Welcome from Professor Sir John Savill
Welcome to the first MACH newsletter of 2022.
I am sure last night’s Federal Budget is still fresh in many of our minds. While it was disappointing to see no notable funding increase for the NHMRC beyond indexation, the higher forecast of the MRFF’s balance may allow for greater funding of medical research in the near future.
For more detail, the Association of Australian Medical Research Institutes provides an in-depth assessment on their website.
While the year is still young, I have been pleased with what we have been able to achieve so far.
In February, myself and the MACH team were able to meet in person to discuss our strategic goals for the year ahead. A top priority that emerged was identifying new ways to encourage collaboration among our partners.
There are several projects launching later this year that aim to achieve this goal, including MACH’s contribution to the HeSANDA project which you can read about in this newsletter.
As you may be aware, we have also launched the MacHSR Fellowship program, which offers front-line clinical staff the opportunity to upskill in health research by focusing on an evidence-based solution to a practical healthcare problem. Applications have now closed, and we are looking forward to announcing the successful candidates ahead of their start in July.
Earlier this month we also held a MACH Committee Chairs meeting where we learned of the priorities of each MACH group. It was heartening to hear the level of energy and enthusiasm from all involved and we will update you all with these activities as they develop over the year.
I thank you all for your continued support of MACH and wish you all the best until we speak again.
Regards,
Professor Sir John Savill
Executive Director
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Keeping Hips on Track
Every year around 120 children in Victoria are diagnosed with cerebral palsy (CP). For those with limited mobility, hip displacement can emerge as a serious medical issue.
Fortunately, if the issue is identified early before the displacement is too severe, it can be addressed with more effective surgery. Regular X-rays are the only way to monitor the development of a child’s hips, but in some cases these can be missed by both clinicians and parents.
Making sure these regular X-rays happen is the goal of ‘HipWatch’, a new state-wide hip surveillance network led by the Murdoch Children's Research Institute and supported by MACH that will be rolled out across Victoria.
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National collaboration on sharing data
MACH partners, as well as researchers across Australia, will soon be able to use, share, and contribute to a national bank of health research data that promises to make collaboration much easier.
Led by the Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC), the Health Studies Australian National Data Asset (HeSANDA) will allow health researchers to share, browse and reuse health study data that has been made available on the platform.
“It’s a response to a huge challenge that all researchers face: What to do with the abundance of data that’s generated through research and clinical trials, and how can we maximise its potential?” Katie Ozdowska, project manager of the MACH Clinical Trials Consortium node, says.
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Register now for the 2022 MACH EMCR Research Design Webinar Series!
We are pleased to present a free, four-part webinar series exploring research design tailored specifically for early and mid-career researchers (EMCRs). The series will be conducted by experts from the University of Melbourne’s Methods and Implementation Support for Clinical and Health research Hub (MISCH) team from February-June 2022.
The first seminar was a resounding success, and the recording can be viewed online. Register now for access to upcoming sessions.
Seminar 1: Kicking off your research: how to craft a well-defined research question
Presenter: Dr Karen Lamb (Uni Melbourne)
Date: Wednesday 23rd February, 12.30-1.30pm (recording available)
Seminar 2: What’s it going to take to get your study started? Pilot and Feasibility studies
Presenter: Ms Sabine Braat (Uni Melbourne)
Date: Wednesday 6th April, 12:30-1:30pm
Seminar 3: Statistics for your grant applications
Presenter: Prof Julie Simpson (Uni Melbourne)
Date: Wednesday 11th May, 12:30-1:30pm
Seminar 4: Economic evaluation alongside clinical trials: principles of study design and decision analysis
Presenter: Dr An Duy Tran (Uni Melbourne)
Date: Wednesday 22nd June, 12:30-1:30pm
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Register to attend the Victorian Falls Prevention Alliance Annual Workshop
Falls in hospitals are common and have serious consequences for patients, but they are also a difficult problem to solve.
The Victorian Falls Prevention Alliance is part of The Victorian Research Translation Centre Collaborative between Monash Partners Academic Health Science Centre, Melbourne Academic Centre for Health, and the Western Alliance Academic Health Science Centre.
After a successful workshop last year attended by almost 300 participants, the group is now working on a series of activities for 2022.
The first event will be the Annual Workshop - Guiding the way: Education and guidelines for the prevention of falls - to be held on Friday 6 May from 9am to 1pm at the Kenneth Myer Building – Ian Potter Auditorium, University of Melbourne, or online.
Learn more about the Victorian Falls Prevention Alliance and register for the workshop below.
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Enrol now for the Applied Learning Health Systems short course
Do you want to learn to use health data to inform clinical practice and validate digital health-enabled models of care?
The University of Melbourne’s Centre for Digital Transformation of Health is running a 13-week online course on the Learning Health System approach to bridging the evidence-to-practice gap.
Patients and clinicians can use the model to build evidence collaboratively and apply it to innovation, quality and safety and to create value in health care.
Registrations for the practical, hands-on course close on 12 April.
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Are you following MACH on social media?
Between newsletters, keep up to date with the latest news in translational health research by following MACH on LinkedIn and Twitter.
Featuring the amazing work happening right across our partnership - we look forward to connecting with you!
 
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Thank you for your continued support
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