Pictured from left to right: Professor Catherine Itsiopoulos, Associate Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Head of RMIT Bundoora Health Precinct, Siva Sivarajah – Chief Executive, Northern Health, Professor Ian Burnett, Deputy Vice-Chancellor STEM College and Vice-President, RMIT University, Bronwyn Halfpenny MP, Member for Thomastown and A/Prof Prahlad Ho Chair, Research Executive Committee.
May 27, 2024Northern Health and RMIT University have partnered to establish a Clinical Translational Research Partnership.
Researchers and clinical staff will work together to speed up the translation of innovative diagnostic and therapeutic approaches from the laboratory bench to real-world applications, ultimately benefiting Northern Health patients and consumers, and beyond.
The Clinical Translational Research Partnership will initially focus on research to help patients with cancer, blood disorders and chronic diseases, leveraging RMIT and Northern Health’s strengths in imaging, spectroscopy, immunology and pharmacology.
It will be home to clinical trials, particularly in cancer and nanoparticle diagnostic research, that aim to contribute to breakthrough discoveries, improved patient outcomes, and collaborations with the pharmaceutical industry to bring new treatments, therapies and diagnostics to patients.
The partnership also provides an avenue for workforce development, nurturing a highly skilled talent pool of students capable of driving healthcare innovation. This will help meet the unique workforce needs in the northern suburbs and target the growing demands in the research and healthcare sectors. Master’s and PhD positions will be offered to support the partnered research and build the next generation of skilled health researchers.
This significant partnership was officially launched on Monday, 27 May 2024, at the Northern Centre for Health Education and Research.
During the event, Professor Catherine Itsiopoulos, Associate Deputy Vice Chancellor Bundoora Health Precinct, highlighted the importance of training the healthcare practitioners of the future and equipping them to deliver targeted innovative healthcare.
“Our Clinical Translational Research Partnership will connect clinicians, researchers and academic leaders to ideate and solve healthcare priorities for diverse communities in Melbourne’s north.”
“This partnership provides real opportunities to leverage collaboration. We are excited to be enabling immediate translation of evidence-based research in diagnostics, therapeutics and clinical practice focused on cancer, immunology and chronic disease for better patient outcomes.”
Associate Professor Prahlad Ho, Chair, Research Executive Committee at Northern Health, spoke to improving access to quality healthcare for people living north of Melbourne.
“Our Clinical Translational Research Partnership is critical to improve research capabilities across northern Melbourne, including delivery of innovative clinical trial capabilities as well as novel biomarkers in our multicultural population.”
“Northern Health’s partnership with RMIT will allow a pipeline for the rapid and effective translation of key technological advances into clinical use.”
