unique position and growth, a coordinated multi-site clinical research operation was missing, until now.
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30 years on, Viertel Foundation legacy continues
One of Australia’s largest charitable foundations, the Sylvia and Charles Viertel Charitable Foundation, is celebrating three decades of transforming Australian healthcare – with more than $90 million invested in medical research and a legacy of breakthroughs that are saving lives. Viertel Fellowships support some of Australia’s best and brightest researchers and clinicians, with 70 Fellowships awarded to date.
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Getting the conversation going on the connection between oral health and chronic conditions
Dr. Carol Tran is an Oral Health Therapist and co-founder of Oral Health Home, an organisation focused on innovative, prevention-oriented oral health education and outreach. She is a Past President of Dental Hygienists Association of Australia (DHAA) and currently is the Scientific Program Chair, for upcoming congress in October 2025, for the newly formed Oral Health Association of Australia (OHAA).
