Chris McKay

Chris McKay is a Research Fellow at the National Centre for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Wellbeing Research, Australian National University (ANU), focusing on health determinants for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and adolescents in Australia. His work centers on physical activity, cardiometabolic risk, body composition, and social determinants of health through culturally informed research frameworks.

McKay's research interests span Physical Activity, Systematic Review methodologies, Cardiometabolic Risk, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health, Body Composition, Australian health contexts, Cohort Analysis, and Adolescence. He investigates how cultural, social, and environmental factors interact to shape health outcomes in Indigenous youth populations, emphasizing community-led approaches and cultural safety in research design.

Analysis of McKay's publications (2022-2025) reveals consistent focus on Indigenous health disparities in Australia, particularly examining cardio-metabolic risks, e-cigarette use patterns, and body composition determinants among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adolescents. His work employs systematic reviews and longitudinal cohort analyses to identify protective factors and inform evidence-based public health interventions targeting health equity.

McKay serves as Collaborating Investigator (CoI) on the active project "Developing Baseline Data on Cultural Determinants of Health for Preventive Health SA (Mayi Kuwayu Study Data)" (June 2025-November 2025), establishing foundational data for culturally responsive preventive health strategies in South Australia. This reflects his commitment to research directly benefiting Indigenous communities through policy-relevant evidence.

Based at ANU's National Centre for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Wellbeing Research, McKay contributes to a multidisciplinary team advancing Indigenous health research through community partnerships, cultural safety protocols, and decolonizing methodologies that prioritize Indigenous knowledge systems and self-determination in health research.