tRAINING COURSE Speakers
The Training Course Officers coordinate teaching from eminent and highly experienced professionals from the many fields which are part of wilderness and expedition medicine.
Professor Mike Tipton
Mike Tipton is a world-renowned expert on extreme environment physiology and one of the go-to points of information for things related to immersion. Mike Tipton has been awarded and MBE for physiological research in extreme environments. He worked for 10 years with the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s Medical & Survival Committee, and helped to develop the successful ‘Float to Live’ campaign. He was Senior Editor of the journal “Extreme Physiology and Medicine” until 2016 and is currently Editor-in-Chief of The Physiological Society’s journal “Experimental Physiology”. He has published over 600 scientific papers, reports, and chapters in the fields of physiological, pathophysiological and psychological responses to adverse environments and the selection, preparation and protection of those who enter such environments.
Doctor Shawna Pandya
Dr. Shawna Pandya is a physician, speaker, martial artist, citizen-scientist astronaut candidate with Projects PoSSUM & PHEnOM, and prime crew aquanaut with Project Poseidon. Through her involvement with Project PoSSUM, Dr. Pandya was part of the first crew to test a commercial spacesuit in micro-gravity. She has also completed centrifuge studies, emergency spacecraft egress and sea survival training, and wilderness medicine training. She also currently serves at the Life Sciences Team Lead for Association of Spaceflight Professionals and the Life Sciences Chair for the Canadian Space Society.
Professor Ben Abo​
Dr Benjamin Abo is an Emergency Physician based in Florida, USA. Dr Abo has extensive experience in first response and search and rescue. He is the Medical Director for Gainesville Fire Rescue, Medical Director for Fire Control Districts, and is an USAR Physician for the South West Florida Urban Search and Rescue Task Force.
On top of his experience as an emergency physician and in search and rescue, Dr Abo is also an expert toxinologist, working as the Primary Investigator for the Miami Dade Venom Response Unit. He is the Medical Director for Haz Tox Inc, a practical tool to assess victims of hazardous materials, and is a Founding Board Member for the Asclepius Snakebite Foundation.
Doctor Pete Hodkinson
Dr Pete Hodkinson is a Consultant in Aviation and Space Medicine, and is the Head of Aerospace Medicine at KCL. Dr Pete Hodkinson is a retired RAF Wing Commander, and was previously based at the RAF Centre of Aviation Medicine. Dr Hodkinson has additional roles on the European Space Agency Medical Board, the Royal Aeronautical Society Aerospace Medicine Group committee, and on the Royal College of Physicians Aviation and Space Medicine Speciality Advisory Committee.
Doctor Ross Pollock
Dr Ross Pollock is a lecturer in Aerospace Physiology in the Centre of Human & Applied Physiological Sciences at KCL. He is the co-director for the KCL MSc Aerospace Medicine course, and works on the MSC Human & Applied Physiology and BSc Sport and Exercise Medical Sciences.
Professor Stephen Harridge
Professor Stephen Harridge is a Professor of Human and Applied Physiology at KCL. Prof Harridge is the Director of the Centre of Human and Aerospace Physiological Sciences.
Prof Harridge will be coming back to speak to our training course this year, talking to us about extreme exercise physiology and the implications for athletes in extreme environments.
Doctor James Clark
Dr James Clark is a lecturer in Human & Applied Physiology at KCL, and is the director of the Human & Applied Physiology MSc.
Dr Clark has worked extensively in cardiovascular research, and is the Academic Lead for Education for the School of Cardiovascular Medicine and Sciences. As well as his research in cardiovascular sciences, Dr Clark's research spans a range of applied physiology. Dr Clark has experience in hyperbaric and dive medicine, particularly the cardiovascular implications of dive physiology.
Doctor Russell Hearn FAWM
Dr Hearn is the Deputy Director of Community Education and the Stage 3 GP Block lead for the MBBS curriculum. He is also the programme lead for our intercalated BSc in Primary Care. He is also the module lead for Doctor as Teacher for Stage 2 medical students. Outside of KCL, Dr Hearn is a GP partner in North London and is also the Pan-London Academic GP Training Programme Director working with Health Education England. His primary research interests are in medical educations. He also has specialist interests in simulation, access to medicine, pre-hospital medicine and wilderness & expedition medicine.
Doctor Michael Conroy FAWM
Dr Conroy is a doctor working in Sussex and has completed his fellowship with the Academy of Wilderness Medicine, gaining his FAWM credentials. KCL WMS have a history of a working relationship with Dr Conroy, and he has kindly ran various workshops for us before, including pre-hospital assessment and airway manouvre workshops.
Doctor Tom Georgi
Tom Georgi is currently an FY2 doctor working at Croydon University Hospital. He has previously completed the FAWM accredited King College London Wilderness Medicine Society training course and has delivered talks on bioterrorism and the psychological response to injury and crisis to students in following years of the same training course.
He has experience in humanitarian medicine having worked for the HALO Trust which deals with clearance operations of explosive remnants of war. He has worked in Sri Lanka, Somaliland and Cambodia. He has also undertaken work establishing humanitarian clearance programmes in Colombia, Sri Lanka and Somalia.