Professor Sam Berkovic and team were awarded a major $16.5 million grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council on Thursday 25 February, to further their research into the genetic causes of epilepsy.
Professor Berkovic is director of both the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program and The University of Melbourne’s Epilepsy Research Centre at Austin Health. He has already made an invaluable contribution to the understanding of the genetics of epilepsy, discovering many genetic alterations responsible for particular types of epilepsy, including the first gene for epilepsy in 1995.
His discoveries have changed the way specialists think about the causes of epilepsy and stimulated many other genetic researchers to focus on inherited seizure disorders. Professor Berkovic hopes that his new work will contribute to the development of new diagnostic methods and treatments for epilepsy.
In this study, Prof Berkovic will lead a collaborative research team with ten investigators across Australia, in Melbourne, Adelaide and Queensland.
They will investigate how genes associated with epilepsy are inherited and the how genetic variations result in development of seizures. Advanced brain imaging will be used to understand the effects of genetic variation on brain structure and function.
“Over the course of the grant’s five year period, we hope to understand more about the types of genes involved and how they affect the brain. This research has important implications for the diagnosis of epilepsy, and hopefully eventually for treatments,” Professor Berkovic said. Jeffrey Zajac, Professor of Medicine at The University of Melbourne Department of Medicine at Austin Health said that Professor Berkovic and his collaborators are considered the leading group in the world in this field.
“This grant will allow them to continue competing at an international level. The close collaboration between the basic science research at The University of Melbourne and the clinical studies at the Austin Hospital creates a unique environment that allows this sort of research to thrive," Professor Zajac said. Listen to Professor Berkovic's podcast to find out more about his research into the genetics of epilepsy.
Austin Health’s director of the Liver Transplant Unit, Professor Bob Jones, and Board member Professor David Scott, have both been awarded AMs in the Australia Day honours for their contribution to medicine.
Professor Jones performed Victoria’s first liver transplant in 1988, paediatric liver transplant in 1988 and split liver transplant – using a portion of a mother’s liver to save the life of her one-year old son - in 2007.
He is also a strong advocate for organ donation – something he said comes from his direct experience of seeing lives lost.
“One of the most frustrating things is to have a patient dying here in need of a donor. Perhaps 15 per cent of the people on our waiting list are going to die before getting a transplant,” Professor Jones said.
He said that when he started as a surgeon in the 1980s, liver transplantation was pioneering and much more dangerous for the patient.
“A significant number of our patients died no matter what we did. But as they were dying anyway, we knew we had no other option than to proceed, so that’s what drove us ahead,” Professor Jones said.
“Now that we’ve become more established, we know who to transplant and who not to transplant, and we have a much better range of drugs to treat patients more effectively,” he said.
“Our first paediatric transplant, in late 1988, was very high risk, but that young woman has now grown up and has three children of her own,” he said.
He and his team are about to face those same challenges again – as well as the same potential to save lives – by attempting Australia’s first intestinal transplant, something Professor Jones said will happen as soon as the right donor organ becomes available.
Professor Jones has directed the Liver Transplant Unit since its inception, which today provides liver transplant services to all of Victoria, Tasmania and parts of southern New South Wales. The team has now performed more than 650 transplants and enjoys some of the best outcomes in the world.
Austin Health’s chief executive officer, Dr Brendan Murphy, said that Professor Jones is also remarkable for the respect and affection he gains from everyone who meets him – including colleagues, students, but particularly his patients.
“Professor Jones is deeply admired by all who are privileged to meet and work with him. His patients adore him and he is always attentive and sincere,” Dr Murphy said.
Austin Health Board member Professor David Scott was also awarded an AM in the Australia Day honours, for his services to transplantation and other leadership positions in health.
In his time as Head of Transplant Surgery at Monash University and the Monash Medical Centre, Professor Scott was instrumental in research looking at prolonging organ storage. He is now chair of the Austin Health Board Clinical Quality and Safety Committee.
Chief executive officer, Dr Brendan Murphy, said that the award is a fitting achievement.
“Professor Scott is a tireless advocate of high quality patient care and strong clinical leadership in health. We are proud to have him on our governance team,” Dr Murphy said.
A record 90 interns started their first rotation in the Austin Health/Northern Health training program on Monday 18 January - the largest number to ever begin in a single intake and the largest program in Victoria.
Manager of HMO Services Sarah McConchie said the program has not only the largest intern intake in Victoria, but also the widest range of rotations.
“We have some really exciting positions this year. We are constantly looking at new and innovative roles to offer interns, to provide them with as broad and meaningful an experience as possible,” says Ms McConchie.
During their intern year, the new recruits will complete five 10-week rotations, three of which must be in Surgery, General Medicine and Emergency Medicine. This year, interns have the opportunity to complete rotations in two new fields – Psychiatry and Forensic Medicine. The Forensic Medicine placement, which will be undertaken at the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, is the first of its kind in Victoria.
Dr Sundar Veerapan from Alphington officially starts his career as the first intern in Victoria to do a rotation in Forensic Medicine.
“I’m really interested in the medico-legal aspects of Forensic Medicine, such as how doctors contribute to testimonies,” Dr Veerapan said. There were over 500 applications for the 90 positions available in 2010.
Director of Medical Education Dr Heather Grusauskas said she is delighted that so many new graduates have chosen Austin Health as their employer of choice.
“he medical education unit provides state-of-the-art training and learning opportunities to teach appropriate skills to ensure high quality patient care,” Dr Grusauskas said.
The interns have the opportunity to complete placements at the Austin Hospital, Northern Hospital, Bendigo Base Hospital, Echuca Regional Hospital, Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine and with a General Practitioner in Leongatha.
Olivia’s Great Walk - the documentary account of Olivia Newton-John's epic 228 km trek along the Great Wall of China to raise funds to build her Cancer and Wellness Centre at the Austin Hospital - will be repeated on Channel Ten at 12 noon this Boxing Day (December 26, 2009).
Tune in to watch inspirational cancer survivors join Olivia Newton-John and a host of stars as they trek across the Great Wall of China to raise awareness, hope and funds for cancer care and research.
The documentary includes emotional interviews with Olivia Newton-John, Dannii Minogue, Sir Cliff Richard and others, while highlighting the challenging trek across incredible remote scenic parts of China. The group walked to raise the funds to build the Olivia Newton-John Cancer and Wellness Centre Appeal - a centre that will set new standards in patient-centred care and provide a way forward in cancer research and treatment.
The appeal patron, Olivia Newton-John said, "It's not just about treating cancer, it's about healing the whole person."
For more on the appeal and TV show visit the Great Walk to Beijing.
The TV documentary was made possible thanks to the following sponsors: MBT, Intelligent Risks, Nordic Poles and Pines Stud.
"During the financial year of 2008-09, Austin Health treated the largest number of patients in its 127-year history," said Dr Brendan Murphy, Chief Executive Officer.
"Our dedicated staff responded to increasing demands while ensuring patient care, service delivery, efficiency and quality remained priorities."
Our achievements during 2008-09 included:
Obesity significantly increases the difficulty of caring for patients in Austin Hospital’s Emergency Department (ED).
This is the finding of a study by Associate Professor David Taylor from Austin Health, home to Victoria’s busiest ED, and researcher Jeremy Kam of Melbourne University.
Of the 60,000 people treated in Austin Hospital’s ED each year, 60 per cent range from overweight to morbidly obese.
“The doctors, nurses and radiographers treating 750 patients in Austin Hospital’s Emergency Department were asked how a patient’s obesity affected their difficulty in managing their patient,” said Associate Professor Taylor. “They reported that the difficulty of treating overweight patients increases with their obesity.”
A high body mass index (BMI) was found to be very strongly linked with more difficulty in finding anatomical landmarks, physical examination, patient positioning and procedures generally, especially inserting an intravenous cannula or taking blood samples.
“For the first time, our research quantifies the correlation between obesity and management difficulty,” said Associate Professor Taylor.
While doctors experienced more difficulties than nurses and radiographers, generally management difficulty did not increase until the BMI was in the obese or morbidly obese range.
“While there are challenges associated with treating very overweight people, there are costs associated with providing this care,” said Associate Professor Taylor. “Bigger patients may need bigger beds and chairs, and staff may need lifting equipment to move them. Even items like blood pressure cuffs need to be upsized.”
Associate Professor Taylor will present results of the study in poster format during the annual scientific meeting of the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine, which will be held at the Melbourne Convention Centre November 15-19.
Research Week officially started on Monday 19 October, with new event Professors Professing attracting approximately 150 people to the John Lindell Lecture Theatre. The event, which featured recent Distinguished Scientist Award winners, Professors Rinaldo Bellomo and Ego Seeman, was as entertaining as it promised to be, with jokes, youtube videos and references to popular culture included alongside wisdom and advice for young people entering the medical research field. The two professors lived up to their reputations as skilled orators, and clearly enjoyed the opportunity to impart their wisdom. After the presentation, both spoke of having a very similar motivation of wanting to share their passion for research with younger people. “I think that research is very important,” said Professor Seeman. “Nothing is more important than nurturing someone’s career. Nothing that we do lasts – not our discoveries – but the difference you can make to someone’s career is lasting,” he said. Professor Bellomo agreed, saying that one of the most satisfying things about his work was the opportunity to mentor young and enthusiastic people. “They become like family and you really feel like you have to look after them,” he said. Research Week co-ordinator Geraldine Richards said that the rest of the week’s festivities should be equally entertaining. “The first round of posters are already on display in the Education Centre for those who are interested in viewing them – although the best time to come will be during the poster defence sessions on Tuesday and Thursday afternoon when the researchers will be there to discuss their research,” Ms Richards said. “This year we’ve had a record number of participants in the poster competition, and have lunchtime events on every day for the first time, so there should be something on to appeal to everyone – researchers and non-researchers alike,” she said. Tuesday’s lunchtime session discussed the importance of strengthening Austin Health’s research partnerships and reputation for research, and events later in the week include presentations from young researchers, visit from plenary speaker Professor Fred Mendelsohn and the inaugural R J Pierce Symposium on respiratory and sleep medicine. Lunchtime sessions are in the John Lindell Lecture Theatre at 12pm every day until Friday. Visit the Research Week website to see the full program.
Health Minister Daniel Andrews visited Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital to officially open Austin Health’s new sub-acute care ward for elderly patients on Monday 12 October.
The new ward – Ward 10 – gives Austin Health patients access to an additional 24 beds, and introduces an innovative new model of care for older people with complex care needs. Patients have access to a ward team that combines acute medical care with the expert knowledge of sub-acute care specialists.
Ward 10 was refurbished with $2.23 million of state funding and is expected to care for approximately 700 patients each year.
“In the next 50 years it is predicted that one in four Australians will be aged over 65, and the number of people over 85 will increase from 1.6 per cent of the population to around 5-7 per cent,” Mr Andrews said.
“Austin Health has responded to the challenge by setting up this ward and introducing an innovative model of care for older people with complex care needs,” he said.
A $225 million construction project to build two facilities that will house the largest neurosciences group in the Southern Hemisphere has commenced at the Austin Hospital.
The Premier of Victoria John Brumby joined Minister for Innovation Gavin Jennings and four of the world’s leading experts in the neuroscience and mental health fields to turn the first sod for the $45 million Austin Neuroscience Facility on Wednesday 5 August.
The Austin Neuroscience Facility will house more than 200 research and support staff from the Florey Neurosciences Institutes, The University of Melbourne, Mental Health Research Institute and Austin Health.
Its researchers include leading authorities in the fields of stroke, epilepsy, brain imaging and Alzheimer’s disease, Professors Geoff Donnan, Sam Berkovic, Graeme Jackson and Colin Masters.
Over their combined 110 years of clinical and research experience, the four professors have discovered genes, developed new treatments for disease, published more than 1,000 papers and book chapters and received dozens of international awards.
They have also seen more than 150,000 patients and director of the Florey Neuroscience Institutes, Professor Geoff Donnan, said they would continue to pursue research with a strong clinical focus.
“The opportunity for the groups to collaborate closely will lead to exciting new discoveries and treatments for the three million Australians affected by these diseases every year,” Professor Donnan said.
“The new facility will also attract leading scientists from around the world and build on the reputation of both Heidelberg and Parkville as leading centres for biomedical research,” he said. The facility is the first stage of the $225 million Melbourne Neuroscience Project, which will see two new research facilities built over two years. Construction of the second facility will commence later this year in Parkville.
Austin Health is not just at the epicentre of Victoria’s swine flu epidemic; it is also at the forefront of research to understand it.
Austin Health researcher Associate Professor Joseph Torresi received a grant of over $400,000 from the National Health and Medical Research Council last Wednesday to study the epidemiology and virology of the Victorian epidemic.
A/Prof Torresi’s research team aims to define the ways that swine flu is presenting clinically and create an algorithm that allows doctors to predict the cases most likely to require further testing and treatment.
“If we can identify influenza cases rapidly it becomes possible to intervene with measures to restrict the spread of the virus in the community and institute prompt investigations and treatment of those most likely to develop severe infections,” A/Prof Torresi said.
“We’ll also be looking at the nature of the epidemic as it’s spread through Melbourne. When someone falls ill, we’ve seen a high proportion of their close contacts become infected - the virus appears to have a high secondary attack rate and it will be important to establish if this is higher than we see with other types of influenza,” A/Prof Torresi said.
The team will look at some of the less obvious factors that lead to more severe disease in some people. The research will also look at people’s compliance and behaviour with quarantine measures, the nature of the virus and how it contributes to disease severity and any changes to its resistance to oseltamivir (Tamiflu) over the next few months.
“It’s a great deal of work but the flu season will be over by late October, so now is the time to get this important research done,” he said.
The study is one of 41 fast-tracked for approval by the NHMRC because they will rapidly benefit Australia and the rest of the world by shaping strategies for responding to next year’s flu season.
A/Prof Torresi’s research may provide new and important information to update the pandemic influenza plan, better preparing the country for influenza epidemics and pandemics in the future.
His research team includes Austin Health infectious diseases experts Prof Lindsay Grayson and A/Prof Paul Johnson, and researchers from The Alfred, the Northern Hospital, the WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza and the Nossal Institute.
Austin Health became 100% smoke-free on 1 July 2009.
While smoking has been banned within the hospitals for many years, 100% smoke-free means that smoking is no longer allowed in the outside areas of Austin Hospital, Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre and Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital.
As a leading healthcare provider, it is important that Austin Health take a leading role in supporting the community towards making healthy choices. There is growing support in the wider community for smoke-free public places and encouraging new research has shown that eliminating smoking from public places and worksites may motivate smokers to quit altogether.
People who wish to smoke can do so outside the boundaries of Austin Health’s three hospitals. Patients and staff who want to quit smoking are eligible for assistance and support from Austin Health’s Smoking Cessation Unit.
For inpatients experiencing difficulty going without cigarettes, nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) will be available free of charge, as determined by the patient in partnership with their treating clinical practitioner.
Community support is essential in proving a clean and safe environment for our patients and staff and your cooperation is appreciated.
An Australian-first study will test live online rehabilitation with video gaming to give spinal cord injury patients the hope of regaining the movement of their hands.
The ReJoyce workstation is being used for the first time in Australia in tele-rehabilitation which allows patients to get real time specialist physiotherapy over the internet.
The patient wears a glove that enables electrical impulses to stimulate the muscles in the hand to grasp and release, in the hope of sprouting new connections in the spinal cord and re-establishing hand function.
“It’s possible that stimulating both the brain and the muscles in the hand could create new nerve growth in the spinal cord,“ said Professor Mary Galea, a researcher at Austin Health and The University of Melbourne, who is coordinating the study.
“The majority of spinal cord injury patients in Australia are young men aged between 16 and 35. Giving them home-based access to computer games as part of their rehabilitation is a great motivator for them to practice hand exercises,“ she said.
Austin Health patient Mr Gabriel Moraitis is the first person in Australia to have a ReJoyce workstation in his home.
“I’ve noticed quite a bit of an improvement already. The way I grip and grab things is a lot stronger and firmer. It’s quite amazing to see your hand go from having no movement at all to have it open and close,” Mr Moraitis says.
“A lot of spinal cord injury patients live in regional and rural areas. Even for people who live in the outer suburbs of Melbourne, travelling to rehab centres can be difficult,“ Professor Galea said. “The ReJoyce workstation enables better access to spinal rehabilitation specialists at Austin Health without having to travel long distances. It also enables spinal cord injury patients to get on with their lives and gain more independence.”
The project is funded by the Victorian Neurotrauma Initiative.
The threat of SARS, bird flu and swine flu has influenced hospital infection procedures for the better, according to an Austin Health professor.
On Tuesday 5 May, Austin Hospital installed its hand-wash hub, a self-service handwash centre for all hospital visitors arriving and leaving the hospital.
“We know that hand-washing is the most simple and effective way to prevent the spread of infection around the hospital”, Director of Infectious Diseases, Prof Lindsay Grayson said.
“This includes not only superbugs such as 'Golden Staph, but also viruses such as swine flu,” he said.
Introduction of the alcohol handrub program has resulted in a 50 percent reduction in golden staph at the Austin Hospital and the mission of the new National Hand Hygiene Initiative is to achieve a similar result nationally.
Prof Grayson oversees the national roll-out of hand hygiene initiatives in his role as Director of Hand Hygiene Australia (HHA). But like any good scientist, he wanted to measure how bad the problem was before implementing his program.
HHA is now establishing a standardised database of superbugs, especially Golden Staph, across Australia. Grayson’s own state of Victoria is exceeding its own hand hygiene compliance targets and is leading the way nationally, although other states are quickly 'catching the bug' and introducing hand-rub programs to help control their infection rates.
HHA will implement a 5 star system, similar to hotels.
“The more stars, the better the hospital’s hand hygiene compliance. Our system will make it easier to choose a hospital that takes infection control seriously” he said.
