Dr Maria Alejandra Pinero de Plaza, PhD, is a scientist who facilitates healthy living and better public health services by strengthening researchers, clinicians, industry, and consumers' abilities to design, measure, and accomplish different health and social impacts. Her experience in mixed-methods, experimental design, and evaluation helps her identify and demonstrate how interventions, healthcare services, and technology can provide better choice, inclusion, voice, justice, health, and wellbeing. She is passionate about care, social networks, technology, and methods influencing behavioural change.

Dr Pinero advocates for evidence-based research as a member of the JBI Evidence Implementation Network, and two JBI expert reference groups (Cardiovascular and Aged Care) and an Associate Editor for JBI Evidence Implementation (Q1 Journal). She utilises transdisciplinary strategies to generate evidence-based solutions for wicked health and care challenges (e.g., A, B, and C.) Her research is integral to the Caring Life Course Theory (CLCT), which emphasises the central role of care throughout the human lifespan.

Dr. Maria Alejandra Pinero de Plaza's research impacts various critical areas within the healthcare field, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her work addresses key issues such as misinformation on social media, telemedicine, and patient satisfaction, with her studies cited significantly more than average in their respective fields. This high level of citation, evidenced by impressive field-weighted citation impacts, highlights the relevance and influence of her research in shaping public health responses and policies.

Source: Data from Scopus, last updated on October 30, 2024, and exported on November 9, 2024, highlights Dr. Maria Alejandra Pinero de Plaza's research from 2019 to 2024, ranked within the top 10% of worldwide topics by prominence.

Her findings are prominent in the global research community, ranking her research in the top 0.188% worldwide. Topics like frailty in the elderly and the effectiveness of cardiovascular disease interventions reflect her focus on pressing healthcare challenges and her contribution to advancing understanding in these areas. This worldwide ranking underscores her research's critical role in informing better international health strategies and interventions.

Dr. Pinero de Plaza has been:

• Attracting Resources: Her ability to attract research funding is notable, having secured over A$2,677,190.40 in resources. This includes grants such as:

1. 1. Role as AI and evaluator of AI tool for the NHMRC-funded project "Optimising Evidence Translation in Emergency Management for Suspected Cardiac Chest Pain (RAPIDx)," receiving A$ 1,230,191.40.
   2. Involvement as AI and evaluator of virtual care in the "Safe@Home: Telemonitoring and Virtual Care for Chronic Disease Management" project, securing A$ 1,096,999.00 from NHMRC and A$ 350,000.00 from NALHN.
   3. Role as AI and disseminator for the NHMRC-funded project "Cardiac Rehabilitation Especially for Women (CREW)," with funding of A$ 150,000 from The Hospital Research Foundation.
   4. Chief Investigator 'C' for the "Cardiac Rehabilitation for All (CR4ALL)" project, receiving A$24,990.30 from the Flinders Foundation.
   5. Senior Chief Investigator for evaluating rapid changes in allied health and nursing practice in response to COVID-19, receiving A$ 49,891 from the Flinders - CFI Grant.
   6. Recognition as a CI-A in the Frail, Homebound, and Bedridden People Project (#FHBP) under the Accelerator Scheme from the Caring Futures Institute, receiving $4000.

Her track record demonstrates her leadership, innovation, and commitment to advancing knowledge and improving healthcare outcomes.

• Implementing Evidence-based Projects: As a member of the CI team for CR4ALL, she spearheaded the implementation of a novel care pathway within the iCCnet telehealth service. This initiative aimed to bolster attendance and completion rates of Cardiac Rehabilitation (CR) among socioeconomically disadvantaged patients residing in regional, rural, and remote areas of Australia. Collaborating closely with professionals, the CR4ALL team pioneered a co-design approach to tailor CR4ALL to meet the unique needs of these communities while also actively contributing insights to inform CR telehealth initiatives in South Australia.

Furthermore, she played a pivotal role in a sub-project of CR4ALL, specifically targeting women, which was generously funded by the Hospital Research Foundation (CREW). Her involvement extended to membership in a literature review club dedicated to exploring technology integration into cardiac rehabilitation practices. The outcomes of their research were instrumental in guiding the implementation of critical initiatives, including:

• • CHAP - Country Heart Attack Prevention is a partnership supported by the NHMRC. @nhrmc partnership
  • CREW - Cardiac Rehab Especially for Women, backed by the Hospital Research Foundation. @hosp_research
  • CR4ALL - Cardiac Rehab 4 All, facilitated by the Flinders Foundation. @FlindersFound

Through her multifaceted contributions, she actively shaped the landscape of cardiac rehabilitation, ensuring equitable access and optimal outcomes for diverse patient populations. She strongly focuses on metrics around Fundamental Care delivery to track stakeholders' and consumers' experiences locally and internationally (e.g., A, B, C, and D).  

Some examples are:

• • Nature (humanities and social sciences communications)
  • BMJ open,
  • PLOS ONE,
  • European Heart Journal - Quality of Care and Clinical Outcomes,
  • The International Journal of Qualitative Methods,
  • Health Research Policy and Systems,
  • Frontiers,
  • The Journal of Clinical Nursing,
  • JBI evidence synthesis,
  • Nursing Philosophy (the most cited and downloaded study 2022-2023)
  • Telemedicine and e-Health,
  • Health Promotion International, and others.

• Leading Innovation: At the forefront of the RAPIDx AI initiative, she is co-leading the consumer engagement and knowledge translation efforts within a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of computer algorithms in enhancing care provision for patients presenting symptoms potentially linked to cardiac issues in hospital emergency departments. Introducing the PROLIFERATE evaluation framework and method, she obtained ethical approval for its implementation across 12 hospitals in South Australia. This framework refines the integration of Artificial Intelligence technologies into clinical workflows, ultimately enhancing patient care delivery. 

• PROLIFERATE_AI has grown beyond its origins as a healthcare knowledge translation tool to become an advanced solution with applications across government, defence, administration, and procurement sectors.

• Its multi-market potential was validated through the CSIRO ON Prime 16 competitive government-funded innovation program, positioning PROLIFERATE_AI as a game-changing partner for organisations navigating the complexities of modern sociotechnical ecosystems.

Dr Pinero de Plaza's expertise is rooted in consumer engagement processes in health research, demonstrated by her national contributions. She was crucial in co-creating the Consumer Engagement Framework and Consumer Register at SAHMRI, underscoring her commitment to inclusivity and collaboration in research endeavours. Additionally, her involvement in the Expert Reference Group of the NHMRC CRE APPRISE for three years has been instrumental in informing discussions on critical issues, such as the delineation between research and response to COVID-19. Her insights have facilitated the alignment of APPRISE priorities with other entities while also addressing challenges related to data sharing, multidisciplinary collaboration, and engagement across various sectors. Moreover, she has advocated for considering research outcomes beyond academic publication, highlighting the importance of broader societal impact and dissemination strategies.

• Investigating Health Equity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities: Dr Pinero de Plaza is committed to addressing health disparities in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities: in partnership with the South Australian Aboriginal Chronic Disease Consortium and SAHMRI, they led a review focusing on Health System Enablers and Barriers to Continuity of Care for First Nations Peoples Living with Chronic Disease, funded by the SA Department for Health and Wellbeing. It has been published as an article and a full report for national decision-makers.

• Creating and Delivering Awareness and Impact: Her contributions to the Frail, Homebound, and Bedridden People (#FHBP) research program have reverberated in policymaking circles and connected ministerial decisions, evidenced by citations in two submissions to the Australian Senate and inclusion in training materials on violence against women published by the Government of Queensland. Internationally, she is esteemed as an expert, having the majority of her research published by Q1 journals and contributing through peer-review globally. Such expertise extends to peer-reviewing various National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Grant Schemes and ARIIA Grants, offering impartial and expert advice to aid funding decisions. Additionally, she is the new Topic Coordinator and Tutor of AGES2002 Enabling Environments for Older People for the Bachelor of Health Sciences.  

Dr. Pinero de Plaza's conference presentations have been further recognized through publication as book chapters, with one presentation disseminated by the World Health Organization as part of the first literature published on the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020 -June 2023). Furthermore, her interdisciplinary work, blending socio-scientific inquiry with artistic expression, has garnered acknowledgement from The Australian Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation of People with Disability (SUB.001.02754 & SUB.001.02754), underscoring the far-reaching impact of her research and advocacy efforts. 

The ENLIGHTEN online exhibition has more than 2872 views and downloads. In a similar field, she collaborates with Spanish and Colombian researchers on projects measuring fundamental care and creating predictive modelling to evaluate and deliver better healthcare services (e.g., by creating new approaches). She is an active member of the Commission on Excellence and Innovation in Health, Patient Reported Measures work. 

In addition to her academic achievements, she holds external positions and affiliations, through which she has conducted over 21 research activities with global exposure. Her dissemination efforts have reached a broad audience, including more than 1936 Twitter followers and over 4783 LinkedIn followers, and engagement on other platforms such as Facebook and YouTube.

Academic roles

1. Currently, Research Fellow. Caring Futures Institute, College of Nursing and Health Sciences. Flinders University. 2021 - 2027
2.  Associate Editor for JBI Evidence Implementation (Q1 Journal)
3. Research Fellow, University of Adelaide/ Flinders University (2019-2021); NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence.
4. Doctor of Philosophy, Field of Research 111712 –Health Promotion; SEO: 920401- Behaviour and Health, Marketing. Funded: Australian Postgraduate Award. Deakin University (2013-2017).
5. Master of Marketing Science, upgraded to PhD, Funded: Australian Postgraduate Award and a top-up scholarship from MARS/UNISA. University of South Australia (2010-2013).
6. Postgraduate training: Social Anthropology, Cultural Anthropology, Religion, and Ecology. Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Research (IVIC). Advanced Studies Centre (2004-2006).
7. Licentiate, a degree equivalent in Australian standards to a master's in Social Communication as it includes 1-year research thesis embedded into a 5-year coursework degree, which is one step below a doctorate - under European standards - (Social Communication, Journalism, Public Relations & Advertising) Andrés Bello Catholic University (1993-1998).

She has achieved significant recognition nationally and internationally through her diverse contributions to research. Her portfolio includes publishing research book chapters, abstracts, posters, commissioned reports, review articles, comments/debates, videos, data management plans, and various dissemination pieces. This extensive activity has earned her several distinctions, prizes, and awards.