Alex Martin joined the MRINZ whānau in 2020, and over the last four years has been primarily coordinating multiple studies within the Pharmacy Research Network (PRN), an MRINZ-led entity linking pharmacies across Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia, able to rapidly conduct randomised controlled trials in a community setting. 

Alex is a valued member of the Complementary and Alternative Medicine programme team, providing recruitment strategy and undertaking study participant communication, and has contributed to several early phase respiratory studies, alongside the wider Asthma programme team. Since beginning with MRINZ, Alex has embarked on his PhD, which is investigating whether cannabis is a safe and effective treatment for insomnia disorder. The project investigates the feasibility of conducting high quality medicinal cannabis research using a decentralised method, building on the fundamentals of the PRN.

Alex has a long-standing interest in neuroscience and completed his BSc (Hons) at Te Whare Wānanga o Ōtākou, the University of Otago, with a major in this area. His graduate research investigated the molecular mechanisms of learning and memory, with a particular focus on Alzheimer’s disease. Among his many interests are novel research methodologies, sleep and wakefulness, and respiratory physiology.