Who is Fiona Wood?
Fiona Wood is a British-born Australian plastic surgeon and burns specialist in Perth who co-developed spray-on skin technology. She became nationally known after treating victims of the 2002 Bali bombings.
Wood was born in Yorkshire, England, in 1958 and trained in medicine in London. She moved to Western Australia in 1987 and became the director of the burns service at Royal Perth Hospital.
Working with scientist Marie Stoner, she developed a technique to grow a patient's own skin cells and spray them onto burn wounds. This approach helps wounds heal faster and can reduce scarring.
The Bali bombings
After the Bali bombings in October 2002, many seriously burned Australians were flown to Royal Perth Hospital. Wood and her team worked around the clock to treat them and saved many lives.
For her work, Wood was named Australian of the Year in 2005. She was also made a Member of the Order of Australia.
Wood co-founded the Fiona Wood Foundation, which supports research into burns care and scar reduction. The spray-on skin technology was developed further by the company Avita Medical, and its ReCell system is used internationally. Wood is also known for encouraging young people, especially girls, to pursue careers in science and medicine.
Did You Know?
Wood is married to a surgeon and is a mother of six children.