Rate My Professor Robert Pickles

Dr. Robert Pickles serves as Conjoint Associate Professor in the School of Medicine and Public Health (Immunology and Microbiology) at the University of Newcastle, Australia, within the College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing. He holds the qualifications of BMed(Hons) and is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (FRACP). In his clinical roles at John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle, he is Director of the Infectious Diseases Unit, Director of General Medicine, and Head of the Departments of General Medicine and Infectious Diseases. He has been associated with John Hunter Hospital since its opening and has progressed through positions including Senior Staff Specialist in Infectious Diseases.

Robert Pickles' research centers on infectious diseases, general medicine, and medical education. His publications include 'Bedside clinical teaching: Arresting the decline' (2020), 'Treatment of Neisseria meningitidis prosthetic joint infections with short-course antibiotics: three cases and a literature review' (2020), 'Q fever vertebral osteomyelitis in the absence of cardiovascular involvement: Two cases and a literature review' (2020), 'Junior medical doctors’ decision making when using advance care directives to guide treatment for people with dementia: a cross-sectional vignette study' (2022), 'Research activities in general medicine: a scoping survey by the Internal Medicine Society of Australia and New Zealand (IMSANZ)' (2022), 'Fannyhessea vaginae causing bacteraemia and vertebral osteomyelitis: first report of invasive disease in a male' (2024), 'Disseminated nontuberculous mycobacterial infection in the context of interferon-gamma autoantibody syndrome: A case report and review of the literature' (2025), 'Oritavancin for the Treatment of Staphylococcus aureus Bacteremia—A Retrospective Single-arm Cohort Study' (2025), 'General medicine advanced training: Lessons from the John Hunter training programme' (2014), and contributions to 'Essentials of Internal Medicine'. His work has garnered over 300 citations. Pickles has held leadership positions such as Chair of the Specialist Advisory Committee in General Medicine for IMSANZ and has contributed to regional medical training and policy on revalidation and recertification.