Medical imaging
Radiography and sonography
Kelly trained in diagnostic radiography and medical sonography and worked as a diagnostic sonographer for around a decade before returning to university to study medicine.
About AMI · Founder
Dr Kelly Needham
Medicine, women’s health, community and a career that eventually led to the Australian Menopause Institute.
Founder & Medical Director · Australian Menopause Institute
Qualifications & registration
MBBSMedical degree · Western Sydney University
BAppSc(Rad)Medical Radiation Technology / Diagnostic Radiography
PGradDipMedSonPostgraduate qualification in Medical Sonography
Registered Medical PractitionerAHPRA registration MED0001858737
A career built across healthcare
More than two decades of healthcare experience — and no single straight line to get here.
Kelly’s career has moved through medical imaging, sonography, medicine, oncology and women’s health. That breadth matters to AMI because the menopause conversation rarely belongs to one symptom, one test or one moment in time.
Medicine
Western Sydney University
She completed her medical degree at Western Sydney University and went on to work across hospital medicine, surgical care and oncology.
Oncology
Radiation oncology training
Kelly undertook radiation oncology specialty training at the Central Coast Cancer Centre, adding another layer of experience in complex care, multidisciplinary practice and the human side of serious illness.
Women’s health
From clinical practice to women-centred care
Her later work increasingly focused on women’s health, perimenopause and menopause — and on the gap between having clinical information available and a woman actually feeling heard, understood and confident in her care.
Built through real work
The organisations and pathways around the work.
Coastal Goddess
A doctor-led Central Coast clinic and women’s health community that has also become a platform for public women’s health conversations and fundraising.
The M Clinic
A menopause-focused medical pathway for women who need individual assessment and care rather than general information alone.
PeriHelp
Kelly is PeriHelp’s Clinical Director, guiding clinical direction and reviewing its health content for women navigating perimenopause.
Australian Menopause Institute
AMI brings together evidence, women’s lived experience, practitioner education and the consultation itself — with the aim of improving how menopause care is understood and experienced.
Community impact
Women’s health conversations that have also raised real money for research.
Through Coastal Goddess women’s health events, Kelly and the community around her have raised funds for WomenCan, supporting gynaecological cancer research through ANZGOG.
Over $100,000raised across five Coastal Goddess women’s health luncheons.
$30,000raised at the 2026 luncheon for WomenCan.
158guests at the sold-out 2026 women’s health luncheon on the Central Coast.
These fundraising figures relate to Coastal Goddess community events supporting WomenCan / ANZGOG. They are community-impact milestones, not claims about AMI clinical outcomes.
Public recognition
Recognised in the NSW Parliament.
On 4 June 2026, a written Community Recognition Statement in the NSW Legislative Assembly recognised Dr Kelly Needham’s leadership in establishing Coastal Goddess and her contribution to women’s health awareness, education and support.
The recognition followed the 2026 Coastal Goddess Women’s Health Luncheon and the wider fundraising record built across five events.
Important distinction: parliamentary recognition is recognition of community contribution — it is not a government endorsement of AMI, Coastal Goddess, The M Clinic, a course or a clinical method.
Why AMI
Excellent care is not only about what happens clinically. It is also about how a woman experiences her care.
That principle sits at the heart of the Australian Menopause Institute — combining evidence, practical consultation skills and women’s lived experience so better care can reach far beyond one consulting room.