‘We hope it can improve the health of Aboriginal babies,’
Darwin mother Dianne Walker (pictured above ) entered her newborn daughter Rekeesha into the study 29 years ago to track her development, and is happy the project is getting more funding.
Hear ABC interview HERE
http://www.abc.net.au/radio/sydney/programs/pm/aboriginal-health-research/9139838
Menzies will also continue the nation’s longest cohort study of Aboriginal health which examines almost 700 children to identify disease risk factors.
“These nine important projects aim to improve and save lives and will provide more opportunities for health breakthroughs,
From diet improvement to vitamin supplements and antibiotics, this broad range of critical work will continue to increase our clinical knowledge.
I congratulate the Menzies School of Research for its work over more than 30 years, with health services and community partners, on people-focused projects to make a real difference on the ground.”
Indigenous Health Minister Ken Wyatt AM said medical research was critical to closing the gap on Indigenous life expectancy.
Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion and Indigenous Health Minister Ken Wyatt AM last Friday announced the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funding for researchers at Darwin’s Menzies School of Medical Research, covering Indigenous-specific and broader health projects
The Turnbull Government will fund nine landmark Northern Territory medical research projects worth over $12 million, aiming to save children’s lives and help close the gap in Indigenous health.
“This research’s focus on child health and chronic disease will help address significant challenges in Aboriginal and Torres Strait communities,” Minister Scullion said.
“This demonstrates how the Coalition Government works closely with important Territory institutions like Menzies School of Medical Research to deliver better outcomes for Territorians.
“The funding includes major support for Menzies to undertake a trial of maternal immunisation to prevent pneumonia in infants and to continue a 30-year ground-breaking cohort study of 689 Aboriginal children born to mothers at the Royal Darwin Hospital.”
The grants continue the Turnbull Government’s commitment to world-leading medical research, with the NHMRC tasked with expending at least 5 per cent of its funding to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health research.
“Through NHMRC, the government is also developing Road Map 3 A Strategic Framework for Improving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health through Research,” Minister Wyatt said.
“This guide will communicate our objectives and investment in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research for the next decade.”
Menzies School of Health Research funding:
| CIA NAME | TITLE |
BUDGET
|
| Prof Anne Chang | Preventing early-onset pneumonia in Indigenous infants through maternal immunisation: a multi-centre randomised controlled trial
|
$3,210,617.60
|
| Dr Michael Binks | Vitamin D supplementation to prevent respiratory infections among Indigenous children in the Northern Territory: a randomised controlled trial.
|
$3,164,378.55
|
| A/Pr Gurmeet Singh | Early life and contemporary influences on body composition, mental health, and chronic disease risk markers in the Aboriginal Birth Cohort
|
$3,117,044.30
|
| Prof Anne Chang | Prophylactic antibiotics to prevent recurrent lower respiratory tract infections in children with neurological impairment (PARROT) study
|
$1,193,515.70
|
| A/Pr Julie Brimblecombe | Healthy Stores 2020: Reducing retail merchandising of discretionary food and beverages in remote Indigenous community stores
|
$903,135.10
|
| Dr Anna Wood | Diabetes and cardiovascular risk among Indigenous women after pregnancy complicated by hyperglycaemia.
|
$126,437.00
|
| Dr Simon Smith | A prospective study of the aetiology, associations, clinical features and outcomes of community-acquired pneumonia in children and adults in tropical Australia
|
$126,437.00
|
| Ms Jemima Beissbarth | Vaccine and antibiotic selective pressures on the microbiology of otitis media in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in northern Australia
|
$87,302.00
|
| Ms Christina Spargo | 2017 Equipment Grant |
$84,491.50
|