Esther Adama Assoc/Prof

Qualifications

1. Doctor of Philosophy – Edith Cowan University, Australia
2. Graduate Certificate, Academic Practice (Higher Education), Edith Cowan University, Australia
3. Senior Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)
4. Master of Advanced Nursing (with Distinction), Nottingham University, UK
5. Bachelor of Science in Nursing (First Class Honours), Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana.

Biography

Associate Professor Esther Adama is Associate Head of Nursing Discipline (Workload and Timetabling) within the Institute of Health and Wellbeing. She is a registered nurse with extensive experience in clinical practice, leadership, higher education and research.

Her research focuses on child and family health, particularly neonatal care. She has led impactful research on father involvement in neonatal units with local, national and international collaborators, resulting in changes to clinical practice and greater inclusion of fathers in practice. Esther’s research is consumer-focused and includes collaborations with health facilities as well as local, national and international researchers. Her work with Perth Children’s Hospital and Ramsay Health in Western Australia has led to impactful outcomes that have strengthened family involvement in assessment and care provision.

Esther is Associate Editor of the Journal of Children and Young People’s Health, the official Journal of the Australian College of Children and Young People’s Nurses. She is also a peer reviewer for leading paediatrics and child and family health journals and ethics committee member.

Esther is an award-winning university educator and has received numerous awards for her teaching excellence. Esther’s contributions to teaching and supporting international students were nationally recognised in 2021 through the Australian Awards for University Teaching (AAUT). She received a team Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning for leading the establishment of the International Meet and Greet program, an initiative designed to help international students transition into Australian university life. Her teaching excellence, academic leadership and influence are also acknowledged internationally through her recognition as a Senior Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy (SFHEA).

Prior to joining Federation University, Esther was the Course Coordinator for the postgraduate paediatric nursing course and Academic Mentor for early career academics supporting their transition to academia at Edith Cowan University. She is a Board Member of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, contributing to the Internationally Qualified Registered Nurse (IQNM) program. Esther also served on the College Advisory Council at Irene McCormack Catholic College and as a Consultant Registered Nurse for a community service supporting children with complex health care needs in Western Australia.

Areas of expertise

Esther’s background in paediatric and neonatal nursing combined with her higher education expertise informs her research focus on child and family health, wellbeing and assessment design using qualitative, quantitative or mixed methods approach. She collaborates with industry partners, stakeholders and consumers to drive research with real-world impact. Her research primarily aligns with Goal 3 of the Sustainable Development Goals and focuses on four key areas:

1. Infant Mental and Perinatal Health: How parental wellbeing, particularly the role of fathers, supports infant mental health across acute and community settings.

2. Infant, Child and Adolescent Health: Promotion of positive health outcomes and behaviours in infants, children and young people in acute and community settings.

3. Family Health: How family dynamics influence overall family wellbeing, with research on both maternal and paternal health.
4. Scholarship of Learning and Teaching: Authentic assessment design, Artificial intelligence and innovations in nursing education

Research interests

• Support needs of families of neonates
• Infants and vulnerable infants
• Child and family health
• Culture and health outcomes
• Narrative inquiry (Research Methodology)
• Systematic literature reviews
• Mixed-methods research

Supervision

Esther is available as a Principal Supervisor for prospective Masters by Research and PhD students interested in pursuing research in child and family health and wellbeing or scholarship of learning and teaching.

She has successfully supervised numerous Higher Degree by Research (PhD and Masters by Research) students to completion as either Principal Supervisor or Associate Supervisor. In recognition of her expertise, Esther holds Adjunct appointments at other Australian universities to support PhD supervision.

Publications

Esther is an active researcher with publications available at Google Scholar link

Associations

• Australian College of Children and Young People’s Nurses (ACCYPN)
• Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory Agency (AHPRA)
• International Network of Child and Family Centred Care (INCFCC)
• Fathers In Neonatal Environment Shaping Salubrious Experiences (FINESSE)
• West Australian Paediatric and Child Health Nursing Research Network
• Healthy Newborn Network

Adjunct positions

• Edith Cowan University
• Curtin University
• University of Technology Sydney (External PhD Supervisor)
• La Trobe University (External PhD Supervisor)