Murdoch Doctor of the Year 2021

7 Dec 2021

After helping one of WA’s leading private hospitals prepare for COVID-19 and the new Voluntary Assisted Dying legislation, Associate Professor Alison Parr received St John of God Murdoch’s prestigious Doctor of the Year Award. 

A/Prof Alison Parr was St John of God Murdoch Hospital’s Director of Medical Services from 2017 to 2021, after working her way up through the leadership ranks in just four years.

Starting in 2014 as a Consultant in Palliative Medicine, Dr Parr quickly became the Director of Hospice, then moving into the Deputy Director of Medical Services role and in 2017, promoted to the Director role.

St John of God Murdoch Hospital CEO Ben Edwards presented the honour, in front of her family and colleagues.

Mr Edwards described A/Prof Parr as a caring, dedicated and incredibly hard working leader.

“Alison is an outstanding doctor, who cares for her patients with genuine compassion. She has helped the Murdoch Hospice become formally recognised as an excellent facility providing exceptional quality palliative care services. From a leadership perspective Alison is balanced, highly committed and very effective.”

A/Prof Parr helped St John of God Murdoch Hospital navigate through a changing environment with the introduction on new laws governing voluntary assisted dying and the first 14 months of the COVID-19 era.

“She has been a key figure in guiding the Murdoch community through some of our most difficult periods, including the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. She was a key figure in the preparation for the Voluntary Assisted Dying Legislation across the entire St John of God Health Care organisation. This was a large scale nation-wide project focused on palliative care across all campuses."

Her husband and two of her three children joined Alison on stage where she was presented with a gift and the Doctor of the Year Award.

The event was held in a beautiful marquee by the lake on the grounds of St John of God Murdoch Hospital in early December to thank doctors for their hard work throughout the year.