Health Translation Queensland (HTQ) seminar series
HTQ is running a hybrid seminar series on how to secure grants and clinical trial funding. The first seminar on 21 May from 4pm at the Translational Research Institute is featuring a Q&A panel with high-calibre industry experts from QUT, IP Group, MRFF and NHMRC, followed by a networking opportunity with the panel guests and other attendees.

Health Services Research in the Digital Age
The 13th Health Services Research (HSR) Conference will be held in at the Royal International Convention Centre from Wednesday 4 December – Friday 6 December providing a unique opportunity to network with peers, learn from the best minds in the field, and be a part of shaping the future of healthcare delivery.

Queensland Digital Health Education Series
Associate Professor Lois Holloway will give an overview of The Australian Cancer Data Network which is a federated data network where data remains at local institutions but analysis and overarching models developed can be achieved through iterative machine learning. Online event, Tuesday 21 May.

Passion beyond medicine exhibition
Staff, students, and alumni are cordially invited to attend the Doctors’ Health in Queensland Passion Beyond Medicine exhibition between June 7-9. The exhibition recognises and celebrates the passions of Queensland’s doctors and medical students, promoting wellbeing for our health professionals. The opening night on Crazysocks4docs Day on Friday 7 June is a great opportunity to meet like-minded individuals and artists.

Interactive research integrity session
Research integrity advisors and staff from the office of Research Ethics and Integrity will facilitate an interactive research integrity session at TRI (Dutton Park) on Friday 31 May, 10am-12pm. They will discuss why research integrity matters, what happens when there are breaches of the Code, and how you can ensure your research upholds the highest standards of integrity and transparency. Register here.

Sea of hands
Registrations for the Faculty of Medicine sea of hands twilight event close on Wednesday 22 May. Join nearly half a million Australians across the country in planting a hand and enjoy several speakers highlighting the importance of National Reconciliation Week. Friday 31 May, 3-5:30pm, Mayne Medical School building, Herston.

View archived Events announcements

Advancing Partnerships with India: Transforming the Lives of Critically Ill Children
With the support of UQ Global Strategy and Partnerships Seed Funding, coupled with Children’s Hospital Foundation funding through the Visiting Researcher Program, the Children’s Intensive Care Research Program (ChIRP) recently hosted Dr Ebor Jacob James, Professor Jayashree Muralidharan, and Dr Jhuma Sankar as part of a unique Australia-India partnership. Read more.

For general information about CHRC – particularly for new staff and students please review our Intranet site.

View archived announcements from CHRC

From the Director’s Desk
My last message ‘From the Director’s Desk’ focused on how we advocate for you as part of the CHSR team.  Equally important is how we champion your work as individual researchers. In particular, I draw your attention to a number of UQ Awards currently open for self or peer nomination – a track record building activity I highly recommend for supporting your future funding applications. This includes UQ Awards for Excellence, UQ Research Partnerships & Translation Awards and UQ Early to Mid-Career Researchers Industry Engagement Awards. Please also make use of our Research support team Casey and Lauren for initial advice or nomination readership. And don’t forget to consider CHSR’s own Travel Grants, detailed below. Finally, may I also take this opportunity to celebrate over $4million funding secured by CHSR through NHMRC’s latest Investigator and Partnership Project grant rounds.

Best wishes, Monika 

CHSR Travel Grants 2024
EOIs for our own Travel Grant Awards remain open! These awards aim to support our professional and academic team members in their travel endeavours to conferences. We will be granting up to three international awards valued at $3000 each and eleven domestic awards valued at $1000 each. If you have not received our CHSR Travel Grant 2024 email outlining eligibility criteria, requirements, travel approvals + EOI form, please contact chsr.researchops@uq.edu.au  

CHSR feat. in Metro South Health webinar
Wednesday 22 May 
12–1pm  
Research Foundation Health Economics 
Dr Kim-Huong Nguyen, Senior Evaluator
Webinar registration

CHSR-hosted SFT-24 Conference abstract submissions closing
Monday 27 May
Submit here
Registrations remain open

Next CHSR All Staff & Student Forum
Tuesday 4 June
11am-12:30pm (followed by light lunch)
Collaborative Room 325, Mayne Medical Building, Herston
Click here to join the meeting

CHSR-hosted HSRAANZ Conference abstract submissions closing
Tuesday 4 June
Submit here
Registrations remain open

CHSR Grant Pitching Sessions
Thursday 6 June
2-4pm
Click here to join the meeting
To present at this event, submit your EOI here

CHSR Investigator Grant Support - Research Impact Academy workshop
Tuesday 11 June
1pm
Register to attend here

Next CHSR Seminar Series
Wednesday 19 June
12:30-1:30pm
Click here to join the meeting
Attendance is strongly encouraged

CHSR Mid-Year Social Event
Thursday 20 June
2-5pm
Queensland Art Gallery
Save the date! Further details coming soon

Research Support Team updates 
Please notify the CHSR Research Support Team via the online survey or email Casey and Lauren if you are applying for grants (either as CIA or collaborator). For post-award support, please contact James Reid and Trish Murray. 

Funding opportunities
MRFF Clinical Trials Activity – close 29 May

NHMRC Development Grants – close 12 June  

MRFF 2024 Paediatric Brain Cancer Research – close 19 June

MRFF International Clinical Trials – Rd 1 close 3 July, Rd 2 close 4 December

MRFF Innovative Trials – close 10 July  

MRFF Early to Mid-Career Researchers Grant – close 24 July

MRFF Indigenous Health Research – close 24 July

MRFF Cardiovascular Health – close 31 July

MRFF Survivorship Care and Collaborative Research Prioritisation – close 31 July

NHMRC Partnerships (PCR2) - (PRC2) close 7 August, (PRC3) close 27 November

MRFF Maternal Health and Healthy Lifestyles – close 7 August

MRFF Mental Health Research – close 7 August

MRFF Dementia, Ageing and Aged Care – close 7 August

MRFF Multidisciplinary models of Primary Care (Stream 4) - close 7 August  

NHMRC Investigator Grants – close 15 August 

NHMRC Clinical Trials and Cohort Studies – close 28 August 

MRFF Frontier Health and Medical Research – EOIs close 31 March 2026

HTQ Consumer engagement microgrants – ongoing

More funding opportunities available via the FoM CHSR teams. 

Award Opportunities
Various UQ Awards are now open for nominations. Please nominate your colleagues to ensure they receive the accolades they deserve along with monetary prizes:

UQ Awards for Excellence – close 14 June, more info here

UQ Research Partnerships & Translation Awards – close 2 July, more info here

UQ Early to Mid-Career Researchers Industry Engagement Awards – close 2 July, more info here

 More award opportunities available via the FoM CHSR teams. 

Training opportunities
QCIF online statistics training workshops (ongoing) – register here 

Dimensions/Altmetrics Explorer training sessions (from 6 June) - zoom links available here 

More training opportunities available via the FoM CHSR teams. 

Publications
Khatri D, Falconer N, de Camargo Catapan S, Coulter S, Gray LC, Paterson DL, Freeman C. Exploring stakeholders’ perspectives on antibiogram use, development, and implementation in residential aged care settings. Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy. 2024 Apr 25.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1551741124001256

View archived announcements from CHSR

Medical School community achievements 

Funding Opportunities for Medical School Researchers  
The Medical School is pleased to announce the opening of two research funding schemes aimed at supporting the productive research community within the Medical School community. These schemes are designed to empower researchers at different stages of their careers to pursue innovative projects and advance their research goals. 

Mid-Career Clinical Researcher Career Development Award
Successful applicants will receive a total award of $90,000 over two years (2024/2025) to further their research endeavors and enhance their research career trajectory. The funding can be utilised for various purposes, including applicant salary, research project expenses, travel costs, and professional development opportunities.  

Early Career Researcher Seeding Grant
The Seeding Grant offers up to $20,000 per award. This funding is intended to provide vital support for promising research projects and facilitate the exploration of new ideas and promote multidisciplinary collaboration. 

Application Process
Interested applicants are encouraged to contact the Medical School Research Support Team for further details and to obtain the application form. The deadline for submission is 9am on Thursday, 30 May. We look forward to receiving your innovative research proposals and supporting the continued excellence of research within the Medical School. 

Research  

UQ Research Culture Awards
Join us in recognising outstanding contributions to research by both academic and professional staff at The University of Queensland! Be inspired by our exceptional research community driving positive research culture change! Nominate your UQ research heroes now! Nominations close Tuesday, 14 May. Together, let's continue to build a stronger, more collaborative research community at UQ! 

UQ Research Commercialisation Workshop
Join UniQuest for a free, two-day interactive workshop and explore ways to create impact from your research.  With a mix of small group activities and presentations from industry leaders, this Workshop will guide you along the research commercialisation journey. Apply before 7 May 2024. Places are limited. Workshop will be held at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre on 20-21 May.

Lunchtime Statistics Series 2024
The Lunchtime Statistics Series is a joint Medicine-HaBS initiative and is intended for UQ FoM and HaBS HDR students, however, students and staff from the faculties are welcome to attend. These seminars will cover key topics relevant to many HDRs and allow for Q&A time at the end.

• Seminar 2: Basic Statistics in Data Analysis - Wednesday, 5 June 12-1pm via Zoom
• Seminar 3: Summarising Data using Tables and Graphs - Wednesday, 3 July 12-1pm via Zoom

EMCR Research Design Webinar Series
The Melbourne Academic Centre for Health (MACH) is hosting a 6-part research design series tailored for early and mid-career researchers (EMCRs). The series is open to EMCRs Australia-wide. 

• Webinar 3: Effective collaboration with biostatisticians in randomised controlled trials – Thursday 13 June 12:30-1:30pm. Register here. 
• Webinar 4: Statistics for your grant application – Thursday 25 July 12:30-1:30pm. Register here. 
• Webinar 5: Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning – TBC. Register here. 
• Webinar 6: Adaptive and platform trials – Thursday 7 November 12:30-1:30pm. Register here. 

Education

MD Design update
Both the Year 1 and Year 2 Course Teams are moving to a new structure in which a team member will be allocated to Focus Areas / weeks to coordinate learning experiences in that week, ensuring good sequencing, alignment and integration of activities and a focus on the staged learning outcomes. This will also assist with workload management and clearer delineation of roles and responsibilities, and communication between the AME and the Learning Communities.

In Year 2, early feedback has been positive from both staff and students regarding the Zoom delivery of plenaries and integrated symposia. Zoom delivery will continue until the mid-year break, and then student feedback will be sought to determine whether this approach will continue in the second half of the year.

The Year 3 Course Team had its final Year 3 planning group with Ochsner for feedback on the draft assessment framework. The finalised Year 3 assessment document, which includes an updated framework from collated feedback and rubrics for the workplace-based assessments, will be reviewed ahead of the Year 3 and 4 MD Design workshop on 9 May. The Year 3 Curriculum document has been provided to the Mayne academies to start generating the learning objectives and mapping these to planned learning activities.

Engagement

Correct procedure when purchasing or requesting software at UQ
It is crucial you follow the correct procedure when purchasing or requesting software for your UQ-owned device. This is to ensure you only access sanctioned applications from authoritative sources, safeguard from licensing and privacy issues, or harm caused by malware and viruses that may result from downloading software online.  The Standard Software Catalogue lists a range of software available for staff to download. Instructions available at self-installing software on UQ computers. If the software is not listed on the Standard Software Catalogue, visit Purchasing or requesting software. Any additional software, including free and cloud software must comply with UQ’s Software Acquisition and Use Procedure.  You are responsible if you access software from outside the University and must ensure the software is legitimate and complies with all University policies and standards.

Sea of Hands. A Symbol of Solidarity.
For 25 years the Sea of Hands has been a symbol of solidarity with First Nations Peoples. Planting a Sea of Hands is an act of recognition – of identity, culture and history. A/Prof Thelma Parker, Associate Dean, Indigenous Engagement, is planning an event for our community to plant a Sea of Hands to coincide with National Reconciliation Week. The Sea of Hands will be planted from mid-morning on 31 May at Herston with the twilight event commencing at 3pm. More details of this event are coming soon.  For those unable to attend in person, a registration link will be made available – so you can provide your message of solidarity to contribute to the Sea of Hands.

Book now to receive your free flu vaccine  
Bookings are now open for the annual UQ flu vaccination program, which will run from Monday, 22 April until mid-May 2024.  The free vaccine program is open to all staff, students and staff of UQ affiliates aged 18 and over. Vaccinations will be available at many UQ locations, including all 4 campuses, Indooroopilly, Long Pocket, Mater Hospital, 308 Queen St, and Toowong. 

UQ Respect
At UQ, we strive to ensure our campuses are a safe and respectful environment for all of our students and staff. Respect is about treating all others with dignity and care. We all have the right to be safe and respected at University and in all aspects of our lives. A reminder that UQ staff must complete the Appropriate Workplace Behaviour module on Workday, which includes content relating to sexual misconduct, and are also strongly encouraged to complete Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault: What are the drivers and how can staff respond? on Workday.  

First Responder Network
The First Responder Network is made up of members of the UQ Community. First Responders provide a safe and supportive environment for survivors of sexual assault and sexual harassment to receive information on the support services that are available.  Find out more about the First Responder Network - Respect - University of Queensland (uq.edu.au) Need emergency support? If you are experiencing an emergency or need urgent support in relation to an experience of sexual assault or harassment, then you can call:

• +61 7 3365 3333 UQ Security for on campus emergencies
• 000 for immediate police or ambulance assistance
• 1800 Respect 1800 737 732 for 24/7 counselling support
• Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) 07 3646 5207 for 24/7 Acute Response
• External community support options in Queensland

UQ Ally Network and Training
The UQ Ally Network is an award-winning program that provides a visible network of well-informed staff who create a safe, welcoming and inclusive space for sex, gender and sexuality diverse people at UQ and in the broader community. UQ Allies are not experts about matters of sexuality, sex and gender - they are people who strongly support UQ's stance on making the University an accepting, positive, diverse and inclusive space. Want to become a UQ Ally? You need to be committed to creating a supportive and inclusive space for people who identify as gender, sex and sexuality diverse and complete the UQ Ally Workshop training program.

Register for the IDAHOBIT Rainbow Bake Off
In honour of IDAHOBIT (International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersexism and Transphobia), the Ally Network will again host The Great Rainbow Bake Off in the Great Court St Lucia on Friday, 17 May. We aim for every school, institute, and work area to submit at least one entry to the Bake Off. Groups or individuals are welcome to make submissions. The UQ community is invited to attend the event and buy one of the cakes! This year, all funds raised will go to the Alumni Pride Scholarship. Please submit your registration by Wednesday, 8 May.

The Race That Stops UQ! (Great Court Race)
Compete in the Great Court Race on Wednesday, 15 May. Events include: ⁠Great Court Races⁠, 70m Sprint Races⁠, College Relay, Club Relay⁠ and the Staff Relay⁠.

EViND Symposium
Come along to the Extracellular Vesicles in Neurodegenerative Diseases (EViND) Symposium to celebrate a decade of ground-breaking dementia research at the Clem Jones Centre for Ageing and Dementia Research. The symposium will highlight the significance of extracellular vesicles (EVs) in neurodegenerative diseases, featuring internationally renowned speakers from the US and UK. The symposium will be held on Monday, 13 May from 8.30am-5.30pm at the Queensland Brain Institute. RSVP now to secure your spot.

QUEX Institute joint PhD program – call for projects
Academic staff interested in recruiting a PhD candidate through the QUEX Institute are invited to submit PhD project proposals. Working under the overarching banner of ‘Global Sustainability and Wellbeing’, the 2024 project proposals will focus on the following interdisciplinary themes:

• Healthy Living
• Global Environmental Futures
• Digital Worlds and Disruptive Technologies
• Mineral Security and Sustainability

Submissions close 9am AEST Tuesday, 7 May, for projects commencing in January 2025. Visit the website for the full details and project guidelines.

General Practice Clinical Unit newsletter
The General Practice Clinical Unit distributes a quarterly newsletter. Click on the Newsletters tab for the latest information regarding the Mayne Academy of General Practice and General Practice Clinical Unit, teaching tips, articles and more.

View archived announcements from the Medical School

View archived announcements from MRI-UQ 

Culture is expressed in the stories we tell, what we celebrate, and the realities of people working together every day. As a University, a Medical School, and a Rural Clinical School we play a pivotal role in shaping the future culture of regional healthcare in several ways:

• Advocating for student’s needs: We actively engage with hospital administration/departments/supervisors to ensure that they are aware that we are encouraging students to learn to navigate balancing patient care and clinical learning with meeting basic needs (water, food and bathroom breaks).
• Educational initiatives: Designing curriculum and assessment that prioritises patient-centred care and foster a culture where student success is based on demonstrating compassion, professionalism, and collegiality rather than exam results.
• Promoting interprofessional collaboration: Facilitating opportunities for students to work alongside nurses, therapists, and other members of the healthcare team, promoting a more collaborative approach to patient care.
• Feedback mechanisms: Establishing formal feedback mechanisms that allow students to provide input on their clinical experiences to help identify areas for improvement within the hospital culture.
• Role modelling: Finally, we play a role in shaping hospital culture by modelling the values and behaviours they wish to promote among students. This includes fostering a culture of empathy, compassion, and professionalism, which can then be reflected in students' interactions within the hospital setting.

The Rockhampton team's engagement at Beef Week is another great example of how we can enact our role in cultural transformation. A huge thanks to Jess Geddes who has made our involvement in this event possible. Jess’s drive, innovation, and commitment to helping the RCS promote health literacy and health screening for the rural and regional visitors to Beef Week has had many positive flow-on impacts. The ability to promote the Regional Medical Pathways, the opportunity for CQU & RCS students to volunteer and practice, compassion and patient-centred communication are just some of these benefits. To all the staff and students who volunteered their time to provide 94 health screenings to the Beef community – thank you for demonstrating the values we would like to see graduates carry into their future.

Team successes and achievements

• Year 3 Trauma Session was run on 7 May by QAS at their training facilities in Bundaberg. Feedback from BRCU staff and students attending was that it was a great learning experience and opportunity for students. It was pleasing to observe the students’ abilities and confidence increase as they progressed through the various scenarios during the session.  
• Bundaberg Year 2 trip to HBRCU on May 2 was well attended and successful, potentially becoming an annual event to aid Year 2 students in familiarising with Hervey Bay and HBRCU before Year 3 Placement Preferencing.
• Rockhampton Regional Clinical Unit had a big week in May with Beef Week, completing health screenings to participates. The stall was great exposure to our local community and a great opportunity for our MD students and CQU students to connect and work together. Huge thank you and well done to Jess for managing this to make it a seamless event, and Sneha for supervising the students. Gratitude to all staffs involved in facilitating the event.

Event recap for April/May  

• A number of Town Halls for our students providing information for 2025.Thank you Doogie for presenting for the RCS.
• BRCU staff assisted with UQ Ready event being held at St Luke’s Anglican School Bundaberg on 9 May being conducted by the UQ Futures Team. Over 90 students attended.
• Medicine Information Session Online with Future Student hosted by Riitta had over 350 attendees and the in person session had over 140 attending families.
• Members of our Toowoomba Team welcomed the new Year 1 cohort of the DD-SW Medical Pathway at UniSQ
• Battle of the Specialities Career Event Rockhampton was really well attended with a great show of enthusiasm and passion for the presenters own speciality sprinkled with some great career advice.

Upcoming events /orientation news

• An upcoming event for Toowoomba RTH is the Battle of the Specialties event on Tuesday 21 May. Hosted by Doogie, a number of medical specialty representatives will ‘battle it out’ to convince medical students and junior doctors why they should consider their specialty for a career in medicine
• Intro Week starts 17 June for Year 3 HP & Year 4 AHP & WCH students only. Year 3 CCP students will undertake their Intro Week at HBCU due to Year 2 students commencing their Semester 2 at the same time in Bundaberg
• RDAQ Conference – we are platinum sponsors – 21-23 June
• Professor Carney and Keira Anderson visit Bundaberg – 4 July
• TSXPO – 13-14 July – we have selected 10 x Year 1 Medical Pathway students to represent rural at Brisbane outreach event such as TSXPO, Open Day and more.

Staff updates:

• RRM welcomes new academic staff Dr Eugene Wong (Course Coordinator) and Dr Andy Grieve (Senior Lecturer) to the RRM team.
• We are very pleased to welcome Rachael Hopper as the Supervisor Administration for the CQ Learning Community. Rachael is well known to many of the team from her previous role with JCU GPT and this was a return to working from the Rockhampton RCU building.
• We also welcome Deputy Head Year 3&4 DD-SW Dr Furhan Iqbal.
• We thank and farewell Dr Tina Oteng (Deputy Head of Learning Community (Year 1 & 2) CQ), Amanda Kasper (CSBL Tutor WB), Kit Burke (Administration Assistant Toowoomba), David Bourke (Lecturer in Clinical Education – Toowoomba) and Dr Emma McGonigal (Senior Lecturer – Clinical Education Toowoomba).

Rural and Remote Medicine update:

• In June, the RRM team are taking the country to the city where academics and preceptors from our rural and remote sites will be delivering Intro Week to 46 Metro students at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, and the Mayne Building, prior to the annual RDAQ conference being held later that week.
• In early May, all Year 1 Medical students were given the opportunity to self-enrol into their groups for the Rural and Remote Medicine Community and Virtual Immersions.  In August, Rural Pathway students will be immersed in one of 9 rural and remote communities for 4 days where they will be involved in medical, community, cultural and social activities to further develop their knowledge and passion for a career in rural medicine.  The Virtual Immersion will see 71 small groups of students engaging with medical professionals from one of 29 different rural and remote communities to gain a greater understanding of rural and remote medicine.

Research RCS update for May
New Staff Member
On Tuesday 16 April, Ms Sam Biki commenced as the Research Assistant for the UCAT ANZ funded project titled Differences in UCAT ANZ performance between Rural and Metropolitan medical school applicants: A national investigation.

Faculty Research Grant
2024 RRR Health Research Initiative EOI

Strengthening ties with regional, rural and remote community and health partners:

The University of Queensland is seeking Expressions of Interest (EOI) from its researchers for the 2024 Rural, Regional, and Remote (RRR) Health Research initiative. The aim is to develop partnerships with RRR health stakeholders and improve health outcomes in these communities through transdisciplinary research.

The initiative includes a series of events to foster collaboration and develop research projects. These include the Dalby Consumer Roundtable held in February, the UQ HERA Studio (15 May), and the RRR Health Partner Event in Toowoomba (12 July).

The RRR Health Partner Event aims to open dialogue on rural health research, identify funding opportunities, and help advance project teams working on community-identified research priorities.
Successful teams will be eligible to apply for research accelerator grant funding to support the development of competitive research funding proposals focused on RRR health.

Eligibility: UQ researchers with an active employment status, including academic research staff and Academic Title Holders who administer their research grant activity at UQ. Note: UQ Honorary and Adjunct title holders are not eligible to apply as project leaders.

EOI Applications close: Friday, 24 May at 9am
Notification of EOI outcome: mid-June
For more information, including pathways for applicants, research themes, selection criteria and application process please read the Guideline and Application Form.

Please direct queries regarding this initiative to Dr Madonna Devaney or Dr Annette Shewan.

Finance General Reminder
ExpenseMe / ProMasters – Reconciliation – if we can try and manage these weekly for those corporate card holders, that would be appreciated.
 

View archived RCS announcements

Date Savers

31 May            Academic staff meeting, 2-4pm, Physiology lecture theatres (63), 360

10 Jul              Academic staff meeting, 2-4pm, Physiology lecture theatres (63), 360

27 Aug            SBMS all staff meeting, 12-1:30pm, Zoom

18 Sep            Academic staff meeting, 2-4pm, venue TBC

29-30 Oct        Honours research outcome seminars, 9am-5pm, various locations

2 Dec              SBMS all staff meeting, 12-1:30pm, Zoom

East Coast Protein Meeting 2024
The East Coast Protein Meeting will be held from Wed 17 - Fri 19 July. Join us for an exciting gathering of protein researchers at the beautiful Opal Cove Resort - Coffs Coast. Registration is now open.

Award opportunities for student and postdocs:
There will be multiple award opportunities for student and postdoc presenters including best talk and poster presentations. There will also be student travel awards available. In addition, if you are an early career researcher (<5 years post PhD), please indicate in your abstract submission email if you would like to be considered for the BioMolecular Horizons (BMH) 2024 award. Also, please submit a 2 page CV if applying for either student travel award or the ECR award.

New SBMS publications
Inhibiting Eph/ephrin signaling reduces vascular leak and endothelial cell dysfunction in mice with sepsis
Nemat Khan, Vinod Kumar, Pengcheng Li, RAPIDS Study Group, Luregn J. Schlapbach, Andrew W. Boyd, Mark G. Coulthard*, Trent M. Woodruff*.
Science Translational Medicine, April 2024, Vol 16, Issue 744

Sepsis is one of the biggest killers of children, and lacks effective treatment. Prior approaches to treat sepsis have focussed solely on the immune/inflammatory system, with limited success. SBMS researchers Dr Nemat Khan and Prof Trent Woodruff teamed up with paediatric intensivist A/Prof Mark Coulthard from the Children’s Hospital’s Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) to develop a novel approach to target the vascular dysfunction that occurs during sepsis. Eph-ephrin interactions are important in maintaining blood vessel health. Their study showed that Ephs and ephrins and vascular damage markers are dramatically dysregulated in children with sepsis, and in experimental models. They developed an Eph-ephrin inhibitor that could restore endothelial function in human cells, and tested the drug in a mouse sepsis model. The drug was shown to not only prevent sepsis-induced mortality and inflammatory organ damage by restoring vascular leak, but also could be administered after the onset of symptoms as a therapeutic intervention relevant to the clinical setting. To validate the translational relevance of this work, a targeted proteomics Eph/ephrin panel was developed and used to examine serum samples obtained from 91 children with sepsis. This demonstrated a strong correlation of Eph/ephrin proteins with the severity of sepsis in these children, suggesting the function of these proteins are intrinsically linked with the disease. Targeting this system with their novel UQ-developed drug could be an important step in ameliorating sepsis pathology and mortality in both children and adults with sepsis. The work was published in one of the world’s leading medical translational journals, Science Translational Medicine.

If you are preparing a manuscript and you would like SBMS readership before submission, members of the Research Committee are willing and able to assist. Please contact the chair, Jana Vukovic.

If you have recently had a new publication accepted or published, please let us know. 

Visualise Your Thesis Competition 2024 
The Visualise Your Thesis competition is back at UQ in 2024. The competition was developed by the University of Melbourne, has local and international rounds and has gained wide international reach. The competition is open to currently enrolled graduate researchers (students enrolled in Master of Philosophy, Masters by Research, PhD, or Professional Doctorate programs) at any stage of their candidature who are active and attending. 

Entrants must create an eye-catching, 60-second audio-visual representation of their research project and its potential benefits to a non-specialist audience. This provides an opportunity to showcase their research and develop skills in visual storytelling and communicating complex ideas to a general audience. 

Read the Library blog post for more information and key competition dates. There is also a link in the blog post to view past year's entries.

View archived announcements from SBMS

Head of School Update
Dear Colleagues
Simon Reid and Irene Hui (Principal International Manager) represented the Faculty of Medicine at the highly successful inaugural UQ Open Days in Indonesia that were attended by over 500 future students. Simon reports there was a lot of interest in the MPH and PhD opportunities. It was great to meet a keen group of students who are committed to pursuing careers in public health, including a number who will join our School in 2025.

The School is applying for membership of the Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health. Please take a look at their website so you can see how this group could align with your work.

Lisa Fitzgerald, Chair of our EDI committee, is currently working to schedule some face-to-face training for everyone at the School about being an ethical bystander. The training will support people to feel empowered to do something about unacceptable behaviour when they witness it in a safe and meaningful way. It will be in late June, please keep an eye out for the calendar invite.

Finally, our congratulations to Kirra Van Nispen, an undergraduate student with us, who earlier this month received the Stan and Sophie Freemantle prize for outstanding achievement in Biomedical and Health Sciences from St John’s College.

All the best 
Sheleigh & Sarah 
 
Sheleigh Lawler                                                                  Sarah Piper 
Acting Head of School                                                     SPH School Manager  
 
Dates for diaries 
21 May – HTQ seminar: How to master competitive grant opportunities, 4 - 5pm

21 May – International Tea Day – tea lovers unite in celebration of their favourite beverage. International Tea Day also promotes ways to sustain the production and consumption of tea. On this day, we can also learn of the importance of tea in combating hunger and poverty.

22 May – Connecting Climate Minds webinar, see below for more information

26 May – National Sorry Day – is a day to acknowledge the strength of Stolen Generations survivors and reflect on how we can all assist in healing.

27 May-3 June – National Reconciliation Week – Now More Than Ever

28 May – Yoga in the Mayne Level 3 boardroom (315), 12pm - 1pm 

31 May – Sea of Hands Twilight Event - Sea of Hands – 3pm – 5:30pm, In front of the Mayne Medical School building. RSVP: COB Wednesday 22 May 2024. Register here.

25 June – HTQ showcase: Research integrity and ethics, 11am -12pm

Webinar - Connecting Climate Minds: creating a research and action agenda for climate change and mental health in Oceania
On Wednesday 22 May, 11am-12pm, the UQ Mental Health and Climate Change Research Network is hosting a webinar about Connecting Climate Minds, a global Wellcome Trust funded initiative to cultivate a collaborative climate change and mental health field. This webinar will provide an overview of research and action priorities for the Oceania region. Register now.

Congratulations
A big shout out to Laurelle Roberts. Friday 17 May marked her 25 years of service at UQ. We’re thrilled to continue to have you as part of the team.

Service Roles at SPH
The school is now recruiting into two separate service roles: Deputy Chair of EDIC and a new Seminar Series Coordinator role. If you would like more information or wish to be considered for either of these roles, please send an email to sph.hos.ea@uq.edu.au. Responses are required on Thursday May 23 by 9am.

Worth the read – recent articles from our people
The cost of living gluten free (Dr Sarah Birtwistle)
Sunburnt by Anne Gately

Anne is an advocate of sun safety and a consumer with a powerful lived experience story. Anne very kindly presented at the sunscreen industry forum held at UQ last year and will be presenting at the Skin Cancer Prevention Conference in September.

Anne Gately is a stage IV melanoma survivor who is passionate about reducing the incidence of skin cancer in Australia, by influencing a change to Australia’s bronzed culture by leveraging the power of the media and sporting industries. 

Not only has she survived, she is issuing a clarion call for a change to the bronzed Aussie culture. In Sunburnt Anne combines a nostalgic view of a charmed Aussie childhood, a jolting review of Australia’s sun-worshipping norms, and enough scientific research to encourage us all to redefine our relationship with the sun.

SPH Website Update
Work is commencing on updating and improving our SPH website, with the help of Stacey Pizzino and the engagement team. If you’re aware of any errors on our website that need correcting, please can you share the details here? This will remain active for the foreseeable future and we’re keen to hear from you. If you’d like to be a part of the website upgrade team, please get in touch with Stacey.

SPH Space update 
From tomorrow (Tuesday May 21), the doors between the lift foyers and the office corridors on each floor will lock from 5pm each evening. Please remember to take your swipe card with you if you leave the office spaces in the evening. If you find yourself locked out, you can call security on 3365 1234, or contact them via the UQ Safezone app, which we encourage everyone to download and to use the Check In function if you’re working in the building after hours.

School Review Recommendations Updates  
We’re close to finalising the workplan for the external consultant to help us with our review recommendations. This will be Sue Sampson from Transform Consulting: Sue is an experienced senior leader and consultant with specialist expertise in leadership development, team and organisational effectiveness, positive cultures, individual wellbeing, and change management. With a career including 15 years as a management consultant and recent senior leadership

roles, Sue has deep experience in organisational change and has worked with many organisations helping to create a shift in culture, strategy and where needed, structure. An effective public speaker and a highly skilled facilitator,

Sue supports executive and operational teams to collaborate effectively towards shared outcomes. She is a wellbeing enthusiast helping individuals and teams build skills, tools, and strategies to thrive and flourish and to help organisations achieve sustainable productivity.

Conferences
The Southern Cross Australasian Travel and Tropical Medicine Conference is being held in Brisbane this year, September 27-29. Early bird registration is open until 31 May 2024.

The 2024 Zoonoses Conference Crossroads of Contagion will feature education sessions with an emphasis on highlighting the importance of the intersection of human and animal interactions and health. Held in Sydney on July 5 and 6, you can find more details here: https://asid.net.au/zoo2024

The Communicable Diseases and Immunisation Conference 2024 will be held in Brisbane from June 11 – 13. More details here: https://www.cdic2024.com/

 All the info  

• 2024 Academic Calendar - Academic Calendar 
• Changes to parking at Herston - Campus Parking Changes - Herston January 2024 
• Herston Campus
• CAHP - CAHP Information & Services 
• Research News - UQ Research Main Page 
• Current Funding Opportunities - Current Funding Opportunities 
• MRFF 2024 Early to Mid-Career Researchers Initiative - MRFF 2024 Early to Mid-Career Researchers grant opportunity

SPH LinkedIn Page 
Continue to help build our SPH LinkedIn community by following and inviting others to follow our School of Public Health LinkedIn page. Please send Ailsa Bolton any content you would like uploaded to LinkedIn. Alternatively, you can post on your own personal LinkedIn page and tag the School of Public Health by simply typing @UQ School of Public Health and clicking the SPH page that appears as a tag option. 

SPH Research Dissemination Toolkit 
Keen to disseminate your research publicly? The SPH Research Dissemination Toolkit can help you do this. 

View archived SPH announcements

From the Director’s desk
It has been a very busy fortnight at UQCCR! We have had some wonderful successes with Fellowships and firstly, I would like to offer my heartiest congratulations to Benn Sartorius (Leader Level 1) and Patrick Harris (Emerging Leader 2) for their Investigator Grant success.

Secondly, I would like to give my congratulations to Lata Vadlamudi and Krispin Hajkowicz for their Queensland Health Targeted Clinical Research Fellowships which adds to the success of Aaron Heffernan and Paul Williams with the Queensland Advancing Clinical Research Fellowships that were recently announced.

I recognise that others were unsuccessful and that this initial disappointment can be a very difficult time. I speak for all of us when I say that we feel your disappointment, but hope that you will find the strength to use the feedback to make an even stronger case for funding and make your eventual success even sweeter! To provide some help from UQCCR, we were delighted to support a collaborative grant writing workshop with other Faculty Research Centres for 3 days last week. We also plan to run another workshop in mid-late June to help people who may want to reapply for the Investigator Grant Scheme.

Congratulations also to Carlos Salomon Gallo and his team for their recent success in the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund grant.  We have a news story on the UQCCR News Webpage about this and I encourage you to read this.

Academic promotions are due soon. If you have not already done so, can you please contact me to discuss your application.

Finally, I want to give a special thanks to Sara Gollschewski for her work for UQCCR over the last few weeks as Centre Manager whilst also maintaining her RDM role. Sara has shown wonderful leadership and grace in her role, and we are all grateful for her work!

Want to be included in the newsletter?
Email your updates, event, awards to news@uqccr.uq.edu.au for inclusion.

Are you a wellbeing?
Check out UQCCR’s Wellbeing committee Initiatives and other Centre news on the Staff hub.

UQ Gala for Prostate Cancer
The UQ Gala for Prostate Cancer will be held on 31 August. We are seeking staff and students to volunteer to assist at the event. Roles required include collecting donations and selling raffle tickets. Purple UQ T Shirts will be supplied, and the event is at Customs House on River Fire night. Please contact Melissa Kerr (melissa.kerr@uq.edu.au) in the faculty Advancement team to nominate.

Seminar Series
UQCCR Seminar Series - Save the Date!

Make sure to mark your calendars for the next UQCCR Seminar Series taking place on Wednesday 22 May at 12:00pm. Join us as Associate Professor Nigel Waterhouse delves into "Spatial Cell Biology and Other Services at QIMR Berghofer," offering insights into the cutting-edge equipment and services available at QIMR. Check out other seminars across the School/Institutes/Centres, see here: https://biosig.lab.uq.edu.au/seminars/.

Publication of the Month Winners
Congratulations to our March winner:
Saiyuri Naicker - ECR Category

Title: Evaluation of the stability of ceftazidime/avibactam in elastomeric infusion devices used for outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy utilizing a national stability protocol framework

Journal: JAC-Antimicrobial Resistance

Have you recently published? Consider submitting for Publication of the Month here. Apply now: https://uniofqueensland.syd1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dbZJmOGJ85zgXsi

Applications close 7^th of each month.

UQCCR Support Pantry
The Wellbeing Committee is delighted to launch the UQCCR Support Pantry, an initiative to relieve food insecurity and financial hardship experienced by members of our UQCCR community. The cost of living continues to increase, and members of our community are facing increased challenges in making their money stretch across all their needs. The UQCCR community can provide some relief by donating pantry items such as food and other essentials. 

Need some help putting food on your table? 
Click here to find out how you can anonymously access food, personal care items, or cleaning products. 

Want to donate to the Support Pantry? 
That would be fantastic, thank you! There are several donation points throughout UQCCR, or you can donate a monetary gift. The pantry team will use these donations to stock the Support Pantry. Find out more on ways you can donate. 

UQCCR updates continued
See standing items such as social club chocolates, after-hours building access and research support services on UQCCR's tab in the Staff Hub. 

Faculty’s Research and Statistical Support Services (RASSS)
Need help with study design, data analysis, manuscript, grant application or PhD supervision? To discuss bespoke statistical support at UQCCR, please complete a request form. See more information under the Research Support banner.

UQ clinical trials procedure
If you are establishing a clinical trial, please check the UQ Ethics page to ensure that you are familiar with UQ requirements, such as submitting additional notifications, obtaining any additional insurance for international sites, completing the UQ template Risk Assessment and Management Plan (RAMP) and ensuring your GCP training is current. Sabine is happy to assist with any enquires. Alternatively, please visit the Research Support team in Room 735 for any questions.
 
Budgets
Many research contracts submitted for signature are not using the UQ costing and pricing tool and do not factor in overheads or provide a relevant independent exemption reference, such as the funding body’s rules on their website. Failure to confirm these aspects early can mean delays in getting your contract signed or GRL issued. If you have any questions about the CPT or overheads, please contact Roheen.
 
COIs
FACs and research contracts require confirmation that your online COI disclosures, if applicable, have been approved by UQ, before a GRL can be issued or a research contract signed. Online approval happens via Workday in consultation with your line manager. As the COI process can take a few weeks, please ensure that you attend to your annual COI and updates, and factor in the timing required to avoid delays.
 
Research infrastructure
If there is a piece of equipment or infrastructure that may benefit several research groups within UQCCR please let us know by filling in this form ( UQCCR Equipment & Infrastructure Request Form March2024.docx) and submitting it to the CCR Facilities Desk (FacilitiesDesk@uqccr.uq.edu.au). Information provided will be discussed within the Infrastructure Committee and can be used for developing external grant and/or philanthropic opportunities, or be used for developing access through the Faculty capital replacement scheme or via access at alternative locations. Please also discuss any infrastructure/equipment issues with the Facilities Team.

Research funding support
Visit the Faculty website for current research funding opportunities. Please contact Roheen Gill well ahead of any deadline if you are planning to apply for upcoming opportunities and Sara Gollschewski to discuss strategic funding alignment. You can find a summary of funding support and assistance available to researchers for administration, reporting and closing out of existing funding in this document under 'Research Resources'.

View archived announcements from UQCCR

 View archived announcements from The Frazer Institute