The Minister for Health and Aged Care, The Hon Greg Hunt MP, announced the latest round of Investigator Grants and Partnerships Grant funding today, Tuesday 14 September.

Six Macquarie projects receive a total of $4.6 million in Investigator Grant funding, with another two projects led by researchers in the Australian Institute of Health Innovation (AIHI) within the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences receiving $2.47 million in Partnership Project funding.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Sakkie Pretorius says it is very pleasing to see the groundbreaking work of Macquarie University researchers being recognised with Federal Government investment.

“This funding provides a major boost for our Healthy People future-shaping research priority, allowing us to pioneer further knowledge and innovation in healthcare, particularly in aged care and wellness – an area of increasing importance as our population ages.

“I congratulate our grant recipients on their success and am proud that Macquarie University is improving the lives of so many Australians through our research and clinical excellence.”

Congratulations to all our NHMRC grant recipients.

Dr Kate Churruca of the AIHI receives $650,740 for a research program to identify how the culture of aged care facilities affects residents’ safety and quality of care, and create strategies to improve this and resident outcomes.

Professor Enrico Coiera of the AIHI is awarded $1.5 million for a research program to bring artificial intelligence into the real world of healthcare, looking at issues including safety and testing of claims of benefit.

Dr Carly Johnco from the School of Psychological Sciences is awarded $650,740 to examine ways of treating late-life anxiety, particularly in people with age-related changes in cognition, based on significant advances in understanding of how to reduce fears in younger adults using experimental neuroscience research.

Dr Jenny Lee from the Macquarie Medical School receives $530,518 to investigate treatment for people with advanced head and neck cancer, using material from patients’ own tumours to test responses to new drugs and select the most suitable therapy for each individual.

Dr Mitchell Sarkies of the AIHI is awarded $617,582.88 to develop an evidence-based management model to improve the care provided following hip fractures. It aims to assist in reducing surgery wait times, improving recovery rates, and alleviate pain and suffering.

Dr Yan (Anne) Zou from the Macquarie Medical School receives $650,740 to develop a way of safely and effectively treating brain tumours by delivering cutting-edge gene therapies directly into the brain. Until now, options for applying gene therapies to the brain have been limited.

A joint project led by Professor Andrew Georgiou of the AIHI receives more than $1 million from the NHMRC to improve the quality of patient diagnostic tools, including ensuring the right pathology tests are ordered, measuring the quality of diagnosis, and assessing the appropriateness of treatment.

A joint project led by Professor Johanna Westbrook of the AIHI, and steered by a new National Aged Care Medication Roundtable, receives more than $1.4m from the NHMRC to devise innovative and practical IT-based solutions to address poor medication management in residential aged care, initially focusing on the overuse of antibiotics and antipsychotics.

She also happens to be a registered psychologist and a Macquarie alumna (BPsych (Hons) 1998).

1. Something you feel proud of
My co-authors and I just won the Peter Reizenstein Award for best paper published in the International Journal for Quality in Healthcare for 2020. Titled ‘The 40 health systems, COVID-19 (40HS, C-19) study’, the paper was a collaborative team effort and I really enjoyed the opportunity to examine international datasets and play with some new graphing tools.

2. Something you’d like staff to know about 
Over the last year, I’ve really loved working on a side-project with a great team from the Centre for Health Informatics, on the role of augmented reality games, like Pokémon Go, in supporting mental health and wellbeing. It’s been such a fun project and very rewarding.

3. What you need to do your best work
My laptop, a quiet space and a good barista-made coffee. I lived in Melbourne for a couple of years, which is certainly the place to get an appreciation for coffee! My friends tell me I’ve become a bit of a coffee snob.

4.  A Macquarie person you admire
I really admire and look up to my colleague, Associate Professor Robyn Clay-Williams, who was one of the first two women to serve as a pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force. As a female pioneer, I really admire how she has shaped Australia’s history. Robyn is now an internationally regarded health services researcher. However, first and foremost, she is a wonderful role model, while remaining down-to-earth, trusted and a highly-collaborate colleague.

5. Something you’ve read that has had an impact on you
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies of a Silicon Valley Startup. It’s a must-read about the rise and shocking collapse of Theranos, a multi-billion dollar US startup. This book provides such an interesting insight into its founder, Elizabeth Holmes, who committed one of the biggest corporate frauds since Enron. Next, I’m really interested in following the story of fraudster Anna Delvey, whose story will be released on Netflix soon.

6. A favourite photo from your camera roll
I feel so blessed to have had some time away with my family in Port Douglas before the current Sydney lockdown. This photo expresses joy, freedom and warmth.

7. What you like about where you live
I am lucky enough to live quite close to Macquarie in the north-west suburbs. I moved there with my family so that we could have big backyard with a pool. As soon as I saw our house, I knew it was meant for us.

8. A website or app you can’t live without
I’ll sound like such an academic when I say this, but of course how could any of us survive without Google Scholar. It’s the quick go to when searching for academic literature. Of course, it’s also a great place to see how many citations my publications have received. ;o) 

9. Something you’re trying to do differently in 2021
I’ve made a conscious decision to ensure that I continue to support others and be a positive role model. I think it’s particularly important in the competitive, cut-throat academic environment we can sometimes find ourselves in.  

10.  The first person you go to for advice
Definitely my mum, who has been a constant source of inspiration to me. My mum is the most incredible optimistic woman, never letting anything get her down or stand in her way.

The major event that shaped my mum’s life was a very bad car accident that she was involved in when she was in her 20s. She was hit by a drunk driver, her parents died and she suffered a very bad traumatic brain injury. She lost most of her memory and had to learn to read and write again.

She was told she would never walk again, but with constant persistence, she did.  She could not recognise her husband and had no memories of their relationship, but they worked things out together. The doctors told mum that she would not be able to have children but she defied all odds there too. My mum’s optimism was what got her through, and this has greatly shaped who I am today.

As Director of Macquarie’s Centre for Health Systems and Safety Research within the Australian Institute of Health Innovation (AIHI), Professor Westbrook’s research is changing the way governments and healthcare providers – both in Australia and internationally – approach patient care and healthcare delivery. 

Now Professor Westbrook’s remarkable impact on healthcare has been recognised by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), with the Council honouring her with a coveted Elizabeth Blackburn Award for Leadership in Health Services Research at their annual Research Excellence Awards in Canberra.

(Macquarie’s Professor Wendy Rogers was a recipient of the NHMRC’s Ethics Award at the same awards in 2018.)

Professor Westbrook’s award is named in honour of Tasmanian-born Nobel Laureate Professor Elizabeth Blackburn, a molecular biologist who received the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 2009.

It has been awarded in association with a $2.5 million NHMRC Investigator Grant, funding Professor Westbrook and her team to look at ways to improve medication safety in hospitals.

“Our research has demonstrated the enormous potential of electronic medication management systems to reduce medication errors – in some cases halving the rate of errors in hospitals,” Professor Westbrook says.

“Our next crucial step is to understand how to optimise these systems – to increase their effectiveness and safety, and to better integrate them into the everyday work of clinicians, each with their own unique work patterns, needs, preferences and professional cultures.”

Interested in Professor Westbrook’s work?

Read her recent interview in The Lighthouse, where she explains how  electronic medication support technology can reduce drug errors in children’s hospitals by as much as 40 per cent.

Macquarie’s outstanding research – the quality of which has been reflected in the 2018 ERA results – doesn’t happen without great people working together in great ways. And one of the most important relationships in academia is the one between a research student and their supervisor.

Among the initiatives supporting the objectives of Macquarie’s research strategy is our Supervision Enhancement Program, which aims to enhance the quality of the supervisor-student relationship and provide HDR candidates with outstanding supervisory expertise and mentoring.

The program – convened by Associate Professor Bill Ashraf in the Office of PVC HDR Training and Partnerships – combines a compulsory orientation unit for supervisors with an optional HDR Supervision Fellowship stream.

The Fellowship has drawn praise from government and industry leaders such as Chief Scientist Professor Alan Finkel, who remarked that he looks forward to a time when Macquarie’s innovative approach is ‘ubiquitous’ across universities.

“It’s really about demonstrating to candidates and other stakeholders the level of professionalism that Macquarie brings to HDR supervision and our support for research training generally,” says Bill.

Manager or mentor?

Dr Rae-Anne Hardie (pictured, on right), a Post Doctoral Research Fellow in the Centre for Health Systems and Safety Research, is a recent participant in the Fellowship program. She is currently supervising chemical pathologist Wilson Punyalack (pictured, on left), who is undertaking a Master of Research part-time.

“Much of how to be a great supervisor is learned on the job,” notes Rae-Anne. “But professional development programs like the Supervision Fellowship give you the directly applicable skills and knowledge you need to be able to reflect on, and improve, your supervisory practice.”

With her own research training having been completed not so long ago, Rae-Anne says she is distinctly conscious of providing good guidance and leadership for her own research students.

“Many of the areas where I developed most during my postgraduate research had little to do with the project itself – although the project was definitely important!” she says. “I feel like it’s my responsibility to give my students a well-rounded experience.”

Both Rae-Anne and Wilson agree that the qualities of an excellent supervisor stretch well beyond competence in the discipline.

“A good supervisor has empathetic listening skills, good time management skills, an encouraging demeanour and the ability to ‘lift a student up’ into opportunities they might not have had without my help,” says Rae-Anne. “One of the hardest is the quality of being able to give constructive feedback so that the student can learn, but not be discouraged. It’s a hard balance!”

“Like any professional relationship, good communication skills and approachability are great traits to have,” adds Wilson. “The fact that I am only on campus once a week has not hindered the level of supervision and support afforded to me at Macquarie.

“Rae-Anne is always encouraging, and makes the effort to not only answer my questions, but to go beyond and educate me on the why. She’s a great mentor.”

Mental health

A particularly unique aspect of the Fellowship is the option to enrol in a blended learning program to achieve accreditation with Mental First Aid Health Australia (MHFA).

“Mental health issues are unfortunately common in HDR students, so it’s important to know what to do if your student is having a mental health issue,” says Rae-Anne. “I’ve taken the Mental Health First Aid Course as part of the Fellowship to develop my abilities in this area.”

The next intake for the Fellowship program is in June, with participants provided with face-to-face workshops, as well as a curated set of materials relevant to improving their practice as teachers and supervisors.

“I would recommend the Fellowship program to other Macquarie staff, especially ECRs with little ‘official’ supervisory experience,” says Rae-Anne. “It has definitely enhanced my skills as a supervisor.”

Contact hdr.supervision@mq.edu.au if you would like more information about the Supervisor Enhancement Program.

Dr Annie Lau from the Australian Institute of Health Innovation has been honoured with a Women in Research Citation Award for her research in health informatics.

The inaugural awards honour the outstanding achievements of early-to-mid-career women researchers in Australia across all fields of research in science, social sciences and the humanities.

Annie was one of only 12 researchers selected for these awards across Australia.

“I am drawn to my research because of its potential to improve health outcomes for large numbers of people. I believe that by directly empowering individuals, helping them to understand their healthcare, and enabling them to take an active role, they will enjoy better health outcomes,” she says.

“When better-engaged healthcare consumers enjoy better health outcomes, we will see reduced strain on our currently overstretched healthcare system, allowing valuable resources to be reallocated to those with the greatest need.”

Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Sakkie Pretorius says he is greatly pleased that Macquarie researchers like Dr Lau are being recognised.

“Macquarie is demonstrating in so many ways the diverse nature of our research and its real-world impact,” he says. “I congratulate Dr Lau on her significant achievements in health informatics research.”

Jeroen Prinsen of Clarivate Analytics – who co-presented the awards alongside the Australian National University – said the awards would help encourage gender equity in research.

“We want to encourage greater gender equity in research and bring to the forefront outstanding contributions from women in research,” he said.

As a member of the Agency’s executive team, Associate Professor Makeham will provide advice in her areas of expertise, including patient safety, clinical governance, risk management, and digital health and safety research.

Meredith says she is looking forward to applying the best of Macquarie’s discoveries to her new role.

“This University has a proud tradition of scientific discovery, and it has been an honour to work with so many great researchers within the Australian Institute of Health Innovation,” she says.

“I’ll be leading the development of initiatives to ensure digital health services are designed, built and evaluated in partnership with the research community in Australia and internationally, and as part of that I look forward to staying engaged with our researchers here.”

The CHSSR Director, Professor Johanna Westbrook, says that Meredith will be greatly missed.

“Meredith has made a fantastic contribution to the Centre, building a program of research in primary care informatics,” Johanna says. “While her departure is sad news for AIHI, we look forward to working with Meredith in her exciting new role.”

Meredith’s research interest is in incident reporting and learning systems in primary care and general practice. She was a Chief Investigator of the NHMRC-funded Threats to Australian Patient Safety (TAPS) study, which examined the design and analysis of an anonymous electronic reporting system for errors in general practice.

A team led by Dr Natalie Taylor from the Centre for Healthcare Resilience and Implementation Science at the Australian Institute of Health Innovation was last week awarded with a Cancer Institute NSW Premier’s Award for Outstanding Cancer Research.

Dr Taylor is chief investigator for a Translational Cancer Research Network (TCRN) project aimed at improving referral and genetic testing rates of patients at risk of Lynch Syndrome.

Lynch Syndrome is an inherited condition predisposing carriers to a higher risk of a range of cancers, particularly bowel cancer. It is believed to affect tens of thousands of Australians, but is extremely under-diagnosed.

Working with clinicians from two New South Wales hospitals, Dr Taylor and her team involving Dr Janet Long, Dr Deborah Debono and Professor Jeffrey Braithwaite, mapped the complex referral process for Lynch syndrome patients, identified behavioural and system-related gaps as target areas for change, and co-designed and implemented interventions with clinicians to overcome key psychosocial barriers to referral.

“Our team – traversing research, clinical care and social science – is breaking new ground in this ‘T3’ field which focuses on translating evidence into practice in the real world,” says Dr Taylor. “We are developing and refining methodologies for understanding and working with healthcare systems to embed sustainable change and improvements. We believe our progress puts New South Wales in a prime position internationally as a ‘T3’ cancer research pioneer.”

The Cancer Institute NSW Premier’s Awards for Outstanding Cancer Research is an annual event and is the state’s leading awards program recognising excellence and innovation in cancer research.

“To win such a prestigious award is fantastic,” says Dr Taylor. “Not only does it provide recognition for the hard work the team of researchers and clinicians have put into this project, but it also emphasises the importance and value of Implementation Science in Cancer to a wide audience – for this we are extremely proud.”