About Us

Dr. Sathiya (Sathi) Sivanesan, MBDS, MD, RACGP, has over 15 years of medical experience ranging from rural to remote medicine to acute trauma medicine, GP Anaesthetic, Intensive Care Management and acute and chronic disease management. In 2017, he received his fellowship from The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. Sathi's General Practice interests include Acute pain  management and perioperative medicine. 

Dr Arul Sivanesan is the Chief Medical Officer and a founding member of the Victorian Acute Pain Service (VAPS), established in December 2015. He provides clinical governance, strategic leadership, and service development oversight for the statewide service. Under his direction, VAPS has grown into a trusted, multidisciplinary partner in delivering high-quality, patient-centred acute pain care across diverse clinical environments.

Dr Sivanesan currently serves as Director of Medical Services – Critical Care and Women & Children’s Services, where he leads a broad portfolio encompassing ICU, Anaesthesia, Surgery, Orthopaedics, Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Paediatrics, and Emergency Medicine. In this capacity, he is responsible for executive oversight of clinical performance, workforce planning, perioperative models of care, and interdepartmental governance across regional Victoria.

Previously, Dr Sivanesan was Co-Clinical Director of Anaesthetics and Perioperative Services at Bass Coast Health, where he played a key role in transforming perioperative services, establishing critical care pathways, and launching regional anaesthetic training programs.

His clinical interests span acute-on-chronic pain, regional anaesthesia, and complex perioperative optimisation, with a particular focus on pain in vulnerable populations and the intersection between acute physiology and chronic disease states.

Dr Sivanesan holds multiple postgraduate qualifications in retrieval medicine, leadership, and innovation, including training from Harvard Medical School’s LIM-SEA program and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) – National Clinical AI Initiative (NCAI). He is also a recognised leader in rural generalist anaesthesia and trauma system integration.

With a strong commitment to clinical excellence, equitable access, and system innovation, Dr Sivanesan continues to drive collaborative models of care, workforce education, and digital transformation across Victoria’s health system.