Dr Catherine Silsbury
Addiction Medicine Specialist
As a specialist in Addiction Medicine, Catherine is deeply concerned that more than 80% of her patients smoke tobacco, and that this rate has not reduced over the 25 years that she has worked in Addiction Medicine, despite the Australian national smoking rate having fallen from around 30% to 16% over that time.
She graduated MBBS (Adelaide University 1982) and subsequently obtained Masters degrees in Drug and Alcohol Studies and Forensic Mental Health. She has worked in Addiction Medicine since 1991 and is a Fellow of the Chapter of Addiction Medicine (RACP).
Catherine is a staff specialist in Addiction Medicine in Western Sydney Local Health District (2011 – current) and previously worked in that capacity in the NSW prison system (2000 – 2011). Hence, many of her current patients are known to her from within the criminal justice system.
She strives to provide evidence-based medical care, has been involved in previous social justice campaigns and regards tobacco harm reduction as essential within substance use services.