Dr Sarah Catchlove awarded the 2025 Margaret Hamilton Travelling Scholarship
Turning Point’s Executive Clinical Director Professor Dan Lubman and Program Director, Statewide Services, Denis Hovic presented the award to Dr Catchlove this week.
We are delighted to announce that Dr Sarah Catchlove has been awarded the 2025 Margaret Hamilton Travelling Scholarship!
“I’m super excited by the opportunity,” Dr Catchlove said. “Presenting at international conferences will be instrumental in supporting my growth as a researcher and advancing my contributions to the academic community.”
Dr Catchlove is a Research Fellow in our Clinical and Social Research Team whose research interests focus on exploring the health-enhancing mechanisms of medications, with a particular emphasis on novel pharmaceuticals, psychopharmacology and psychedelic science.
She is particularly interested in understanding how emerging drug therapies interact with biological systems to promote well-being, improve mental health outcomes, and revolutionise treatment models.
Her work aims to bridge the gap between pharmacological innovation and clinical application, contributing to the development of safer and more effective therapeutic options.
“I’m looking forward to using the scholarship to present findings from our mOXY trial at the College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD) Annual Meeting in New Orleans, USA, in June,” Dr Catchlove said.
The open-label pilot study of oxytocin for methamphetamine withdrawal investigated its effectiveness in improving a range of addiction treatment outcomes in women, including sleep, during a one-week residential withdrawal admission (detox).
“I’ve also applied to present the data at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) International Forum,” Dr Catchlove added.
“I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity made possible by Turning Point and the Margaret Hamiliton fund,” she said. “Their generosity will allow me to engage with leading experts and present our research internationally – an opportunity I would not have had without this support.”
Turning Point’s travelling scholarships would not be possible without the generous contribution from the donors who established the fund, including Professor Margaret Hamilton, the founding Director of Turning Point. Professor Hamilton has more than 50 years’ experience in the drug and alcohol field and remains an active advocate for improving clinical and policy responses to alcohol and drug issues.
For information about the clinical outcomes of the MOXY pilot study and their implications for treatment practices, watch the recent Talking Point presentation.
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