Marie-Claire Seeley

I’m committed to improving health equity for people with invisible, complex conditions by building national capacity for equitable, evidence-based care, research, and training in autonomic medicine.

Combining clinical expertise, academic leadership, and lived experience of chronic illness, I work to bridge the gap between research, policy, and patient care.

I’m a clinical nurse and researcher based at the University of Adelaide, where I lead national efforts to improve the recognition, diagnosis, and care of autonomic disorders—particularly postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS). This disabling, female-predominant condition affects the body’s ability to regulate heart rate, blood pressure, and other automatic functions, often following a viral illness.

I hold a PhD in Medicine from the University of Adelaide, where my research was among the first in Australia to examine autonomic dysfunction in people with long COVID. I developed the country’s first POTS patient registry, highlighting diagnostic delays, poor quality of life, and care gaps—findings that contributed to national policy changes, including the introduction of a new ICD code for POTS. As the founding CEO of the Australian POTS Foundation, I’ve led national education initiatives and successfully submitted government proposals on Long COVID and women’s health, advancing research, advocacy, and support for those affected.

My Fellowship will help me gain advanced skills in autonomic testing to improve diagnosis and care in Australia. Autonomic disorders, often affecting young women, are under-recognised due to limited local training and infrastructure. I will train with international experts in vascular testing, microneurography, and lab setup, and learn from successful education models. These insights will support the development of Australia’s first comprehensive autonomic education program, aiming to reduce delays and improve care equity.