Nicholas Fancourt

Dr. Nicholas Fancourt is a Senior Lecturer (Teaching and Research) at the University of Sydney's Sydney Medical School and a paediatrician at The Children's Hospital at Westmead. He holds a joint appointment at Menzies School of Health Research in Darwin, where he leads international programs in the Child and Maternal Health Division. As a Sydney Horizon Fellow, he investigates malnutrition-pneumonia links in children. His clinical practice spans multiple Australasian hospitals including Starship Hospital (Auckland), Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne, and Royal Darwin Hospital.

Education includes:

• MBChB and Bioethics training at University of Otago
• PhD from Johns Hopkins University

Research focuses on pediatric infectious diseases, nutritional immunology, and health systems in resource-limited settings. His multidisciplinary team employs clinical science and public health methods to study pneumonia etiology, vaccine efficacy, and malnutrition-immunity interactions. Current projects include an NHMRC-funded pneumococcal vaccine trial in Timor-Leste and WHO standards for childhood pneumonia diagnosis.

Publications predominantly explore respiratory infections, seroepidemiology, and tropical disease control. Recent works emphasize COVID-19 responses in Timor-Leste, mass drug administration impacts, and diagnostic innovations for pediatric pneumonia.

Awards and honors:

• Fulbright Science and Technology Award (2011-14)
• Thesis Publication Award, Johns Hopkins (2017)
• RACP Trainee Research Excellence Award (2017)
• Harry Christian Giese Research into Action Award (2020)

Advising includes mentorship of Timorese scientists and healthcare professionals. Major grants:

• NHMRC trial on pneumococcal vaccination in malnourished children
• FMH Start-up Scheme (Faculty of Medicine and Health)
• Sydney Horizon Fellowship

He leads international research collaborations in Timor-Leste focused on health systems strengthening, communicable disease control, and laboratory capacity building.