Himanshu Gupta

Dr Gupta is a qualified physiotherapist and works as a Senior Research Fellow (Lived Experience) at Rural and Remote Health – Northern Territory, College of Medicine & Public Health, Flinders University. He is from a culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) background. He is based in Melbourne and works remotely.

Dr Gupta has an excellent research track record commensurate with his career stage. In recognition of his research excellence and contribution, he has received multiple academic promotions within the two years post-PhD. He has secured about $5 million in research income as a Primary Investigator (PI) and Co-PI. The grants have been awarded by government, non-government, and Philanthropic organisations. He has led the design, development, and implementation of evaluation and research projects using a variety of techniques including both quantitative and qualitative methods. His work has been particularly focused on priority population groups such as First Nations people, other CALD people, and people with lived experience of gambling and mental health. He has used his research findings to promote capacity building and knowledge translation to inform local, state, and national policies to improve the health of Australians.

Through his professional roles, Dr Gupta has demonstrated strong leadership skills by leading teams and delivering projects with autonomy and accountability within the broad strategic directions of the organisations to a high standard. He has led and maintained positive professional relationships with diverse stakeholders. He has also communicated his work to diverse audiences both locally, nationally, and internationally via written briefs, newsletters, peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, reports, emails, presentations, seminars, and workshops. In particular, he has authored 50+ commissioned reports and academic publications in high-impact academic peer-reviewed journals and renowned publishers in medicine and public health, including Springer Nature, BMJ Open, BMC Public Health, and Current Psychology, in the last three years.

In recognition of his research excellence and contribution, Dr Gupta has received multiple awards and accolades in both Australia and overseas. He was nominated for the 2019 Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol & Other Drugs (APSAD) Early Career Researcher Award. In recognition of his reviewer contributions to the Health Promotion Journal of Australia, he has been awarded the 2020 Dr Chris Rissel Reviewer Award by the Australian Health Promotion Association. The outcomes of his work contributed to him being awarded a 2021 “Excellence in Harm Reduction Award” by the Association of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies Northern Territory and a 2019 National AOD Award (team award) for Excellence and Innovation (Research) by the Alcohol and Drug Foundation. He has been invited as a guest speaker and panellist to disseminate his research work at multiple local and national seminars and forums.

Dr Gupta was an invited member on the 2020-2022 Advisory Group for the Review and Dissemination of the Australian Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) Assessment and Diagnostic Guide project. His other professional roles included an Adjunct Research Fellow position (National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University), Associate Editor and Associate Editor – Book Review (Health Promotion Journal of Australia), and Editor – Peer Review (International Journal of Public Health). He has published several papers (mostly as lead author) in international journals and newsletters and serves as a reviewer for international journals such as Global Mental Health. He has also sat on the Northern Territory Department of Health and Menzies School of Health Research Human Research Ethics Committee.

Dr Gupta received an international scholarship to complete his PhD through the National Drug Research Institute at Curtin University, with a focus on health promotion and policy. He had subsequently engaged in knowledge translation activities with the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) based in Belgium. Prior to this, he has led and contributed to multiple nationally- and-internationally-funded research studies spanning AOD, chronic diseases, mental health, and other social services settings, in diverse national contexts (India, Australia, and the UK) and with various population groups.