Dr Alinka Fisher

Senior Lecturer

College of Nursing and Health Sciences

place Sturt South (S259)
GPO Box 2100, Adelaide 5001, South Australia

Dr Alinka Fisher is a Senior Lecturer in Disability and Community Inclusion within the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Flinders University. She began her career as a Developmental Educator specialising in behaviour support for people with disability. She has 18 years of practice-based experience in providing positive behaviour support to people with brain injury, autism spectrum disorders and dementia, and completed her PhD in positive behaviour support for adults with acquired brain injury.

Alinka is an active researcher in positive behaviour support, and a regular presenter at conferences. Her research focusses on establishing effective systems and building family and community capacity to support effective behaviour support practices that increase quality of life and reducing risk of harm to people with disability. She also coordinates the Graduate Certificate in Positive Behaviour Support at Flinders University, and is on the Board of Directors for the Association of Positive Behaviour Support Australia (APBSA) and Chair of the National Disability and Community Services Network, APBSA.

Qualifications

PhD - Flinders University (2017)

Family-Directed Approach to Brain Injury in Community Settings: The Development of a Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) Program

Bachelor of Disability and Community Rehabilitation with Honours (First Class) - Flinders University (2011)

An Exploration of the Psychosocial Effects of Psychogenic Non-epileptic Seizures

Honours, awards and grants

2020 VPED Education Award

2019 Research Award - Early Career Researcher

2019 Vice President's Teaching Excellence Award

2016 Flinders University Student Association (FUSA) Development Grant

2015 Research Higher Degree Publication Award, Flinders University

2013 Peter Meffin Memorial Scholarship, Flinders University

2013 Australian Postgraduate Awards (APA) Scholarship

Topic coordinator
DSRS8131 Positive Behaviour Support: Asssessment and Functional Analysis
DSRS8130 Positive Behaviour Support: Implementation
DSRS8132 Positive Behaviour Support: Practicum and Mentoring Program
Topic lecturer
DSRS8130 Positive Behaviour Support: Implementation
DSRS8131 Positive Behaviour Support: Assessment and Functional Analysis
Supervisory interests
Acquired brain injury
Autism, behaviour intervention
Behaviour management
Dementia, behavioural intervention
Disability and community rehabilitation
Disability support workers
Disability, qualitative research
Higher degree by research supervision
Current
Principal supervisor: Behaviour Support (2)