Associate Professor Catherine Storey OAM awarded Honorary Fellowship
The University celebrates Associate Professor Storey’s significant contributions to medicine
The University of Sydney awards an Honorary Fellowship to Associate Professor Catherine Storey OAM for her impacts on the field of medicine, neurology, education and the history of medicine.
Associate Professor Storey was awarded an Honorary Fellowship during a ceremony held at the University of Sydney on Wednesday, 7 December, presided over by Presiding Pro‑Chancellor Dr Barry Catchlove.
“Associate Professor Catherine’s inspiring and exceptional impact as a historian of medicine has defined the fields of medicine and neurology. Her immense legacy in her field also extends to her work at the University of Sydney, which we graciously celebrate as our community benefits greatly from her work,” said Presiding Pro-Chancellor Dr Catchlove.
In 1972 Associate Professor Storey graduated from the University of Sydney and began her illustrious career in medicine as a junior resident medical officer at the Royal North Shore Hospital. Under new rules implemented by the Royal Australasian College of Physicians in the 1970s, she became the first woman to train in neurology. After that, she spent several years studying in the field at the National Hospital in Queen Square, London, where she was the first female registrar.
Pictured: Presiding Pro-Chancellor Dr Barry Catchlove AM (left), Associate Professor Catherine Storey, and Professor Brendan McCormack (right). Image credit: The University of Sydney.
Once she returned to Australia, she became the head of the Royal North Shore Hospital Stroke Unit from 1997 to 2019, and from 1999 to 2007, she was the head of the hospital’s Neurology Department.
In 2001, Associate Professor Storey gained a Master of Science from the University of Sydney in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science. After retiring from clinical practice in 2010, she has devoted her time to archiving and documenting the history of medicine at the Royal North Shore Hospital, the Sydney Medical School, and the University of Sydney. In 2014, she collated a collection for the history of Sydney Medical School, which was placed in their permanent displays when the Medical School Museum opened in 2016, where she is currently the Managing Curator.
Associate Professor Storey commenced her role as an Honorary Archivist at the Royal North Shore Hospital and the Northern Clinical School in 2015. She is celebrated for reorganising and cataloguing the hospital's extensive archival collection and promoting it to researchers. In addition, she has positively encouraged students to take on historical research projects through her work.
Her immense legacy in her field also extends to her work at the University of Sydney, which we graciously celebrate as our community benefits greatly from her work."
She has contributed greatly to the University of Sydney through her involvement in clinical teaching, acting as a supervisor for research students, and supporting the Rare Books Collection at Fisher Library. In recent years, she conducted historical tours at the Blackburn Building before it was demolished, and the Medical Journal of Australia published a short history she wrote about the building.
Since 2010, Associate Professor Storey has been president of the Medical Alumni Association, a life member of the Sydney University Union, a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians, Chair of the Library and Collections Committee, a member, and former President of the International Society for the History of Neurosciences. She was appointed to the committee responsible for administering the Harold and Gwenneth Harris Endowment for the Medical Humanities at the University of Sydney.
In 2011, she was awarded the Medal of Order of Australia for her work in neurology, stroke education, and professional associations.
