University of Canberra
In 2013 the World Health Organisation listed scabies as a neglected tropical disease. Here in Australia scabies affects 6 in 10 Indigenous children at any given time; this is six times the rate seen in the rest of the developed world.
Along with his research team, Dr Jackson Thomas has developed a novel pharmaceutical treatment for scabies. In an international first, they will trial this simple and low cost treatment containing readily available tea tree oil.
Consequences of scabies predispose the affected children to rheumatic heart and kidney disease. The prevention of scabies infestation among Indigenous children in Australia should be considered a national public health priority. Jackson’s cost effective solution could lead the way to reducing scabies-related morbidity and minimising the population’s public health burden.
Throughout his career Jackson has contributed to public outreach events, competitions and workshops. He is currently in the finals stages of developing a blog and YouTube channel to facilitate effective communication across the field of pharmacy.