Sam Lapkin

Sam Lapkin is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Faculty of Health at Southern Cross University. He holds a PhD in Nursing from the University of Newcastle and a GradCertEd from CQUniversity. His career includes roles as Senior Lecturer at the University of Wollongong, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Centre for Research in Nursing and Health, and Lecturer at UTS and CQUniversity.

• Education:
  • PhD in Nursing (University of Newcastle, 2014)
  • Graduate Certificate in Tertiary Education (CQU, 2015)
  • Bachelor of Nursing (Honours Class 1, University of Newcastle, 2009)

His research focuses on enhancing healthcare safety and quality through evidence-based practices, with particular emphasis on back pain assessment, medication safety, and interprofessional collaboration. He has published 94 papers (h-index 29) and secured over $340,000 in research funding. Lapkin supervises higher-degree research students and currently co-supervises two PhD candidates.

Teaching roles include Academic Program Director for the Master of Nursing Pre-Registration program at UOW and coordination roles at multiple institutions. He is a journal editor for Nursing and Health Sciences and BMC Nursing, and an active peer reviewer for 15 high-impact journals.

Key research areas include patient safety, clinical simulation, and nursing workforce development. His work addresses critical challenges like opioid error prevention in palliative care and improving care for hospitalized older adults.