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Monday 1 August 2016

Need for improved rehabilitation assessment for patients experiencing stroke in Australia

A/Prof Cadilhac
Australian patients with stroke are not being adequately assessed for rehabilitation due to health professionals’ preconceived beliefs about suitability, according to latest research from UniSA undertaken in collaboration with Monash University.

Stroke Foundation data from 2011 and 2013 indicated that fewer than half the patients with acute stroke in Australian hospitals were assessed for rehabilitation.

“These results compare unfavourably with audits conducted the UK and the US where about 90% of patients have received rehabilitation assessments,” said study author Associate Professor Dominique Cadilhac, Head of Translational Public Health and Evaluation Division, Stroke and Ageing Research in the School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health.

“Australian clinical guidelines include the good practice point that every patient with stroke, who is not for palliative care, should be assessed for further rehabilitation.”

To address concerns regarding the low proportion of Australian patients with stroke being assessed for rehabilitation, the Australian Stroke Coalition developed an evidence-based and patient-centred Rehabilitation Assessment Tool in 2011.

Associate Professor Cadilhac said the Assessment Tool was designed to guide health professionals to make objective decisions regarding the rehabilitation requirements of every patient with stroke admitted to hospital.

“Our latest research reveals that health professionals working on acute stroke units believe there are not enough rehabilitation services to meet the needs of patients with stroke.”

“We’ve also shown that patients with rehabilitation needs are not always referred to rehabilitation services, and beliefs about the purpose of rehabilitation assessments vary between health professionals,” said Associate Professor Cadilhac.

Among the health professionals interviewed within the 10 study stroke units often the patients with severe stroke, stroke-related cognitive deficits or co-existing dementia were considered unlikely to benefit from rehabilitation and so were not referred for assessment.

“It is also significant that two-thirds of patients with stroke in Australian hospitals do not receive documented assessments of mood or continence problems.”

“Rehabilitation interventions can be effective for addressing problems with mood or urinary incontinence after stroke, but without being provided with the opportunity for rehabilitation assessment, it is unlikely that appropriate management plans will be organised for such conditions,” said Associate Professor Cadilhac.

“Consistent use of the Rehabilitation Assessment Tool will enable more holistic plans to be developed for each patient in the early post-stroke period, which we believe will lead to enhanced clinical outcomes.”

 For further information see: http://australianstrokecoalition.com.au/site/media/ASC-Assessment-for-Rehabilitation-Manual-and-Decision-Making-Tool-final2.pdf

Women affected by early menopause to benefit from Monash research

Professor Teede
A Monash-led research project aimed at treating early menopause has received funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).

The early menopause project is being driven by researchers in the Faculties of Medicine and Arts. The Monash team members include the Director of the Monash Centre for Health Research and Implementation (MCHRI), Professor Helena Teede; the Director of Social Studies of Health and Medicine Research Program, Associate Professor Renata Kokanovic, and Associate Professor Amanda Vincent of MCHRI.

Professor Teede said that early menopause, defined as menopause before age 45, affects more than 10 per cent of Australian women. She said women afflicted with early menopause are at greater risk of premature death and also suffer negative impacts on their quality of life.

“Our project aims to bridge the knowledge gaps within the community on early menopause and to improve health professionals’ understanding and management of the condition. Lack of understanding about early menopause can delay diagnosis, cause variation in care and limit risk perception,” Professor Teede said.

“We will undertake epidemiological research to clarify and evaluate the long-term impacts of early menopause as well as conduct qualitative research to better understand women’s experiences of early menopause,” she said.

Associate Professor Kokanovic said project outcomes will include the development of website information resources that outline the health implications of early menopause.

“The information we acquire through our research will be available on the respected online site, Healthtalk Australia,” Associate Professor Kokanovic said.

The information compiled, she said, will be evidence-based and include links to other relevant resources.

Christmas in July at SCS

A big thank you to all who attended the Christmas in July event last Friday, hosted by the SCS Social Committee -  and a big thank you to those who brought a plate to share. The lunch was a success with approximately 30 attendees enjoying a Japanese inspired Christmas lunch along with a selection of cakes. 

Stay tuned for upcoming social events brought to you by the SCS Social Committee! 

CID and CiiiD seminars, 2 August

Dr Greg Tesch
"Therapeutic Targeting of Inflammation in Diabetic Nephropathy"
12-1pm in the TRF Seminar Room 1, presented by Dr Gregory Tesch

"NOD1 sensing of Helicobacter pylori promotes production of mature IL-18 in gastric epithelial cells"
1-2pm in Seminar Room 1 of the TRF.  Presented by Dr Le Son Tran and chaired by  Dr Liang Yu

The CID seminar, held Tuesday .  Information regarding the CID seminar series is available at http://www.med.monash.edu.au/scs/medicine/cid/seminar-series.html

Lunch will be served at 11:45am in the foyer of the TRF building.



Grand Rounds, Immunotherapy in toxicology: Not always so FAB!, 3 August

Unit: Emergency               
Presenters: Professor Andis Graudins
Date: Wednesday 3 August 2016
Time: 12.30pm to 1.30pm

Venue: Main Lecture Theatre, Monash Medical Centre, Clayton.

Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) - Public Consultation (Melbourne - Thursday 4 August)

The Australian Medical Research Advisory Board is undertaking consultations to develop the Australian Medical Research and Innovation Strategy and related Priorities to improve the wellbeing of Australians through health and medical research and innovation.

At its inaugural meeting on 4 May 2016, the Advisory Board agreed to a two stage consultation process to ensure extensive input from those who deliver, use or stand to benefit from health services and health and medical research. The first stage of the consultation process was a call for written submissions on the development of the Strategy and Priorities. 

The Advisory Board has considered these submissions and developed a draft framework that will be used to determine the Strategy and Priorities. This framework will be discussed during this second stage public consultation.

Details on the various public consultations is available at: http://health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/mrff

The Melbourne session is being held on Thursday 4 August, 9-11am at WEHI (Parkville).

To register your attendance at this event, please go to: 

CD1-Reactive T cells Mediate Human Response to Tuberculosis Infection, Tuesday, August 9

Tuesday, August 9 from 12pm to 1pm in Seminar Room 1, Level 2, TRF.

The speaker will be Professor D. Branch Moody, from Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School.


















If you wish to make an appointment with Prof Moody, please email rebecca.smith@hudson.org.au


PerkinElmer PCI seminar, 9 August


Wearable and Point of Care Biodiagnostics Workshop, 15 August

8.30am-5pm, G29/G30, New Horizons, 20 Research Way, Monash University Clayton campus

This free workshop will focus on the latest developments in wearable technologies designed for point of care diagnostics and physiological monitoring. Supported by the ARC Centre of Excellence in Convergent Bio-Nano Science & Technology, the Monash Institute for Medical Engineering (MIME), Monash Chemical Engineering Department, and Harbin Institute of Technology, the workshop will include presentations by 20 invited experts. The full program will be released shortly and catering will be provided throughout the day.

Please RSVP (for logistics/catering purposes) online using the “MIME16” coupon for FREE rego by Monday 10th August 2016 via the following link: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/wearable-and-point-of-care-biodiagnostics-symposium-tickets-25500331177

Flyer with details here or see MIME website here: http://www.monash.edu/mime/events/index.html 

MHTP Graduate Research Expo events for prospective PhD and Hons students: 3 and 9 August






































For more information and registration please visit:
 http://www.med.monash.edu.au/scs/students/higher-degrees-research.html

The Ritchie Centre 2016 Colloquium and Public Forum “Cell Therapy & Translational Research”, 25-26 August


Cell therapies and regenerative medicine are rapidly growing industries identified by the National Institutes of Health in the USA as the next pillar in modern medicine.  The awareness of the innate capacity of the fetus to repair and regenerate tissues is being used to develop unique models of organ and tissue regeneration using stem cells. The Ritchie Centre has established the Cell Therapies Platform within the Translational Research Facility at the Monash Health Translation Precinct to capitalise on this opportunity and currently leads a number of Phase I and Phase II stem cell clinical trials.  


This year’s Ritchie Colloquium will highlight clinical translation research in Cell Therapy and Regenerative Medicine being undertaken by members of The Ritchie Centre and by national and international colleagues. The Ritchie Centre Public Forum international panel of experts will address topical issues of Stem Cell Therapies and discuss clinical trials currently being undertaken and the potential of future treatments.

Change x Unzipped - A Victorian Global Health Collaboration, 6-7 August

Introducing an exciting new global health collaboration between medical students at Monash, Melbourne and Deakin, Change x Unzipped is a two-day global health symposium held in Melbourne on Saturday August 6 and in Geelong on Sunday August 7. With inputs from professionals across many disciplines, be prepared to gain a different perspective on global health issues and engage in interactive workshops and panel discussions.

Change, on Saturday, will focus on the intersection of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Global Health. Be informed during an incredible morning of speakers before taking action in an afternoon of collaborative, engaging workshops. Global Health Unzipped, on the Sunday, seeks to empower individuals to take action in global health with speakers and facilitated panel discussions.

Tickets are $20 per day
Head to http://www.changexunzipped.org to find out more and register today!

Like the FB page to find out about speakers, food, and more! https://www.facebook.com/changexunzipped/

Global Health Unzipped FB event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1120059171385959/


Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences Research Week: 15-19 August

The Faculty is very pleased to announce MNHS Research Week being held 15 to 19 August 2016An exciting series of FREE seminars and workshops are organised over the week, covering a range of topics for all researchers and graduate research students.


Selected events are listed below, click on the links below to register and keep watching our Research Week page for the latest updates.

Welcome Reception
Date: Monday 15 August 2016
Time: 6:00pm - 8:00pm (catering and refreshments provided)
Location: South 1 Lecture Theatre, 43 Rainforest Walk, Monash University, Clayton Campus
Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/monash-university-mnhs-research-week-2016-welcome-reception-tickets-26696542076
Join us as we launch MNHS Research Week 2016. Our distinguished guest speakers (The Hon. John Brumby and Dr Andrea Douglas) will discuss how universities, industry and the government can work together to achieve a shared innovation agenda. We will also celebrate our best researchers with the presentation of Early Career Researcher Publication Prizes and the Mollie Holman Doctoral Medal.


Beyond Academia: Career Pathways after the PhD
Date
: Wednesday 17 August 2016
Time: 6:00pm - 8:00pm (pizza and drinks provided)
Location: South 1 Lecture Theatre, 43 Rainforest Walk, Monash University, Clayton Campus
Registrationhttps://my.monash.edu.au/news-and-events/bookings/mnhsroe/view/172585/
What careers can you consider with a graduate research degree? Are you interested in a career beyond academia? Hear from a panel of speakers about alternative career pathways following a PhD.


Faculty 3MT Final 2016
Date: Friday 19 August 2016
Time: 1:30pm - 3:30pm
Location: S9 Lecture Theatre, 16 Rainforest Walk, Monash University, Clayton Campus
Registrationhttps://my.monash.edu.au/news-and-events/bookings/mnhsroe/view/172605/
Want to see students explain their research in just 3 minutes and win some wonderful prizes? 3MT is an exciting competition for our graduate research students to deliver an oral presentation to showcase their research. Come and support your school finalist plus cast your vote for the People’s Choice Award!

Faculty Strategic Grants Scheme 2017 (SGS 2017) - APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN


The Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (FMNHS) Strategic Grants Scheme (SGS), consisting of ~$2M per year, is an essential resource for research development.

Under SGS, the Faculty aims to strengthen the capability and international competitiveness of its researchers by supporting high quality proposals. Other objectives include the identification and development of young research leaders and enabling engagement with the FMNHS technology research platforms. Interdisciplinary research is valued in the Faculty​,​ and there are targeted funds reserved for joint proposals from
​investigators in FMNHS and the Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (FPPS).
​Priority will be given to significant new collaborations between the two faculties.​

The SGS grant application process is tailored to enhance strategic gains to the Faculty research portfolio. To ensure a central focus on strategic enhancement of research, funding will be awarded to applicants whose projects best demonstrate a combination of scientific quality and the potential for strategic gain for
FMNHS (​and FPPS, where applicable).
Registration and applications for SGS 2017 are NOW OPEN at
​the online application portal: ​https://monash.fluidreview.com/

2016/7 Joint Arts-Medicine Interdisciplinary Research (IDR) Seed Funding Scheme - APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN

Following a very successful Affinity Workshop last month, where over 60 researchers from ​Arts and MNHS engaged in a lively discussion about collaboration opportunities, we are very pleased to announce the 2016/7 ​J​oint ​ Arts-Medicine IDR ​S​eed ​F​unding call is now open.

The total budget for the scheme is $100,000. The maximum available funding for each individual application is $25,000.
​Further information and resources are ​available at 


All applications are due by 5pm on 30 September 2016.

If you have any questions about the scheme or would like to apply, please contact
​ Brian Walsh in 
the Arts Research and Business Development Office (arts-research-enquiries@monash.edu  or 990 58557).​

We look forward to receiving your applications.

Application form here. Guideline here.

UROP Round 2 2016 Opening - Call for Projects

Round 2 - 2016

Call for Projects and Student Applications August  1 - August 16


Project submission for supervising students in the next round of intake into the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) are now being invited.
 
 Closing date for Project Submissions is 16 August 2016.

The students will be available to commence work in laboratories during the universities’ summer recess in November-February.  Actual start dates are arranged by the supervisor and student. Biomedical Research Victoria, through the UROP Program, will co-ordinate the call for applications from students and conduct the initial screening interviews. Suitable candidates will then be introduced to individual supervisors by the UROP Program Manager. 

Engagement with Mind Your Way

On behalf of Professor Matthew Gillespie, Associate Dean (Research Strategy)

It has come to our attention that there has been late engagement by researchers with Mind Your Way, the external company that provides editorial services for grant and fellowship applications. A late engagement is detrimental to achieve a successful outcome for applications.
As such, we are writing to advise that:
  • Any Faculty approved commitments towards the cost of services provided by Mind Your Way will be set at a maximum of $1,500 (incl GST). 
  • Proposals must be pre-approved by Faculty and the MRO Research Development team before submission to Mind Your Way.
  • Pre-approved applications must be available three (3) weeks prior to the submission deadline for review by Mind Your Way.
  • Applications must be lodged and processed through the myResearch portal.

Applications that do not meet the above criteria will not be supported by the Faculty. However, staff, Departments or Schools may fully financially support the engagement of Mind Your Way without Faculty endorsement.


Expression of Interest for reviewers of abstracts for World Congress of Public Health 2017

On behalf of the Scientific Organising Committee for the 15th World Congress on Public Health 2017, you are invited to submit an Expression of Interest to be part of the abstract review process for the Congress.

View the full details at this link: http://wcph2017.com/news/call-for-reviewers.html


Abstracts closing soon

General conference information available at http://www.wcph2017.com/

Information Session for ECRs on the Structural Review of NHMRC’s Grant Program, 10 August

Professor Ebeling
2.00 - 3.00pm Wednesday, 10th August
Medicine Seminar Room, Level 5, Block E, Monash Medical Centre

The NHMRC has identified several concerns with current research funding models:
  •   work required to prepare and evaluate grants is placing an unsustainable burden on applicants and peer reviewers
  •  many researchers, especially those at early and mid-career stages are becoming discouraged from pursuing research
  •  there are disincentives to exploring new areas of research

A review of NHMRC’s grant program is being undertaken to determine whether funding schemes can be streamlined and adapted. This is an outstanding opportunity for ECRs to have a say on the future of research funding in Australia.

A summary of the NHMRCs Structural Review will be presented by Professor Peter Ebeling AO, Head of the Department of Medicine at SCS.

Professor Ebeling has previously served on the NHMRC Academy (2009-2014), and is a current member of the NHMRC Committee.




Call for Nominations: 67th Meeting of Nobel Laureates in Lindau, 2017 | NOW OPEN

The Australian Academy of Science (AAS) has released a call for applications from Australian based early career researchers to attend the 67th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting (dedicated to chemistry), to be held in Lindau, Germany 25-30 June 2017 for further information including eligibility requirements and how to apply please visit this page.
A limit of two applications per eligible institution appliesTherefore, the Monash Research Office (MRO) will convene a Selection Panel to shortlist two proposals that will be submitted by the University.

Applications open Monday 1 August 2016. The application form will be available from the AAS website and is attached here. Please complete the application form and submit it, along with a brief CV (max 2 pages), recent publications list (max 2 pages) and a letter of recommendation from your academic advisor or internationally renowned scientist, including the specialist scientific expertise of the referee to mro-arc@monash.edu by 9am, Monday 12 September 2016.
Key dates:
Applications due to MRO
9am, 12 September 2016
Shortlisted applicants notified
19 September 2016
Full proposal due to MRO
9am 3 October 2016
Full proposal due to AAS
4 October 2016

Science in the Cinema, 8 August

Palace Cinemas South Yarra (L1, The Como Centre, 299 Toorak Rd, South Yarra)
6:00pm Thursday 8th August 2016

Join the ASMR to celebrate National Science Week with a special screening of the award-winning futuristic comedy Robot and FrankAfter the film, ask our panel of very special guests about the REAL science behind the story: sentient robots, cognitive therapies and the future of personal healthcare.

The evening will be hosted by Dr Andi Horvath (Podcaster and Science Writer for the Age) and our panel of guests are A/Prof Kate Hoy (Clinical Neuropsychologist), Joelle Hawa (Bioethicist), Prof Rajiv Khosla (Creator of emotionally intelligent aged care robots) and Tané Hunter (Futurologist).

$10 tickets are available here.

Send us your tweets @The_ASMR1 or contact Katharine at 92144934 or kadcroft@swin.edu.au with enquiries. 


This event is proudly sponsored by Swinburne’s ARC Training Centre for Biodevices (“The Bioreactor”).

New arrangements for the collection and management of research outputs

The implementation of myResearch together with the establishment of the Research Outputs Collection Service (ROCS) creates an opportunity for Monash to deliver improved business processes that support all researchers at Monash.

The publications collection for the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (MNHS) will now be managed by ROCS.
​ ​
The ROCS team are able to assist with:
  • search of the Scopus database to identify research outputs by MNHS researchers
  • import of research outputs on behalf of researchers (via the trusted user setting)
  • manually creating research output records in Pure for those outputs not picked up in the Scopus database
  • ensuring the research output record in Pure is complete so that the information appearing on researcher profiles is accurate
  • adding Field of Research (FoR) codes

Check your new Pure web profile

myResearch was launched on 14 July with new external profiles for researchers. These profiles replaced the ROPES Profiles on Thursday 28 July. The link to the new profiles will be from the Monash research webpages.

The information from ROPES has been moved into the new profiles. In most cases this has gone smoothly, however there are some instances where information has not transferred, or has some errors.

Given that the new profiles will be publicly visible as of this Thursday, we recommend all researchers check their new profile for the following:
  • Photo: Is there a photo? It should be in portrait mode, with the face in the centre of the photo.
  • Bio: Is there some biographical text? The profile homepage will be blank if there is no text. 
  • FoR codes: Have you added your FoR codes? The new search tool (going live on Thursday) will return results by FoR code.
  • Keywords: Have you added some keywords? The search tool will also search by these. 
  • Optional: Add a Public CV

The quick map Editing my external profile information in Pure provides a one-page overview of what to do.

if your data is missing or you find errors, or you have questions about how to add information to your profile, please call myResearch Support on 990 34777 or email: myresearch@monash.edu 

Events, news and discounts - Wellbeing at Monash, Monash Sport & TeamMONASH

Browse the Timeout newsletter for information on what’s new in Wellbeing at Monash. Read about the latest Wellbeing and Monash Sport events, services and activities. For information about latest events, special offers, discounts, and news, subscribe to the newsletter by emailing wellbeing@monash.edu   

In the July edition:
Full newsletter is here

Minimal volume vitrification of epididymal spermatozoa results in successful in vitro fertilization and embryo development in mice

Peter Temple-Smith et al. published in the Asian Journal of Andrology.

Read article here.

Mothers after Gestational Diabetes in Australia (MAGDA): A Randomised Controlled Trial of a Postnatal Diabetes Prevention Program

Peter Ebeling et al. published in PLOS Medicine.

Read article here.

A qualitative study using the Theoretical Domains Framework to investigate why patients were or were not assessed for rehabilitation after stroke

Dominique Cadilhac et al. published in Clinical Rehabilitation.

Read article here.

Neonatal Uterine Bleeding as a Biomarker for Reproductive Disorders During Adolescence: a World-Wide Call for Systematic Registration by Nurse-Midwifes

Caroline Gargett et al. published in the Journal of Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Medicine.

Read article here.

Improved standardization and potential for shortened time to results with BD Kiestra™ total laboratory automation of early urine cultures: A prospective comparison with manual processing.

Tony Korman et al. published in Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease.

Read article here.

Few geographic and socioeconomic variations exist in primary total shoulder arthroplasty: a multi-level study of Australian registry data

Peter Ebeling et al. published in BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders.

Read article here.

Fertile ground: human endometrial programming and lessons in health and disease

Caroline Gargett et al. published in Nature Reviews Endocrinology.

Read article here.