Education and Research

The Human Neonatal Rotavirus Vaccine (RV3-BB) Targeting Rotavirus from Birth: from discovery to the development of a vaccine for the world’s children

Rotavirus is a major cause of death and disease in children worldwide. Despite clear evidence of the success of rotavirus vaccines, barriers remain to global implementation with over 94 million children still lacking access to a rotavirus vaccine. These barriers include sub-optimal efficacy in low-income settings, lingering safety concerns and cost. Administering a vaccine at birth has the potential to address these challenges. 

.

What affects child development during the first 1000 days? Evidence and implications

This presentation focuses on the earliest stages of child development: the period from conception to the end of the child’s second year – known as the first 1000 days. A growing body of evidence shows that experiences during this period can have life-long consequences for health and wellbeing. The presentation is based on research for the “Strong Foundations” project and an evidence paper “Getting it right in the first 1000 days”. 

.

What is going on in Emergency Department research? PARIS, HotFuss, CHOICE, APHIRST, TakeCare, ConSEPT, BronchKT, PICNICC, BellPIC

The Emergency Department is the entrance point for children with first presentations and acute exacerbations of illnesses and injuries ultimately cared for by all hospital clinical departments. For many conditions the evidence base for acute diagnosis and management is limited, and research in this area can be challenging because of service priorities.

.

Simulation at the RCH CPR and Beyond

Simulation-based education has been shown to be an effective educational tool, particularly for adults. The RCH Simulation Program, which has been running now for 2 years, facilitates a wide array of simulation-based education programs across the hospital – from ‘First 3 Minute’ training, to more complex immersive simulation to address deteriorating patients, teams working together, and communication skills.  During this Grand Round, you will hear how the RCH Simulation Program has developed, hear about the RCH Inter-professional Simulation Fellowship Program, why simulation-based education works, and impact it has had on the Melbourne Children’s Campus. 

.

Traumatic brain injury prediction rules in children: Getting the evidence right, translating into practice, and shared decision making

Blunt head trauma is a common presentation in the pediatric ED. Although some children have overt signs of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), many have minor head trauma with no or subtle signs of TBI. Among children with apparently minor blunt head trauma, identifying those who indeed have TBI is challenging. Over the past decade there has been increasing use of computed tomography (CT) to avoid missing children with TBI.

.

Beyond illness: are there health solutions to school problems?

Education remains one of the most powerful social determinants of adult health outcomes. Yet in 2015 one in five children started school with areas of developmental vulnerability. Paediatric health care providers play a vital role in understanding the impact of developmental variation and illness on school participation and engagement.

.

Implementing Genomics into Clinical Care at Melbourne Children’s

Genomic technologies have the potential to transform how we deliver healthcare. Genomic medicine promises better patient outcomes and a more efficient health system through rapid diagnosis, early intervention, prevention and targeted therapies. However, there are significant hurdles that need to be overcome to implement genomics into routine clinical practice.

.

The Epic EMR patient and family portal

It is less than a year until the RCH Epic EMR “goes live”. The transition to a proper electronic record with an extensive suite of functionality will mean many changes in the way we work. These changes will be bigger than those we experienced in the move to the new hospital. The EMR represents a great opportunity to improve the care we deliver and our ability to support research. It is a major investment and obviously we want to use it well.

.

Celebrating Women in Science

To secure Australia’s health and economy into the future, the talents of women in science are vital. In biology, over half of all Bachelor of Science and PhD graduates are women, yet there is only one in ten women at the senior levels of our universities and research institutes

.