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Research report showcases exciting work at Western Health

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Research report showcases exciting work at Western Health

​Ground-breaking research has been highlighted in Western Health’s 2015 Research Report.

Launched by Parliamentary Secretary for Medical Research Frank McGuire during an action packed Research Week, the report details exciting work across the Western Health network.

Western Health chief executive officer Associate Professor Alex Cockram said research - driven by patient outcomes - was strongly embedded across the health service.

“This is my fourth Research Week at Western Health and I am still amazed at how much research you all manage to do – because I know the fine details about the demands on this health service and I know just how hard you are working in your clinical roles,” she said.

“I believe this speaks volumes of your commitment to the value and the power of research and evidence and your understanding of its intricate connection to providing the best patient care.”

Western Health Board Chair, Bronwyn Pike, said this year’s report showcased incredible researchers.

“You’ll read about researchers across our health service, proud to be working in the west, proud to be serving the needs of our community,” she said.

“These people are doing ground breaking research, responding to the extraordinary challenges in patient care and community health in Australia’s fastest growing region.”
At the launch, Ms Pike pointed out the work of Carol Perich, winner of the 2015 Mavis Mitchell Scholarship.

“Carol’s research is helping dementia patients become calmer, more engaged with others and less dependent on medication and her creative arts program for dementia patients in a hospital setting is the first of its kind in Victoria,” she said.

“People like consultant cardiologist, Dr Chris Neil, and his team are developing a new model of care better suited to the needs of elderly people admitted to hospital with chronic heart failure - one of the fast-growing patient groups in Australian hospitals.”

The report also highlights the work of Associate Professor Alan Moss, who recently became the first Australian to win the prestigious World Endoscopy Organisation Research Award for his research on the safety of less invasive techniques to remove large, complex pre-cancerous polyps from the colon.

Figures in the report also show how quickly Western Health is growing. In 2015, $32.7 million dollars in research grants were awarded and 460 projects approved.

Western Health researchers delivered 344 seminar and conference presentations in Australia and overseas.

Read the Research Report 2015.