Sean Parsons

Biography

 Sean holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc), Dual Major – Physiology and Biomedical Science, First Class Honours – Developmental Neurobiology, Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS). Prior to founding Ellume, Sean Parsons was a busy intensive care and emergency specialist in a large Brisbane hospital, inundated with admissions during the swine flu epidemic of 2008-9. Many patients needed to know, quickly and unequivocally, whether they had the flu; that information could have curtailed the spread. Some, including a previously-healthy teenage boy, had died. Sean urgently needed a diagnostic tool that did not exist yet: a fast, accurate, robust and non-invasive way to diagnose infectious disease in a clinic, home or ward. Combining fluorescent nanotechnologies and world first optoelectronics, he co-invented Ellume’s pioneering quantum dot detection system. The technology is now available in an easy-to-use digital device to detect a growing range of infectious diseases. Sean previously worked extensively at the Royal Brisbane, Princess Alexandra and Wesley hospitals in Brisbane as well as in regional general practice around Australia. He is now full-time Managing Director of Ellume, named Best Emerging Company at the Johnson & Johnson Innovation 2015 Industry Excellence Awards.

Research Interest

 Sean holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc), Dual Major – Physiology and Biomedical Science, First Class Honours – Developmental Neurobiology, Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS). Prior to founding Ellume, Sean Parsons was a busy intensive care and emergency specialist in a large Brisbane hospital, inundated with admissions during the swine flu epidemic of 2008-9. Many patients needed to know, quickly and unequivocally, whether they had the flu; that information could have curtailed the spread. Some, including a previously-healthy teenage boy, had died. Sean urgently needed a diagnostic tool that did not exist yet: a fast, accurate, robust and non-invasive way to diagnose infectious disease in a clinic, home or ward. Combining fluorescent nanotechnologies and world first optoelectronics, he co-invented Ellume’s pioneering quantum dot detection system. The technology is now available in an easy-to-use digital device to detect a growing range of infectious diseases. Sean previously worked extensively at the Royal Brisbane, Princess Alexandra and Wesley hospitals in Brisbane as well as in regional general practice around Australia. He is now full-time Managing Director of Ellume, named Best Emerging Company at the Johnson & Johnson Innovation 2015 Industry Excellence Awards.