It is a great privilege to act as the current President of the Australian Association of Developmental Disability Medicine (AADDM). On behalf of the executive, I would like to extend a warm welcome to all members. It has been a pleasure to meet many of you, and see the increasing breadth of disciplines seeking to make a difference for people with intellectual and developmental disability. It takes many of us to work together to make better health outcomes for people with intellectual and developmental disability, a reality.
I extend a heartfelt thank you to our members who over the years, have made significant contributions in advocacy, clinical care and research. Through their tireless efforts, and alongside people with lived experience, we are better able to see and understand the need for change. Some members have played important roles in the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability and have advocated heavily in the establishment of The National Centre of Excellence in Intellectual Disability Health.
We look forward to working and sharing learnings together, which will help shape how we improve both mental and physical health outcomes for people with intellectual and developmental disability. AADDM welcomes new members; details are available here.
Jess Smith
Acting President, AADDM