A Legacy of Regional Neurological Care
As one of the major private neurological referral centres in the New England Northwest region, Northwest Neurology has been a locally based specialist service for over 25 years. What began with one doctor's commitment to regional medicine has grown into a dedicated team of neurologists, support staff, and visiting specialists, all working together to bring comprehensive neurological care closer to home for patients across Tamworth and regional NSW.
Our Neurologists
Northwest Neurology is led by an experienced team of neurologists dedicated to improving access to specialist neurological care across regional NSW.
Dr. James Hughes
Dr Hughes has been providing neurological care in regional NSW since 1997. He is involved in the management and support of outpatients and hospitalised patients with a broad range of adult neurological disorders. He cares for people with migraine and other headache disorders, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, movement disorders, including Parkinson disease as well as assisting in the diagnosis of other brain, spinal cord, muscle and peripheral nerve disorders. He provides acute stroke therapy as well as neurological consultation and advice for hospital patients He is a national examiner for the RACP and is a teacher of undergraduate and post-graduate medical trainees.
Dr. Lisa Dark
Dr Lisa Dark is a Consultant Neurologist and Neurophysiologist. She graduated from the University of Sydney, and completed her specialist training in Tamworth, Newcastle, and Sydney. She completed a fellowship in Clinical Neurophysiology, Neuromuscular medicine, and Neuroimmunology at Westmead Hospital. Since moving to Tamworth in 2013, Dr Dark has been providing care to patients with neurological conditions in Northwest NSW. She provides diagnostic and therapeutic care in general neurology, as well as subspecialty interests in headache, stroke, multiple sclerosis, and neuromuscular disorders. Dr Dark provides a specialised neurophysiology service, as well as botulinum toxin injections for neurological conditions. She is involved with the acute stroke service at Tamworth Rural Referral Hospital, where she also works as a Consultant Neurologist and General Physician. Dr Dark has a strong commitment to developing and strengthening rural specialist training programs. She established one of the first rurally based General Medicine advanced training programs in NSW, where senior trainee doctors are able to complete their training in the New England area, rotating in to metropolitan sites if needed for further subspecialist experience. She is currently the Clinical Chair for the NSW General and Acute Care Medicine Advanced Training State Advisory Council with the Health Education and Training Institute (HETI), and is the previous Chair and current member of the ANZAN (Australian and New Zealand Association of Neurologists) Regional Neurology Committee. She is also a Senior Examiner for the RACP (Royal Australasian College of Physicians) Clinical Examinations.
Dr. Bridget Hughes
Dr Bridget Hughes undertook her medical education at the University of New England in Armidale through the Joint Medical Program with the University of Newcastle. She did her junior medical training in the Hunter New England Local Health District, including her first year of Neurology Advanced Training. She further trained at Westmead Hospital and underwent fellowship training at the Royal Hobart Hospital. Her fellowship subspecialty training was in neurophysiology, neuroimmunology and neuromuscular diseases.
In addition to her fellowship areas, Dr Hughes practises general neurology with further particular interest in headache neurology and epilepsy. Dr Hughes participates in the general medicine service at Tamworth Rural Referral Hospital, where she provides acute stroke on-call and neurology consultations.
Dr Hughes particularly enjoys teaching junior medical staff and medical students, and participates in multiple education roles and opportunities at TRRH including coordinating the local BPT education roster.
Dr Hughes has always been passionate about and committed to regional medicine and is excited to be back working in the region that helped grow her to the doctor she is today.
Our reception team
Our reception team plays a central role in the day-to-day care of our patients. Led by practice manager Megan, with Vanessa and Patrick alongside her, the team brings a warm, professional approach to everything they do.
From coordinating appointments and managing referrals from GPs and health professionals, to providing technical support such as EEG preparation, they ensure every patient receives timely, well-organised care from the moment they first contact us.
Visiting specialists
Additional consultants strengthening our neurological services.
A/Prof Mitchell Hansen
A/Prof Hansen is an Australian-trained Adult and Paediatric Neurosurgeon who visits Northwest Neurology as a specialist consultant. He completed a fellowship in Complex Spine Surgery at John Hunter Hospital and the AO Spine Fellowship at Toronto Western Hospital in Canada. With extensive surgical expertise in cranial, spinal, and peripheral nerve surgery, he regularly presents and provides training to surgeons nationally and internationally.
A/Prof Hansen is the previous Past President of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia, Chair of AO Spine Australia and New Zealand, and incumbent Neurosurgical Education Officer for AO Spine in the Asia Pacific region. He serves as Director of Neurosurgery at Newcastle Private Hospital and Director of the AO Spine Centre at John Hunter Hospital, and was appointed Conjoint Associate Professor at the University of Newcastle in 2020. He has a keen interest in research, with publications across several international journals.
Dr. Gordon Dandie
Dr Gordon Dandie is a Neurosurgeon and Spine Surgeon who visits Northwest Neurology as a specialist consultant. He specialises in complex spinal surgery, neurovascular surgery, and brain tumour surgery, with particular expertise in minimally invasive (keyhole) and robotic-assisted surgery. Dr Dandie was the first surgeon in the southern hemisphere to use the ROSA robotic system for spinal surgery.
Dr Dandie completed his MBBS at the University of New South Wales before undertaking surgical training at St Vincent's Hospital, Royal Hobart Hospital, Royal North Shore Hospital, and Sydney Children's Hospital Randwick. He obtained his FRACS qualification in 2000, followed by post-fellowship training in cerebrovascular surgery at Royal North Shore Hospital and a Complex Spinal Surgery Fellowship at the University of Toronto, Canada.
He works as a Visiting Medical Officer at Westmead Private Hospital and Sydney Adventist Hospital, where he also serves as Head of the Department of Neurosurgery. He is a Clinical Senior Lecturer at the University of Sydney and is extensively involved in teaching surgeons and trainees nationally and internationally.
Associations
