La Trobe's success in NHMRC funding

La Trobe University has been awarded a further $1,201,752.37 from the NHMRC in the latest round of funding announcements released today, which include NHMRC Postgraduate Scholarship scheme, the Translating Research into Practice Scheme and round 1 of the 2016 Partnership Project scheme.

NHMRC Postgraduate Scholarship

Ms Anneliese Synnot has been awarded a Public Health and Health Services Postgraduate Research Scholarship to pursue a PhD with Dr Sophie Hill within the Centre for Health Communication and Participation in the School of Psychology and Public Health. Her project entitled “Stakeholder involvement to set priorities for health communication and participation research” aims to identify research priorities of Australian patients, carers, clinicians and policymakers. This PhD will inform research and policy and strengthen the evidence for strategies to improve the health care experiences of Australian patients and carers.
Funding: $93,846.00

Ms Lorelle Martin has also received a scholarship in the Public Health and Health Services category to continue her work on “Revealing the Roadblocks: Timely ST-segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) management over total ischaemic time in metropolitan, regional and rural Victoria.” Cardiovascular disease kills one Australian every 12 minutes. Coordinated and prompt medical treatment of heart attack is essential in preventing mortality. This study will identify contributing factors of delay from a frontline clinician and hospital perspective. It is anticipated by understanding the impact these factors have on the delivery of heart attack care, an evidence base is built to support the various clinicians involved, and improve this complex process of care across Victoria.
Funding: $72,768.00

NHMRC Translating Research into Practice (TRIP) Fellowship

Dr Lisa Amir from the Judith Lumley Centre in the School of Nursing and Midwifery has been awarded the Translating Research into Practice Fellowship, which will focus on “Improving management of mastitis in breastfeeding women”. Mastitis is a painful breast infection experienced by 1 in 5 breastfeeding women. However, management of this common condition is often not evidence-based and women may receive inappropriate antibiotics and may not receive appropriate investigations. This project will be an intervention at four emergency departments aimed at improving clinicians' management of mastitis. The aim is to improve women's satisfaction with their experience of mastitis and reduce unnecessary cessation of breastfeeding.
Funding: $177,197.00

NHMRC Partnership Project – Round 1, 2016

Professor Nora Shields from the Department of Rehabilitation, Nutrition and Sport in the School of Allied Health has been awarded a three year NHMRC Partnership Project. The Project “FitSkills: a community-university partnership to increase participation in exercise among youth with disability” is funded by the NHMRC in partnership with Disability Sport and Recreation, the Cerebral Palsy Network, YMCA Victoria, Down Syndrome Victoria, the Joanne Tubb Foundation, the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services and the City of Boroondara. Youth with disability have poorer health and are more socially isolated that their typically developing peers. Participation in exercise can improve their health and social connectedness. FitSkills is an evidence-based program that matches a young person with disability with a mentor and the pair exercise together at their local gymnasium. This research translation project will implement FitSkills as an on-going community-university partnership.
Funding: $857,941.20 from the NHMRC and $984,500.00 from partner organisations for a total of a $1,842,441.20.