Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Sakkie Pretorius was on hand to officially welcome the Australian Institute of Health Innovation (AIHI) on their first day as part of Macquarie University this morning.

While not a simple task given the size of the Institute – approximately 100 research staff, associates, national and international visiting professors and fellows, including up to 30 doctoral, masters or honours research students – Professor Pretorius said the relocation had gone remarkably smoothly thanks to the efforts of staff. Professor Jeffrey Braithwaite said that as a result, the Institute members were already feeling at home.

“Moving to Macquarie is such a privilege for us. It offers tremendous new opportunities for the Australian Institute of Health Innovation to contribute its research in health systems improvement, implementation science, e-health and patient safety in multiple new ways,” he said.

“Our international research profile fits perfectly with the many research projects underway at Macquarie, including those throughout the existing Faculties and the new Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Our researchers and partners are buzzing with anticipation about the synergies we see even in these early days of our involvement in Macquarie’s activities. This is particularly exciting in this, the University’s Jubilee year.”

The Australian Institute of Health Innovation (AIHI) was established in December 2007. Led by Professor Braithwaite, it brings together three well-established and successful research centres that work in the separate but related areas of clinical governance, health informatics and health systems and safety. These are respectively the Centre for Clinical Governance Research directed by Professor Braithwaite, the Centre for Health Informatics directed by Professor Enrico Coiera and the Centre for Health Systems and Safety Research directed by Professor Johanna Westbrook.