Our Team
Medical / Surgical
Prof Daniel Novakovic
Associate Professor - University of Sydney
Associate Professor Daniel Novakovic
A/Prof Daniel Novakovic is an Australian trained Otolaryngologist (Ear Nose & Throat Surgeon) with specialised fellowship training in Laryngology and Head and Neck Surgery. He graduated from the University of Sydney Medical School in 2000 and completed Otolaryngology Training in Australia to attain Fellowship to the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS) in 2007.
Prof Novakovic is one of the few people in Australia to undergo formal fellowship training in the field of laryngology and specifically neurolaryngology having spent a year working at the New York Center for Voice and Swallowing Disorders in Manhattan under the guidance of Dr Andrew Blitzer, Dr Marshall Strome and Dr Lucian Sulica. He has also completed fellowships in Head & Neck Oncology at University of Toronto Canada and St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney.
Daniel has interests in population Health and was awarded a Masters of Public Health from University of NSW in 2004. He has active research interests in the areas of respiratory papillomatosis, mucosal wound healing, laser-tissue interactions as well as neurological disorders of the larynx such as vocal fold paralysis and spasmodic dysphonia.
Prof Novakovic has published articles in internationally acclaimed journals, presented research papers at National and International meetings and published book chapters in the areas of Laryngology, Head and Neck Oncology and the use of neurotoxins in the Head & Neck amongst other topics. He acts as a reviewer for journals in the subspecialty area of Laryngology. In the past year he has lectured in Australia, Korea, New Zealand and USA
Prof Novakovic acts as co-director of the Dr Liang Voice Program at University of Sydney in conjunction with his speech pathology partner Dr Cate Madill. He is a member of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, Australian Society of Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery, American Laryngological Association, , Australian Medical Association, Australian Voice Association, and is Vice-President of the Laryngological Society of Australasia
Prof Novakovic was born and raised in Sydney Australia. His parents are of Serbian/Croatian origin and he speaks conversational Croatian/Serbian.
Dr Thomas Stewart
otolaryngologist
Dr Thomas Stewart
Originally from South Africa, Dr Stewart graduated from the University of Sydney Medical School in 2007. Following internship and residency he gained further surgical experience in Ear, Nose and Throat surgery while obtaining a Masters of Medicine in Clinical Epidemiology, also from the University of Sydney. He was accepted onto the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery specialist training scheme in NSW in 2014, and was awarded his Fellowship in 2019.
Following this, Dr Stewart completed the United States Medical Licencing Examinations, obtained his New York State Medical Licence, and received further subspecialty training in Laryngology and Neuro-Laryngology in New York City.
He is one of only a handful of ENT Surgeons in Australia to have completed a fellowship in this field. This was conducted under the tutelage of Dr Andrew Blitzer, a world pioneer in this field. Here, Dr Stewart developed further skills in laryngeal in-office surgery, intralaryngeal botulinum toxin therapy.
He is a member of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, Australian Society of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgeons, Laryngological Society of Australasia, and Australian Voice Association, in addition to being affiliated with the Doctor Liang Voice Program and the University of Sydney.
Dr Stewart benefitted from his extensive training across a number of tertiary metropolitan hospitals in Sydney, including both the Children’s Hospital at Westmead and Sydney Children’s Hospital. He practises the breadth of General ENT, with a specialty interest in Laryngology and Care of the Professional Voice. As the father of two young children, he is finely attuned to the unique challenges of paediatric care, and is particularly passionate about this aspect of ENT.
Speech Pathology Team
Dr Cate Madill
Cate has worked as a voice trainer, speech pathologist and voice specialist for the last 20 years. She is recognized nationally and internationally as a voice specialist and has published in peer-reviewed academic journals. She originally trained as an actor and singer at Flinders University of South Australia and worked as a performer for many years across NSW. Working as a voice coach in Sydney fueled her interest in vocal function and disorder, leading to completion of a Speech pathology degree in 1998, with honors and the University medal for her research into describing vocal function. She has subsequently held numerous lecturing positions in Voice in both Speech Pathology and Acting degrees and has completed a PhD in voice quality and personality attribution research. Dr Madill acts in conjunction with Dr Novakovic as co-directors of the Dr Liang Voice Program at Univeristy of Sydney. She is also currently a University Senior Lecturer and Director of the University of Sydney Voice Research laboratory, Honorary Associate of the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, and a member of Speech Pathology Australia, the Laryngology Society of Australasia and board member of the Australian Voice Association, and. She is voice consultant to the radio department at the Australian Film, Television and Radio School and has conducted voice training workshops for actors, singers, teachers, call centre workers and auctioneers. She has undergone training in a range of voice techniques including Voicecraft™, Estill Voice Training™, Lessac Madsen Resonant Voice and LSVT®. She specializes in diagnosis and treatment of voice disorders in voice professionals, singers and performers, and facilitates increased vocal effectiveness in those people who depend on vocal skill to inform, move, motivate and inspire Dr Madill is also the director of Cate Madill Voice and Speech – her team providing speech pathology services at multiple locations across Sydney. Cate joins the Sydney Voice and Swallowing team for a monthly mutlidisciplinary voice clinic in conjunction with Dr Novakovic.
Alisa Hawkins
Alisa is a highly qualified Speech Pathologist with a Masters in Speech Language Pathology from the University of Sydney. Originally trained as an actor, she obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Performance at Theatre Nepean at the University of Western Sydney where she developed her understanding of using the voice as a performance tool. Alisa has a particular interest in voice disorders in both adults and children. She is also passionate about helping children with speech, language and literacy difficulties through early intervention.
Alisa is a LSVT LOUD® certified clinician trained to deliver specialised voice therapy to clients with Parkinson disease and other neurological conditions. She has also undergone training in vocal techniques such as Voicecraft and Lessac Madsen Resonant Voice.
Alisa has worked in numerous settings including community health, hospitals and disability services. She is committed to working together with clients and their families to create specific programs that target each client’s individual needs. Alisa participates in a regular multidisciplinary Voice and Swallowing Clinic with Dr Novakovic. She consults at at St Leonards, Westmead and Hornsby rooms.
Administrative Team
Slavica Maslovaric
Customer Relations – Business Development
Slavica has been with Sydney Voice & Swallowing since 2011 and brings with her 20 years of knowledge and work experience within the health industry. Slavica has completed a Certificate IV in Business Administration which she completed with Distinction and is a certified Practice Manager and member of the Australian Association of Practice management. Slavica’s dedication in providing professional guidance and assistance to patients whilst delivering a seamless and personalised customer experience ensuring the highest quality of patient care takes pride of place in her professional career. Other Languages: Serbian, Croatian & understands Macedonian
Silvina Thomas
Customer Relations / Reception
As a valuable team member of Sydney Voice and Swallowing, Silvina has worked in administration in the field of Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) for the last 20 years. She has a great knowledge of the industry and a strong understanding of patient care. Silvina is there to assist and guide patients through the appointments process and with general enquiries.
With a strong knowledge of the industry, Silvina’s dedication accompanied by her professional persona, in providing the highest level of customer service and healthcare to our patients whilst ensuring the smooth running of our reception services is unsurpassed.
Karen Jones
Customer Relations / Reception
Karen joined the practice in 2021 and brings experience working in medical administration with an ENT focus. Karen is committed to supporting the practice in her role with an empathetic and professional approach to patients and their families.
Nursing Team
Katrina Sandham
Senior clinic nurse
Katrina Sandham
Senior Clinic Registered Nurse (RN)
Kate joined our team in 2018. She has over 15 years nursing experience in a range of disciplines, including general and neurosurgical intensive care. Kate has been fortunate to have worked in a number of high performing teams in Australia, and also in the UK.
Kate obtained a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Psychology & English, from Sydney University in 2000. She went on to complete postgraduate qualifications in Marketing and Public Relations from APM Training Institute
In 2002, Kate completed a Bachelor of Nursing and in 2007, attained a Graduate Certificate in Critical Care nursing, both at the University of Technology, Sydney.
Kate is committed to delivering best practice in healthcare. She shares the team’s passion for academic research to drive innovation, and develop and implement personalised care plans to meet the needs of each patient. Kate endeavours to provide support and education with a focus on effective communication to the wonderful patients and families that visit us at Sydney Voice and Swallowing.