Dr Gabrielle Caswell, an ACRRM Fellow and SpacePort Australia Director, is helping shape the future of healthcare in space through a new international collaboration focused on astronaut medical support.
The project brings together space robotics company Arkisys™ and SpacePort Australia to explore how NASA’s Astrobee free-flying robots can assist with healthcare aboard the International Space Station.
At the centre of this work is Dr Caswell’s experience as a Rural Generalist. In a media release issued this week, she says the parallels between Rural Generalist Medicine and space healthcare are clear. “Remote healthcare is fundamentally about doing more with less—limited tools, limited support, and high stakes. “Those conditions closely mirror what future crews may face in space.”
Dr Caswell is one of many ACRRM RGs who have an interest in space medicine – among them are former ACRRM President Dr Ewen McPhee; ACRRM Fellow Dr Anthony Rengel; Dr John Cherry who is vice president and company director of the Australasian Society of Aerospace Medicine and registrar Dr Vienna Tran who has an interest in space medicine research.