Queensland’s Chief Allied Health Officer, Liza-Jane McBride, has been named a QUT Outstanding Alumnus for 2025, recognising her leadership in allied health workforce reform and her commitment to innovation.
She is a QUT Adjunct Clinical Associate Professor and a QUT occupational health and safety graduate, who maintains strong ties with the university and the next generation of health professionals.
Associate Professor McBride’s award was announced at last night’s annual QUT Outstanding Alumni Awards in Brisbane.
As Queensland Health’s Chief Allied Health Officer, she provides high-level strategic advice and leadership for a workforce of more than 9000 allied health professionals across a diverse range of professions, including physiotherapists, pharmacists and medical radiation practitioners.
Her role ranges from leading statewide reforms such as pharmacists prescribing within hospitals and community pharmacies, to liaising with university partners about the future workforce and student pipeline.
QUT Vice-Chancellor Professor Margaret Sheil said the university was honoured to recognise and celebrate Associate Professor McBride’s future-ready and world-class approach to healthcare.
“Liza-Jane’s strategic leadership, research and commitment to digitally enabled care has been a driving force behind allied health transformation for Queensland,” Professor Sheil said.
Associate Professor McBride said she was proud to be a QUT alumnus and to continue to contribute to the university.
“Over the years I've been a visiting fellow at QUT and I'm currently an Adjunct Associate Clinical Professor in the School of Clinical Sciences and I sit on the QUT Health Clinics executive committee,” she said.
“I've collaborated across the School of Clinical Sciences on a number of initiatives, including the education for non-medical prescribing training for physiotherapy and pharmacy students.”
Associate Professor McBride’s family also has strong ties with QUT and its predecessor institutions.
Her mother attended the Kelvin Grove Teachers College and both her children are currently studying at QUT. Her husband is also an alumnus, having completed his MBA at QUT.
Associate Professor McBride began her career as a physiotherapist before moving into occupational health and safety consultancy and health management.
Her postgraduate qualifications include a Graduate Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety from QUT, which led to a Queensland Health position as principal ergonomic advisor.
She said QUT’s reputation had attracted her to the university.
“I knew that the course at QUT was really practical and hands on … and I was also a new mum at the time, so the flexibility of being able to study part time and work part time made it really achievable for me,” she said.
“What I didn’t realise at the time was how much my graduate diploma would actually prepare me for working in fields other than occupational health and safety.
“At its core, it’s really a course that’s about systems thinking and risk management, and those transferable skills have really held me in good stead in the future roles that I’ve gone on to do, including the role that I’m in now.”
Her advice to current students is to build lasting professional relationships.
“Really make the most of the connections that you have at university – your peers, and also your lecturers – because they are actually going to be your future mentors, as well as colleagues out in the workplace,” she said.
“So stay connected. And I don't mean on LinkedIn. I mean form some lasting professional relationships that can guide you through your journey.”
Associate Professor McBride’s early physiotherapy career included working in the United Kingdom for the National Health Service and for Fulham Football Club.
“That was a great experience as a sports physiotherapist, but it was an experience that made me realise that I wanted to explore other areas of practice and different roles.” she said.
Associate Professor McBride said she was drawn to health management because of the opportunity to help shape an improved health system where allied health professionals had a greater role in delivering accessible healthcare.
“I really went into system leadership because I wanted to make a difference at a system level, to have an impact,” she said.
“And whilst it's not always easy, I think that the statewide role and being able to affect change is really what excites me about the role that I'm in.”
Associate Professor McBride, who grew up in Charters Towers, said some of her priorities as Chief Allied Health Officer included rural healthcare and the expansion of allied health rural generalism, First Nations health, and technology innovation that helped health professionals and patients.
“My vision for the health system is one that is sustainable and connected – a system that optimally uses all of our available workforce, one that values prevention as much as treatment, and empowers communities to take care of their own healthcare,” she said.
Learn more about the 2025 QUT Outstanding Alumni Awards winners here.
Information on studying health at QUT can be found here.
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