As a practitioner, researcher, and educator Dr Patricia Fronek was deeply committed to social work values including social justice, human rights, and respecting and valuing the worth and self-determination of all people, especially women and children in surrogacy and adoption.

This obituary honours the outstanding professional achievements of Dr Patricia Fronek, a career-long member of the AASW. Tricia graduated from the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Social Work in 1981 and a Doctor of Philosophy in 2009. She worked in various social work roles in Queensland Health over many years, most recently in the Spinal Injuries Unit at the Princess Alexandra Hospital. She was appointed to Griffith University in 2010 and was the first Program Director for social work at the Gold Coast campus.

She was passionate about social work’s value to society and research-informed public policy as opposed to policy informed by ideology, personal opinions or political influence. Tricia’s service to the profession included terms as President of Australian & New Zealand Social Work & Welfare Education & Research (ANZSWWER) and creator and producer of Podsocs (the podcast for social workers on the run).
Tricia’s research focused on children’s rights in intercountry adoption and surrogacy, social work in health emergencies, disability, and social work education. She published over 50 academic papers, books, and book chapters, plus many reports, submissions, book reviews, conference presentations, and blogs. The journal Nature (Futures series) published her sci-fi story “The Interruption” in 2012 (https://www.nature.com/articles/482268a).

Tricia’s work as a leading voice for ethical intercountry adoptions aimed to ensure better alignment with international standards on the rights of children to care and protection. She was a consultant to the Government of Cambodia, UNICEF and the Child Identity Protection organisation in drafting policy for the prevention of family separation, foster care, and adoption from 2016 to 2020. Based on her professional and academic experience, Tricia was a member of the international group that led the drafting of the Verona Principles, published in 2021, for the protection of the rights of the child born through surrogacy. Tricia’s contribution to Verona was leading the drafting of Principle 5 on pre-surrogacy protections and Principles 7, 8 and 9 on consents from different parties. She also served as academic advisor for the National InterCountry Adoption Advisory Group for the federal Attorney-General’s Department. 

Patricia was dedicated and tireless in her advocacy efforts on children’s rights. She is fondly remembered by many colleagues and will be greatly missed by her friends and family.
Clare Tilbury

Clare Tilbury is Professor Emeritus of Social Work at Griffith University, Australia. This obituary was prepared in consultation with Griffith University colleagues, Adjunct Professor Lynne Briggs and Dr Patricia Dorsett.