Eleanor Parker

Dr Eleanor Parker

Senior Lecturer

Adelaide Dental School

Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences


Dr Eleanor Parker is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Adelaide Dental School and is Deputy Director (Education) of the Indigenous Oral Health Unit, a part of the Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health (ARCPOH).

Eleanor established the first dental service at the Port Augusta Aboriginal community-controlled Pika Wiya health service in 2021, where she worked for five years. Eleanor is actively involved with the student body in encouraging appropriate participation in Indigenous oral health-related research and placements, has published widely in this field and been an invited presenter at international oral health conferences regarding her expertise in Indigenous Australian oral health.

Eleanor maintains a passion for and commitment to improving the oral health of oppressed and disadvantaged groups, in particular rural, First Nations and homeless people, and sees her involvement with undergraduate education as an opportunity to contribute to the future profession’s understanding of the needs of these communities, to ensure they are skilled and competent in working with patients and communities who are traditionally underserved.

Eleanor is heavily involved with undergraduate teaching, as the Chair of the Adelaide Dental School Programs Board, First Year Bachelor of Dental Surgery Coordinator, and coordinator of the Cultural Safety Curriculum for the Adelaide Dental School.

My research interests remain focused on improving the oral health of oppressed and disadvantaged people in our community, in particular First Nations communities.  I am fortunate to be part of the Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health (ARCPOH) Indigenous Oral Health Research Unit, which enables me to integrate my teaching and research interests.  My research career has developed with successful competitive grants, presentation at international conferences and publication in peer-reviewed journals. 

ADAF Community Service Grants-Principles in Action: Community Outreach Dental Program - next
steps; 2019; Eleanor Parker, Margie Steffens  $8,582;

 

ADAF Community Service Grants-Principles in Action: Community Dental Outreach Program;
Years: 2018; $8,013 
Eleanor Parker, Margie Steffen

 

International Collaboration for Indigenous Health Research Partnerships (ICIHRP) 2010: $1,390,040

 Lisa Jamieson, Rus Nasir, Alwin Chong, Eleanor Parker, Kaye Roberts-Thomson, Gary Misan, John Spencer (Australian team)

‘Reducing disease burden and health inequalities arising from chronic dental disease among Indigenous children: an early childhood caries intervention’

 

Teaching Development Grant 2019 $5000.

Lekkas D, Skinner V, Parker E, Stow L, Zaccardo B (2019) Learning and Innovation Grant. The University of Adelaide. The value of lectures. 

 

NHMRC 2009: $548,250 

Lisa Jamieson, Rus Nasir, Alwin Chong, Eleanor Parker

‘An oral health literacy intervention among rural Indigenous adults’

 

Australian dental Research Foundation 2008: $8000

Margie Steffens, Eleanor Parker, Lisa Jamieson, Peter Cathro, Richard Logan

‘A Home for Oral Health: Quantifying, Addressing and Evaluating the Oral Health Needs of Homeless People in Adelaide, South Australia’

 

Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies 2007: $18,000

Lisa Jamieson, Eleanor Parker, Cephas Stanley;

‘An Oral Health Promotion Initiative; Phase II’.

Since my appointment with the Adelaide Dental School in 2006, I have held a number of roles primarily associated with clinical learning activities in the early years of the BDS Program. I have, for a significant portion of my time, had responsibility for coordinating the first year of the BDS clinical curriculum, and took a leadership role in the development and implementation of the revised BDS curriculum. I have also taught across topics within the BDS, across BDS year levels and some components of BOH 1-3, involving a significant amount of face-to-face contact with undergraduate students. In more recent years I have taken on responsibility for the coordination and delivery of the BDS 4 Integrated Learning Activities Program to support integration and application of learning to clinical cases. I have been active in encouraging senior students’ explorations of their interests through the supervision of BDS selectives and BOH electives, primarily those associated with rural and Indigenous Health. I have played a lead role in developing the undergraduate curriculum related to Indigenous Oral Health and Cultural Safety for BDS and BOH students. I am currently Chair of the Adelaide Dental School Programs Board and the BDS 1 Year Coordinator. 

  • Position: Senior Lecturer
  • Phone: 83134242
  • Email: eleanor.parker@adelaide.edu.au
  • Campus: North Terrace
  • Building: Adelaide Health and Medical Sciences, floor 10
  • Org Unit: Dental

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