Associate ProfessorRebecca McLaughlan

Associate Professor Rebecca McLaughlan is a NSW Registered Architect and former Australian Research Council DECRA Fellow. She currently serves on the University’s Academic Board and is the Programme Director for the Bachelor of Design in Architecture (Honours)/Master of Architecture (VIM). 

Rebecca’s research explores the ways that architecture embodies care by examining lived experiences and perceptions of care environments. Distinguishing her work within this field is an attentiveness to the complex eco-system that exists between research, design practice and the constraints of procurement and use. Her DECRA fellowship (2019-22) investigated the design of palliative care facilities; and expanded her previous research into environments for mental health, oncology, and paediatric care. Rebecca has led multiple research collaborations with industry, including as part of the Victorian Government’s $492M Mental Health Beds Expansion Program in 2018, with NTC Architects and AECOM.

Her research has been used to inform the first ever “Australasian Health Facilities Guideline for Palliative Care" which sets a baseline for design quality, and will have an enduring impact on the design of healthcare facilities within Australia and New Zealand. Her work has been cited in the NSW Government Architect's “Design Guide for Health”; was selected by the US-based Centre for Health Design for inclusion in their Continuing Professional Development program for health architects; and informed the planning of more than 17 healthcare facilities in Australia and internationally. Her current research explores how the built environment supports translational medical research—the very research that underpins effective healthcare delivery.

Prior to joining the University of Sydney in 2022, Rebecca held teaching and research positions at the University of Melbourne and the University of Newcastle, and completed her PhD at Victoria University of Wellington. This followed almost a decade of architectural practice within New Zealand.