Improving Early Recognition And Response To Symptoms In Acute Cardiovascular Events.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$316,449.00
Summary
An important challenge facing cardiovascular public health is to improve access to treatment for acute events, like heart attacks and stroke, by improving public recognition and the initial response to symptoms. This research aims to extend the current understanding and to evaluate existing and test new interventions in this area. Outcomes from this research will inform the development of future campaigns and interventions aiming to improve symptom recognition and reduce delays in presenting to ....An important challenge facing cardiovascular public health is to improve access to treatment for acute events, like heart attacks and stroke, by improving public recognition and the initial response to symptoms. This research aims to extend the current understanding and to evaluate existing and test new interventions in this area. Outcomes from this research will inform the development of future campaigns and interventions aiming to improve symptom recognition and reduce delays in presenting to hospital for acute cardiovascular events.Read moreRead less
Listen to me, I really am sick! Understanding patient and family perspectives in triggering responses to medical emergencies. This project investigates whether patient and family perspectives are treated as evidence of a deteriorating health state whilst in hospital. Recommendations from this study will inform the development of patient centred strategies to reduce delays in clinician response to physiological deterioration and improve patient safety in hospitals.
Examining the complexity of communication processes across transition points from the emergency department to improve medication safety. Problems in communication contribute significantly to adverse events that lead to serious harm for Australian consumers. Recent data show medication errors account for over 25% of all adverse events, while over 50% of consumers who move across transition points have medication errors relating to their treatment regimen. Financial costs from adverse events are e ....Examining the complexity of communication processes across transition points from the emergency department to improve medication safety. Problems in communication contribute significantly to adverse events that lead to serious harm for Australian consumers. Recent data show medication errors account for over 25% of all adverse events, while over 50% of consumers who move across transition points have medication errors relating to their treatment regimen. Financial costs from adverse events are estimated at around $A2billion/year, which are likely to increase with further complexities involving consumer care. This study will result in new knowledge about communication processes to inform the development of reporting methods and strategies, which positively influence the practices of health professionals in managing medications as consumers move across different environments.Read moreRead less
Preventing Adverse Events in Hospitals. Our research will construct strategies and tools for preventing hospital adverse events and should develop knowledge and expertise about reducing care complications in high risk patients.This research has collaborating partners which are hospitals in Victoria, South Australia and Queensland. These form part of the preventative healthcare network with implications for the nation's social and economic fabric through their role in reducing morbidity, mortali ....Preventing Adverse Events in Hospitals. Our research will construct strategies and tools for preventing hospital adverse events and should develop knowledge and expertise about reducing care complications in high risk patients.This research has collaborating partners which are hospitals in Victoria, South Australia and Queensland. These form part of the preventative healthcare network with implications for the nation's social and economic fabric through their role in reducing morbidity, mortality and supporting the health of all Australians. Since acquired complications have comparable costs to the healthcare system as that of all other forms of injury combined, there will be substantial benefits to hospitals through reduced costs.Read moreRead less
Chronic pain is a common and debilitating condition. One in five people in the Australian community have been found to experience chronic pain at any one time. Although there is no evidence of a consistent increase in rates of chronic pain, the rate of permanent disability has increased dramatically in recent decades. This has contributed to the growing cost of chronic pain. For example, back pain is the most common reason for filing workers' compensation claims and leads to loss of 101.8 millio ....Chronic pain is a common and debilitating condition. One in five people in the Australian community have been found to experience chronic pain at any one time. Although there is no evidence of a consistent increase in rates of chronic pain, the rate of permanent disability has increased dramatically in recent decades. This has contributed to the growing cost of chronic pain. For example, back pain is the most common reason for filing workers' compensation claims and leads to loss of 101.8 million workdays annually. The annual costs of medical care for back pain alone have been estimated at $AUD50 billion in the US and $10 billion in Australia. Not only is chronic pain a considerable economic burden, it is also a considerable personal burden to patients. Pain is one of the strongest predictors of poor quality of life and has consistently been found to be associated with high rates of depression. Although there is a large body of research that investigates what factors are associated with chronic pain, there is surprisingly little research that investigates the mechanisms that cause chronicity. Theories of chronic pain suggest that psychological characteristics increase the propensity for people to develop chronic pain. Specifically, theories argue that those people who tend to be fearful of pain will over-attend to painful sensations and avoid pain-provoking activities and as a result are at risk of developing chronic pain. This study will test those theories. If it is found that over-attending to pain does predispose patients to develop chronic pain, this will have important implications for preventing the development of chronic pain. These findings could help to devise early interventions to prevent chronicity and thereby reduce the economic burden to health services and the emotional burden to patients in terms of reduced quality of life.Read moreRead less
Addressing Evidence-practice Gaps In Chronic Disease Prevention And Control
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$709,931.00
Summary
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading causes of premature death and disability worldwide. Effective treatments for prevention and control of these conditions are available however their use remains far from optimal, in Australia and globally. My current and proposed research will develop and evaluate highly innovative solutions to reduce large evidence-practice gaps in healthcare delivery. These include task shifting to non-physician health workers and novel approaches to drug delivery.
Bridging The Gap For Women With Gestational Diabetes: Supporting Prevention Of Type 2 Diabetes Through Improved Care Of A High Risk Group.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$174,107.00
Summary
The strongest risk factor for women developing diabetes is having diabetes in pregnancy or Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM). Roughly half of women with GDM develop diabetes so regular GDM screening is critical alongside healthy lifestyle support, which can prevent diabetes developing. General Practice (GP) is where these activities should occur but the extent of GP delivery varies. This project will support GP delivery of these activities to improve the health of these high-risk women.
Optimising Primary Care Risk Profiling And Management Of Cardiovascular Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$408,387.00
Summary
Dr Carrington's CDF will support her career progression in 4 areas of translational research: 1. Closing the gap in ATSI heart health – optimising management of heart disease in Central Australia 2. Supporting healthy regional communities - developing cost-effective risk reduction clinics 3. Coordinating the care of complex cardiac conditions – refining an electronic tool to optimise GP management 4. International heart health – develop an effective primary care model of risk reduction in Sub-Sa ....Dr Carrington's CDF will support her career progression in 4 areas of translational research: 1. Closing the gap in ATSI heart health – optimising management of heart disease in Central Australia 2. Supporting healthy regional communities - developing cost-effective risk reduction clinics 3. Coordinating the care of complex cardiac conditions – refining an electronic tool to optimise GP management 4. International heart health – develop an effective primary care model of risk reduction in Sub-Saharan AfricaRead moreRead less
A Multi-faceted Electronic Health Intervention To Prevent And Manage Vascular Disease In Australia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$62,317.00
Summary
Heart disease and stroke are the leading cause of death and disability in Australia with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people experiencing it at a far greater rate; however most can be prevented. Medical guidelines to prevent heart attacks and strokes are available to medical professionals, but they’re rarely used to their full potential. My research uncovers a new health intervention that will broadly improve the ability of primary care staff to prevent and manage heart disease and stro ....Heart disease and stroke are the leading cause of death and disability in Australia with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people experiencing it at a far greater rate; however most can be prevented. Medical guidelines to prevent heart attacks and strokes are available to medical professionals, but they’re rarely used to their full potential. My research uncovers a new health intervention that will broadly improve the ability of primary care staff to prevent and manage heart disease and stroke.Read moreRead less
Assessing The Benefit Of Low Dose Aspirin In The Prevention Of Severe Sepsis.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$391,880.00
Summary
Recent discoveries suggest that low doses of aspirin may save lives in patients with infection by limiting its severity. We will conduct a large-scale primary prevention study using daily low-dose aspirin to explore whether this widely used drug can safely prevent severe infection. This study is made possible by collaborative involvement in an existing Australian and USA funded study called ASPREE. Finding a treatment that helps prevent severe effects and outcomes of infection would be a major h ....Recent discoveries suggest that low doses of aspirin may save lives in patients with infection by limiting its severity. We will conduct a large-scale primary prevention study using daily low-dose aspirin to explore whether this widely used drug can safely prevent severe infection. This study is made possible by collaborative involvement in an existing Australian and USA funded study called ASPREE. Finding a treatment that helps prevent severe effects and outcomes of infection would be a major health advance.Read moreRead less