Rate My Professor Chris Levi

Conjoint Professor Chris Levi is an academic stroke neurologist and Conjoint Professor in Neurology at the University of Newcastle's School of Medicine and Public Health. He holds a Bachelor of Medical Science and a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (with Honours) from the University of New South Wales, along with fellowships as FRACP and FAHMS. Levi's career highlights include Senior Staff Specialist in Neurology at John Hunter Hospital since 1998, Director of Acute Stroke Services there from 2009 to 2014, Chairman of the John Hunter Hospital Division of Medicine from 2003 to 2007, and Clinical Lead for the Hunter New England Stroke Stream since 2012. He established Hunter New England Health’s Acute Stroke Services and Stroke Research Group, pioneered telestroke care in New South Wales, and led the rollout of acute stroke units statewide. From 2005 to 2009, he served as Medical Director of the National Stroke Foundation, and from 2017 to 2021, as Professor of Neurology at the University of New South Wales. Currently, he is Executive Director Research and Innovation and Chief Clinical Information Officer at Hunter New England Local Health District, Director of the John Hunter Health and Innovation Precinct, and Director of the Newcastle Brain Centre at Lake Macquarie Private Hospital.

Professor Levi's research specializes in translating experimental stroke therapies into clinical practice for stroke prevention and treatment, with emphasis on acute stroke therapies, interventional clinical trials including thrombolysis and antithrombotic therapy, brain imaging via multimodal CT, MRI, and transcranial Doppler, stroke genetics, observational epidemiology, and health services interventions such as cluster randomised trials. Notable projects include the QASC trial on management of fever, hyperglycemia, and swallowing disturbance in acute stroke, paramedic tools like the Hunter 8, and international trials such as ENCHANTED and EXTEND. Key publications include 'Mortality Reduction for Fever, Hyperglycemia, and Swallowing Disturbance After Ischemic Stroke: The Quality in Acute Stroke Care Study' (2016), 'Perfusion CT in Acute Stroke: A Comprehensive Analysis of Infarct Core and Penumbra' (2013), and 'Progress update on the Phase II, double-blinded, randomised, placebo-controlled study to determine the safety, preliminary efficacy and pharmacokinetics of ARG-007 in acute ischemic stroke patients (SEANCON)' (2024). His work has shaped national and state stroke management policies, enhanced regional stroke patient outcomes, and earned awards including the NHMRC Practitioner Fellowship (2013), Fellowship of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences (2015), Hunter New England Health Quality Awards in Translational Research (2015), Premier's Public Sector Awards (2007 and 2012), and Hunter Medical Research Institute Award for Research Excellence (2009).