Prof Stephen McDonald is Director of the Adelaide EpiCentre. Established in January 2024, this is a Centre for Clinical Epidemiology based at the Royal Adelaide Hospital which aims to support and improve the standard and scope of clinical research within the Central Adelaide Local Health Network. He is the Clinical Director of Renal Services for the SA Rural Support Service, chairs the SA Renal Community of Practice, and is Executive Officer of the Australia and New Zealand Dialysis and Transplant Registry.

He co-chairs the Registry Special Interest Group of ACTA, and is co-Chair of the National Indigenous Kidney Transplant Taskforce.

His research interests centre around the epidemiology of renal disease, and especially the use of Registry data to analyse trends and outcomes of those receiving renal replacement therapy.