Doctor Elvina Viennet

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Dr Elvina Viennet

Research Fellow

Adjunct Senior Lecturer, Queensland University of Technology


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Elvina’s interests lie in infectious disease, especially in vector-borne diseases. She's working on transfusion transmissible infections (TTIs) and the emerging risks associated with climate and environmental changes. With a strong background in medical entomology,  epidemiology and a deep commitment to public health, Elvina investigates the connection between these fields. 

Her research focuses on understanding how weather, environment and climate changes affect the prevalence and transmission of vector-borne diseases, but also how these affect blood donations and blood supply management. By examining patterns and trends in disease occurrence and mapping how these patterns change over time, Elvina aims to identify the emerging risks and vulnerabilities linked to shifting environmental conditions. Her work plays a vital role in developing strategies for effective screening, prevention, and education, ensuring the safety and reliability of blood transfusions in the face of a rapidly changing world.

Elvina completed her PhD in Medical and Veterinary Entomology and Bio-Ecology. Her thesis was about the contact between hosts and Culicoides species in the Palaearctic region, and the implications in bluetongue virus transmission.

Awards

  • Fonds Pacifique 2021, PI Dr Francesca Frentiu. CLIMATIC: CLIMAte change and the risk of mosquito-borne virus Transmission In the PaCific, $AUD 73,000 
  • ANU ECR Travel Grant 2014 , $AUD 2,500 

Leadership

  • Section Editor for PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
  • Reviewer for journals including The Lancet Planetary Health, BMC Infectious Diseases, BMC Public Health, BMC Global Health, PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, PLoS One, Environmental Research, Environmental Health Perspective, Viruses, and Biology 
  • Supervisor of Honours, Masters’ and PhDs’ students
  • Examiner for student theses
  • Member of the International Society of Blood Transfusion member and the International Society for Infectious Diseases

Key publications

Estimation of mosquito-borne and sexual transmission of Zika virus in Australia: Risks to blood transfusion safety
Viennet E, Frentiu FD, Williams CR, Mincham G, Jansen CC, Montgomery BL, Flower RLP, Faddy HM
2020
PLoS Negl Trop Dis.
14:e0008438.
Epidemic potential of Zika virus in Australia: implications for blood transfusion safety
Watson-Brown P, Viennet E, Mincham G, Williams CR, Jansen CC, Montgomery BL, Flower RLP, Faddy HM
2019
Transfusion.
59:648-658.
Geostatistical mapping of the seasonal spread of under-reported dengue cases in Bangladesh
Sharmin S, Glass K, Viennet E, Harley D
2018
PLoS Negl Trop Dis.
12:e0006947.
Ross River virus in Australian blood donors: possible implications for blood transfusion safety
Faddy HM, Tran TV, Hoad VC, Seed CR, Viennet E, Chan HT, Harley R, Hewlett E, Hall RA, Bielefeldt-Ohmann H, Flower RLP, Prow NA
2018
Transfusion.
58:485-492.
Climate services for health: cooperation for climate informed dengue surveillance
Viennet E, Harley D
2017
Lancet Planet Health.
1:e126-e127.