Mrs Alejandra Piñero De Plaza
School of Medicine
College of Health
Driven by a focus on innovations that create lasting value, Dr Maria Alejandra Piñero de Plaza works at the intersection of evaluation, stakeholder alignment, and operational readiness. Through implementation science and caring science, she applies dynamic and adaptive strategies, artificial intelligence, and cross-disciplinary methods to move complex ideas beyond pilots and into sustainable adoption.
With a background in Marketing Science, Health Promotion, and Consumer Behaviour, and currently undertaking training in Applied Artificial Intelligence and Data Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, she brings a distinctive perspective to understanding how people interact with technologies, environments, and information in complex health and socio-technical contexts. Her work combines behavioural insight, participatory approaches, and systems thinking to evaluate human behaviour, digital innovation, and the responsible integration of AI across disciplines, with proven applications in public health, healthcare interventions, and research and applications on evidence-informed system redesign.
Visit her research dissemination work at Springer Nature Research Communities:
Dr Piñero de Plaza leads the development of PROLIFERATE and PROLIFERATE_AI. These evaluation frameworks are co-designed with transdisciplinary teams to measure how people experience new technologies and services, as well as their likelihood of success in real-world settings.
Her research profile demonstrates strong alignment with these themes, with leading contributions in cardiac rehabilitation, transdisciplinary approaches to complex challenges, and caring science in nursing education and practice. According to SciVal analytics, her publication share and topic metrics highlight a distinctive cross-disciplinary reach and influence:
In addition, SciVal data show that her Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) has steadily increased over the last several years, now reaching 2.87 (with a median of 1.60). This indicates her publications are cited almost three times more often than the global average in the same fields, reflecting the visibility and influence of her work. The yearly breakdown demonstrates a consistent upward trajectory in scholarly impact, underscoring the translational value of her contributions.
As a member of collaborative and transdisciplinary research teams, she has contributed to securing over A$2.67 million in competitive research funding. Notable contributions include:
- 1. RAPIDx AI – Optimising Evidence Translation in Emergency Management for Suspected Cardiac Chest Pain
Role: Evaluator and AI specialist
Funding: A$1,230,191.40 (NHMRC) - 2. Safe@Home – Telemonitoring and Virtual Care for Chronic Disease Management
Role: Evaluator of virtual care systems
Funding: A$1,096,999.00 (NHMRC) + A$350,000.00 (NALHN) - 3. CREW – Cardiac Rehabilitation Especially for Women
Role: Co-investigator and knowledge dissemination lead
Funding: A$150,000.00 (The Hospital Research Foundation) - 4. CR4ALL – Cardiac Rehabilitation for All
Role: Chief Investigator ‘C’
Funding: A$24,990.30 (Flinders Foundation) - 5. COVID-19 Rapid Evaluation of Allied Health and Nursing Practice
Role: Senior Chief Investigator
Funding: A$49,891.00 (Flinders Caring Futures Institute) - 6. Frail, Homebound and Bedridden People Project
(#FHBP, which has influenced how governments engaged with homebound people) Role: Chief Investigator A
Funding: A$4,000.00 (Caring Futures Institute Accelerator Scheme) - 7. Australia’s National CSIRO ON Prime Innovator Program - Reward
Role: Chief Investigator A for PROLIFERATE_AI
Funding: A$5,000.00
Her research employs predictive modelling, expert knowledge elicitation, and Bayesian approaches to understand and influence behaviours, as well as to support the implementation and scale-up of health interventions and programs. This work contributes to the improvement of healthcare practices, decision-making, and service delivery.
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