New NHMRC Partnership Project for diagnostic excellence

New federal funding will improve disease diagnosis and management by ensuring the right pathology and medical imaging tests are ordered and used

Pathology and medical imaging generate information that is crucial to the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, yet errors in diagnosis contribute to 10% of all patient deaths in hospital and many patients leave hospital without receiving the results of their diagnostic tests.

Macquarie University has been awarded $1 million in National Health and Medical Research Council funding, announced by the Minister for Health and Aged Care, the Hon Greg Hunt, for ‘Establishing a digital health foundation for outcomes-based diagnostic excellence, safety and value’. A further $350,000 has been provided by research partners.

The project is led by Professor Andrew Georgiou from the Australian Institute of Health Innovation at Macquarie University. It will build on an existing, highly productive collaboration bringing together Macquarie University researchers with leading clinical researchers from South Eastern Sydney, and Illawarra and Shoalhaven Local Health Districts, the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Abbott (Diagnostics), NSW Health Pathology, Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, teaming up with researchers from the Sydney Partnership for Health, Education, Research and Enterprise (SPHERE).

Innovations in information technology will be deployed to ensure the right pathology tests are ordered, measure the quality of diagnosis, and assess the appropriateness of treatment. New systems will also improve the way patients’ health status is monitored, initially focussing on diabetes, acute respiratory viral infections (such as the flu) and fractures in older people.

The project will also seek to improve test result management and follow-up procedures to reduce costs and improve the quality of care and safety of patients. The World Health Organization World Alliance for Patient Safety has identified poor test-result management as an international high-priority for patient safety.

Professor Georgiou emphasised the considerable potential afforded by IT to generate, gather, interpret and communicate clinical test data and information, in order to improve the diagnosis and treatment of disease and provide better value to the health system.

Chief investigators on the project are:

• Professor Andrew Georgiou, Australian Institute of Health Innovation (AIHI), Macquarie University
• Professor Jacqueline Center, Garvan Institute of Medical Research
• Professor Johanna Westbrook, AIHI, Macquarie University
• Professor William Rawlinson, University of New South Wales
• Professor Kate Curtis, University of Sydney
• Associate Professor Jeffrey Post, University of New South Wales
• Professor Andrea Rita Horvath, New South Wales Health Pathology
• Professor Ken Hillman, University of New South Wales
• Professor Janaki Amin, Macquarie University
• Professor Zoltan Endre, University of New South Wales

Professor Andrew Georgiou is available for interview, please contact chrissy.clay@mq.edu.au

CENTRES RELATED TO THIS NEWS

Centre for Health Systems and Safety Research

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT

Chrissy Clay, Research Outreach Coordinator

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