News & Events

The Melbourne School of Health Sciences is committed to making a meaningful contribution to the COVID-19 pandemic and assisting those affected. While precautions can help 'flatten the curve,' students can also help to 'raise the line' of health care capacity by applying for a number of paid 'SASH roles' that Victoria’s health services are establishing.

The Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology is proud to present the very first Australasian Mobile FEES Symposium on the 29th of October 2020. Tickets are available now.

Promising new research from our Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology has found that the use of hearing aids may delay cognitive decline in older adults and even improve brain function. This research is a leading step from researchers at the University of Melbourne in promoting health across the lifespan.

It’s great to see commentary by Professor of Social Work, Cathy Humphreys published in The Age on 3 March, discussing her views on how the Clarke family murders highlight the failings of our custody system.

Lucy Shiels has recently accepted a position as a Clinical Audiologist Intern at the School of Health Science’s Department of Speech Pathology & Audiology. She is enjoying pushing boundaries working in groundbreaking research at the Autism Listening Clinic and hopes to pursue a career in auditory processing.

On 18 February, visiting physio Dr Jonathan Quicke presented a lecture on "a physiotherapist’s clinical-academic journey", sharing his clinical academic journey as a Physiotherapist in the UK with a specialist interest in exercise and weight loss for osteoarthritis.

A full-time graduate research studentship is available for a suitable PhD candidate with a nursing or allied health degree.

This new short course is invaluable for all students looking to enter the Master of Nursing Science, or wanting to refresh their bioscience knowledge.More Information

After over 10 years working as a Professor in Canada, it’s great to welcome Professor Denise Harrison back to the University of Melbourne’s School of Health Sciences Department of Nursing.

A world first study conducted at the Royal Melbourne hospital using the same drug tests that police use on the roads is putting research into practice. The study tested the saliva of people who came to the emergency department with signs of acute behavioural disturbance for illicit substances to measure prevalence and test feasibility of this approach.

Massive study launched to help osteoarthritis sufferers

The Melbourne School of Health Sciences Staff Awards on the 10th of December recognised excellence in research, learning, teaching and professional support in 2019.

Professor Jill Francis delivered a special seminar: Behavioural perspectives on implementation research: A tale of two approaches.

The John Oliffe Public Lecture: Unravelling Men's Depression and Suicide was held on the 25th of November 2019.

We caught up with 3MT Asia-Pacific finalist Ceecee Zhang about her experiences in the competition, her studies and career aspirations, and her thoughts about public speaking.

The days are getting longer and the weather warmer. This change in season, means many staff and students choose to use the University facilities late into the evening, particularly as exams approach.

Dr Snezana Kusljic is the recipient of 2019 MDHS Award for Sustained Excellence in Learning and Teaching for: ‘Rising to the challenge of teaching bioscience subjects to current and future health professionals'

The Melbourne School of Health Sciences were active participants at the 2019 Professional Staff Conference in September.

CPN's Consumer Academic Program has won a TheMHS award at the 2019 Mental Health Service Awards of Australia and New Zealand program for service to mental health.

Congratulations to Alexis Ceecee Zhang.

The Victorian Collaborative Mental Health Nursing Conference (The Collab) celebrated its 20th anniversary on 15 and 16 August.

An all school Trivia Night was held in August.

Welcome To Melbourne 2020

Seven early to mid-career researchers from the Faculty were invited to pitch their innovative projects to the Dean Professor Shitij Kapur and a panel of judges as part of the inaugural Dean’s Innovation Grants on Tuesday 31 July.

Jessica Boyce has been awarded the Arnold Huddart Medal at the recent Craniofacial Society of Great Britain and Ireland Annual Scientific Conference

MDHS Dean Shitij Kapur announces the Faculty's top-performing students in 2017 at the Dean's Honours Celebration.Six top 2017 graduates named from the University of Melbourne's School of Health Sciences.Now in its second year, the Dean’s Honours Celebration recognises recent graduates who have achieved the highest academic results in several of the Faculty’s flagship courses. As noted by the Dean, Professor Shitij Kapur, the awardees have in common a commitment to deeply engaged, active and self-directed learning.“Their studies have taken them to hospitals and health centres and immersed them in a wide range of communities across Victoria. They’ve undertaken research with our institute partners and studied overseas.”“Not surprisingly, their achievements extend well beyond the classroom,” he said. “Perhaps most importantly, these graduates have pursued their studies with the capabilities and values that we as a Faculty see as so important: collaboration and teamwork, compassion, respect, integrity and accountability.“These are graduates that we expect to be leading, indeed likely transforming, healthcare and research. We look forward to maintaining a long relationship with them as some of them continue their studies with us or move on to new careers in health and research.”

Dr. Catherine Granger - Royal Melbourne Hospital and a senior lecturer at the University of Melbourne named one of ABC's the "Top 5 scientists for 2018"

Dr Elaina Kefalianos, Lead of Teaching for the Master of Speech Pathology, is a chief investigator on a $2.4 million project funded for 5-years by the Norwegian Research Council’s Better Health and Quality of Life program. The Effective Stuttering Treatment project is an international collaboration between experts from Norway, Australia, the UK and USA that will identify the most efficacious stuttering treatment for preschool children worldwide.

The Faculty launches Science in Our Hands: Physiotherapy at the University of Melbourne, 1895–2010 by former Head of the School of Physiotherapy, Professor Joan McMeeken.

An exciting opportunity exists for a suitably qualified applicant to undertake a PhD focussing on cancer survivorship.

Pressure injuries are prevalent among aged care residents and a new study aims to improve pressure area care to reduce the incidence of this adverse event.

Congratulations to A/Prof Adam Bryant, Prof Rana Hinman, Prof Kim Bennell, Dr Kate Patterson and Dr Jessica Kasza on receiving a highly competitive ARC Grant in partnership with ASICS for over $200,000.

The Department of Physiotherapy is delighted to share with you a new publication led by PhD student Ianthe Boden, with Professor Linda Denehy as senior author, in collaboration with Lizzie Skinner, Laura Browning, Julie Reeve, Lesley Anderson, Cat Hill, Iain Robertson and David Story.

In October 2017, Nursing Professional Experience Placement Coordinator Kerrie Arthur had the absolute pleasure of taking 8 Master of Nursing Science students into the Chepang and Chitwan areas of Nepal for their final Professional Experience Placement.

Contingent of Victorian Safewards trainers & researchers attend EVIPRG Congress; A/Prof Bridget Hamilton to Chair international Safewards Community of Practice

Rachel Toovey, PhD Student and casual staff member in Department of Physiotherapy, is one of 21 young Victorian women selected in the inaugural Joan Kirner Young and Emerging Women Leaders Program.

Dr Bryony Nayagam, Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Audiology & Speech Pathology, is an Associate Investigator at Stem Cells Australia.

Department of Physiotherapy staff and RhD students were well represented at the 2017 Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA) Annual Meeting,  presenting across many speciality streams, including education, neurology, cardiorespiratory, paediatrics, gerontology, musculoskeletal, aquatic and women's, men's and pelvic health.

Congratulations to the Department of Physiotherapy's Dr Kim Allison who was awarded 1 of 6 prestigious Life sciences VESKI fellowships. The Victoria Fellowships are valued at up to $18,000 each to assist  with an international study mission.

A huge congratulations to Physiotherapy PhD student Pip Nicolson from the Centre for Health, Exercise and Sports Medicine (CHESM) for winning the prize for the best podium presentation at the 2017 British Association of Sports and Exercise Medicine (BASEM) scientific conference.

Congratulations to Dr Catherine Granger (Physiotherapy) on winning the Early Career Clinician Researcher Award (Allied Health category) 2017 from Biomedical Research Victoria and to Dr Bao Nguyen (DOVS) for a commendation award in the same category.

Congratulations to Ms Anthea Cochrane (Preclinic to Practice – developing work ready Optometry students in a postgraduate course) from Optometry & Vision Sciences for winning the MDHS Award for Sustained Excellence in Learning and Teaching.

Early diagnosis appears key for physiotherapy interventions for cerebral palsy, so researchers have developed an app for parents to video their child for remote screening.

The Department of Physiotherapy along with Ms Kyung-Hee Kim (UOM alumni) and Research, Innovation and Commercialisation (RIC) recently hosted a delegation of 22 Physiotherapy students and the head of the department (Professor Kim) from Kyung-Nam University (Korea) for a two day professional development program.

Congratulations to Aliesha-Jane Fejgl and Jessica Costello, the 2017 recipients of the Patricia Eileen Hyams Scholarships in Cancer & Palliative Care Nursing.

Congratulations to A/Prof Larry Abel and collaborators in Optometry at Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HKPU) for their recent success in the Hong Kong Universities General Research fund.

Congratulations to Associate Professor Adam Vogel from the Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology on his latest grant success.

A/Prof Alicia Spittle was announced as the winner of the Gayle G. Arnold Best Free Paper Recipient 2017 Award for the forthcoming American Academy of Cerebral Palsy & Development Medicine Conference.

Ms Jennifer Jones received a Victorian Branch Physiotherapy Achievement Award (recent graduate) in recognition of her Contribution to the Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA) at the annual winter APA breakfast.

Professor Linda Denehy was the keynote invited speaker at the recent Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA) Breakfast and presented on “Cancer: Is Exercise Medicine”.

Physiotherapy senior lecturer David Kelly starred on Channel 10 presenting on augmented reality to teach anatomy.

Shawana is currently a Lecturer in Indigenous Health in the School of Health Sciences and leads the Indigenous curriculum development for the School.

Dr Doa El-Ansary (Department of Physiotherapy, MDHS) was selected as one of the Australian delegation (with Dr Anne Aly MP and Captain Mona Shendy) to attend the Inaugural Egyptian Women Abroad conference “EGYPT CAN 2” in Cairo, Egypt to mark the International Year of Women.

The Centre for Psychiatric Nursing is pleased to announce a public lecture by US-based psychiatrist & mental health advocate Dr Daniel Fisher (MD PhD), entitled Resisting the medicalisation of mental health: the Empowerment Model of Recovery.

Have your say on the Faculty's Green Paper Towards 2027, which marks the final stage before we present our new Strategic Plan.

Congratulation to Dr Michelle Hall on being selected through a competitive process to take part in the 2017 round of the “Researcher in Residence” Scheme, run by BioMedVic. This is a credit to her excellence as an early career researcher and to her mentors and colleagues in CHESM.

The Department of Nursing and Karolinska University Hospital have commenced a collaborative research project to reduce the incidence of hospital acquired pressure injuries in Stockholm.

International Nursing Day falls each year on the anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birth. Although technology may have changed the role of nurses, what they do for cancer care is more important than ever.

The Teddy Bear Hospital is an initiative of the University of Melbourne and Royal Children’s Hospital that aims to reduce anxiety for children when interacting with healthcare professionals by empowering kids, improving health literacy, and providing MDHS students with the opportunity to engage with children.

Lecturer Dr Kwang Cham and students Anjalee Athukoralage, Victor Liu, Tom Morton and Noni Rupasinghe from the Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences conducted eye checks and dispensed glasses to 3000 low income earners in Sri Lanka this January.

School of Health Sciences lecturer Ms Shawana Andrews has won the Award for Excellence and Innovation in Indigenous Education in 2017.

Professor Kim Bennell, Professor Rana Hinman and Mr Tim Wrigley from the Centre for Health, Exercise and Sports Medicine (CHESM) in the Department of Physiotherapy won the Award for Outstanding Research Higher Degree (RHD) Supervision in 2017.

From Pokémon Go to the classroom – how a collaboration between the University of Melbourne and Microsoft in AR is taking students under the skin of their patients.

Dr Doa El-Ansary and team were awarded a CV & P section platform research award for a presentation at the recent American Physical Therapy Association Combined Sections Meeting.

Nursing PhD student Suzanne Kapp has been invited to present on her research topic “Self-treatment of wounds study” at the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing Emerging Scholars Forum which will be held on May 8–9, 2017 in Toronto, Canada.

On Monday, the Centre for Health, Exercise and Sports Medicine published a key paper in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the highest impact journal (IFI of 16.59) of any specialty journal in the General and Internal Medicine category.

Physiotherapy clinician researcher Dr Catherine Granger was awarded a Victorian Cancer Agency Allied Health and Nursing Clinical Research Fellowship worth $712,721 for her project titled 'Cancer and Physical ACtivITY (CAPACITY) Trial: Implementation of a self-management program in the lung cancer model of care'.

Prof Mei Krishnasamy and A/Prof Marie Gerdtz were recently awarded grants from Cancer Australia and the Nurse’s Board of Victoria Legacy Limited, respectively.

Department of Optometry and Vision Science's Dr Laura Downie was interviewed by ophthalmologist Dr Joshua Young in an invited PodCast for the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery.

In collaboration with the Department of Rural Heath at the University of Melbourne, two academics from the Department of Nursing, Amanda Connors and Kerrie Arthur, recently travelled to Beechworth and delivered a one day workshop to a multi-disciplinary audience.

The Department of Nursing recently hosted 24 Registered Nurses from Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital. Established in 1922, Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital is one of the leading private hospitals in Hong Kong and is known for its high quality of patient care based on advanced knowledge, expertise and technology in the health care field.

Professor Mark Batt from The Centre for Sports Medicine, Nottingham University Hospitals, England will be giving a one hour presentation titled “Sport and Osteoarthritis: Is there a link?” on Tuesday 7th February from 11am – 12pm in Theatre 2, Alan Gilbert Building.

Congratulations to Department of Physiotherapy staff who were successful in leading grants to obtain funding in the most recent NHMRC funding round.

Department of Physiotherapy researchers Dr Doa El-Ansary, Dr Catherine Granger and A/Prof Adam Bryant were awarded a Pat Cosh grant for a project titled 'eLearning Focused UltraSound Education (eFUSE) for Physiotherapists'.

Department of Nursing lecturers Ms Amanda Connors and Dr Rochelle Wynne visited the School of Nursing at the University of Hong Kong throughout 2016 to deliver well-planned, tailored-made and evidence-based nursing clinical education for practicing nurses, clinical mentors and preceptors as well as nurse educators of both public and private sectors in Hong Kong and ShenZhen.

Master of Nursing Science student Georgia Borrack was awarded the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation's Student of the Year Award for 2016.

Thank you to all those who attended the function to recognise and celebrate the clinical teaching staff associated with the Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences.

Congratulations to Optometry, Nursing and Physiotherapy staff involved in successful MDHS Learning and Teaching Initiative Seed Funding grants.

Nursing PhD students Sacha Petersen and Rachel Tindall were successful with Windermere Foundation Scholarships while Justine Fletcher was awarded an NHMRC scholarship for 2017.

Dr Michelle Hall was awarded a Sir Randal Heymanson Fellowship to commence in 2017.

Prof Trichur Vigyasagar was awarded an ARC Discovery Project worth $470,500 over 3 years entitled 'Neuronal Origin of functional maps on the mammalian visual cortex'.

Dr Holly Chinnery was awarded a project grant worth $436,178 over 3 years entitled 'Making sense of novel ocular neuroimmune interactions'.

The Centre for Health, Exercise & Sports Medicine in the Department of Physiotherapy was awarded a VicHealth Award 2016 in the 'Research to Action' category for their IMPACT Project.

A new program offering free eye tests and glasses at Victorian schools is set to transform the learning environment of children in prep to year three — up to a third of whom may have unidentified vision problems.

The year commenced with a celebration to mark the 75th year of social work education at the University of Melbourne, with a Reception hosted by the Governor of Victoria ­ Her Excellency the Hon Linda Dessau AM, at Government House on Monday 8th February.

On Thursday 22nd September Jean Downing (BAGDipSocStud 1946) was awarded the Hyslop Medal for distinguished service to the field of social work at an intimate ceremony attended by close family and friends, Faculty staff and members of the University of Melbourne Social Work Alumni Association Committee.

The University of Melbourne Social Work Alumni Association (UMSWAA) held its annual dinner on Thursday 22 September, at the Woodward Centre.

A 40 year reunion of graduates from our first student cohort within the Bachelor of Social Work, organized by Flora Pearce, was held on Thursday 21 July at the Gryphon Gallery. It was a wonderful event with recollections of lively student days and the sharing of stories of careers in many different fields of practice.

We have been delighted to welcome a number of international visitors who generously shared their work with us this year.

Dr Doa El-Ansary was recently awarded the Inaugural Allied Health Award 2017 at the recent European Association of Cardiothoracic Surgeons (EACTS) meeting in Barcelona this month. The award and project also received media coverage with a feature article in the Daily Times at the meeting.

Video welcome from Professor Shitij Kapur, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences.

myUniApps is a new service for students that provides online access to software packages: anywhere, any time and to any device. These include general productivity software and software that may be relevant to your particular subjects.

Department of Nursing Professor Mei Krishnasamy has been appointed Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre (VCCC) Research and Education Lead in Cancer Nursing.

On Friday night at the Inaugural Victorian Mental Illness Awareness Council (VMIAC) Awards which marked the 20th anniversary of the beginnings of the consumer workforce, Dr Cath Roper was awarded the highest honour, “Lifetime Achievement Award”, for her contribution to mental health.

The Centre for Health Exercise and Sport Medicine (CHESM) in the Department of Physiotherapy is hotsing an upcoming presentation from an international guest speaker – Assistant Professor Søren Thorgaard Skou from the University of Southern Denmark, who will be visiting in November.

On July 14th 2016, the Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology formally launched The University of Melbourne Speech Pathology Alumni (UMSPA). The UMSPA vision is to create a lifelong and worldwide community of alumni through meaningful engagement, in order to increase awareness, pride, participation and involvement in the Speech Pathology program at The University of Melbourne.

Congratulations to Dr Yu Man (Janet) Chan, Joseph Paul and Selwyn Prea.

Doctor of Physiotherapy students organised an inter-University Blood Donation Drive in 2016 with some keen supporters for continuing the initiative next year.

Congratulations to John Farmer on being this year’s recipient of the Department of Optometry & Vision Sciences Alumnus Award.

Congratulations to DOVS PhD student, Jeremiah Lim, who has been awarded the prestigious Eberhard Dodt Memorial Award, for the outstanding young presenter at the 54th International Society for Clinical Electrophysiology of Vision (ISCEV) Annual Symposium held in Singapore.

Nursing lecturers Bronwyn Tarrant, Thomas Mathew & Dr Snezana Kusjlic have been awarded Runner Up (silver medal) in the highly competitive International E-Learning Awards (academic) in the mobile learning category for iiNurse.

In April, Dr Elaina Kefalianos was invited to visit the University of Oslo in Norway by two speech pathologists, Associate Professor Kari-Anne B. Naess and Ms Linn Stokke Guttormsen.

On Saturday 30 July, the Interprofessional Education and Practice Health Students’ Network (IPEP HSN) hosted the 2016 Interprofessional Leadership Development Symposium (ILDS).

The Olympic ideal is about a competition of equals, but no one told a media for whom gender makes some athletes more equal than others.

Dr Doa El-Ansary won the Best Research Presentation in Adelaide last week at the Australian Cardiovascular Health and Rehabilitation (ACRA) National Congress for her project 'Driving after cardiac surgery: mechanical and neurocognitive considerations' (El-Ansary, D; Royse,C; Royse, A; Jackson, M; Heiberg, J; Bryant, A; Howard, M and Denehy, L).

The ACMHN International Mental Health Nursing conference is happening in Adelaide on 25 – 27 October 2016.

Please join us for our upcoming Seeing Beyond lecture on Wednesday the 5th of October.

Congratulations to Shajan Velaedan and Flora Hui.

The OD students made an amazing contribution to the Teddy Bear Hospital, Good Friday Appeal, which raised over $23,000.

Two of our teaching specialists, Dr Kwang Cham and Anthea Cochrane, were invited to present the Department's Learning and Teaching innovations at the Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences Annual Learning and Teaching Symposium.

Together, DOVS and the University of Melbourne Optometry Student Society hosted an engaging evening to hear Emeritus Professor Barry Cole’s personal take on “A History of Australian Optometry”.

Dr Christine Nguyen, A/Prof Bang Bui and Prof Algis Vingrys from the Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences and their collaborators (Dr Cebers and Dr Haeberlein) were successful in the most recent Australian Research Council Linkage Grant round.The successful project aims to develop a multi-modal imaging technology platform to simultaneously measure amyloid beta and its neurovascular sequelae to identify novel early biomarkers of ageing in the eye and brain.

Professor Kim Bennell from the Department of Physiotherapy has been awarded the title of Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor.

Congratulations to Shajan Velaedan and Flora Hui.

A big thanks and fond farewell to Rizwana Hussaindeen from the Elite School of Optometry in Chennai India.

The OD students made an amazing contribution to the Teddy Bear Hospital, Good Friday Appeal, which raised over $23,000.

In May, a large contingent of DOVS staff and students attended the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) annual conference in Seattle, Washington.

Two of our teaching specialists, Dr Kwang Cham and Anthea Cochrane, were invited to present the Department's Learning and Teaching innovations at the Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences Annual Learning and Teaching Symposium.

Congratulations to Associate Professors Bang Bui and Alicia Spittle for their NHMRC Large Equipment Grant success.

Director of Speech Pathology, Associate Professor Angela Morgan, is an invited speaker at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in the US next week as part of a week long teaching course on the neurobiology of language.

Department of Nursing PHD graduate and honorary staff member Nicole Kiss was recently awarded the prestigious Steven Grunberg Memorial award at the MASCC (Multinational Association of Supportive Cancer Care) conference.

At the 2016 Australian Physiotherapy Association Annual Winter Breakfast (VIC), Dr Margaret Sherburn received an Award for Professional Excellence in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the profession.

At the Annual Epworth Research Institute Dinner, Associate Professor Gavin Williams was awarded the Epworth Research Institute Achievement Award for “2016 Researcher of the Year”.

Researchers at the University of Melbourne’s Centre for Health, Exercise and Sports Medicine at the Department of Physiotherapy have published further research about footwear options for the 1.9 million Australians affected by osteoarthritis.

We need young kinship carers to interview and complete a survey about their experiences.

The Class of 1976 back together for their 40 year reunion. Thank you for a great evening!

The Class of 1986 returning for their 30 year reunion. Thank you for a lovely evening!

It's not often that nursing students go overseas, where they set up makeshift clinics with a multidisciplinary Nepalese health team and triage 250 patients in a day.But eight intrepid final year Master of Nursing Science students from the University of Melbourne did just that. Over a two week period, they worked in remote villages in Nepal and provided training and basic health care to poor and vulnerable communities.

This year the Department of Physiotherapy celebrates 25 years of excellence in physiotherapy education at the University of Melbourne.

Prof Trichur Vidyasagar was invited to write on animal (especially non-human primate) research in The Conversation.

A new online postgraduate course will enable optometrists to extend their abilities to assess and manage patients with neuro-ophthalmic disorders.

Ms Shelly Cooke, Graduate of the University of Melbourne's Master of Nursing Science Course (2012- 2014), recently won the HESTA nursing graduate of the year for 2016.

Why hospital workplace design is important to nurses

Dr Christine Nguyen (pictured), A/Prof Bang Bui and Prof Algis Vingrys from the Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences and their collaborators (Dr Cebers and Dr Haeberlein) were successful in the most recent Australian Research Council Linkage Grant round.

Quacquarelli Symonds’ prestigious Rankings by Subject highlight the world’s top universities by study areas, based on academic reputation, employer reputation and research impact. This year marks the first time that nursing has been ranked by QS, with the University of Melbourne coming in at number 19 in the world.

Victoria honours Professor Cathy Humphreys for her work in ensuring the safety of women and children through her research into child and family welfare, domestic violence and child abuse, stability and quality for out of home care, developments arising from Victorian legislation on children, youth and families, and the impact of research on policy and practice.

Dr Kristin Diemer, Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Social Work, was interviewed by Amanda Vanstone on Radio National Counterpoint program in the wake of the release of the Victorian Royal Commission into Family Violence.

Inaugural graduation and award ceremony for nursing students completing Graduate and Specialist Certificates at the School of Health Sciences

Vestibular Migraine (VM) is a variation of migraine and one of the most common patient presentations to ENT surgeons, Neurologists, and Neuro-Otologists. Recent research, as well as anecdotal findings suggest that migraine is categorized by physicians as a challenging pathology due to psychological impacts, low level or variable response to medication, and the significant level of impairment experienced by patients. Neuro-biological attributes of migraine are considered to be another reason behind this challenge at least for migraine only, however, there is no study that has looked into the VM. VM could be as challenging as migraine but for other reasons.

Nominate a colleague for their contributions to the community and the profession.

Congratulations to Jeremiah Lim on winning the Postgraduate travel grant. Good luck at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology conference in Seattle, USA next week!

One of the Department of Optometry's graduates, Jessica Chi, describes a diverse and challenging career in patient care in an article for The Age.

Optometry at The University of Melbourne is holding evening reunion tours in June of its new teaching, research and clinical facilities for the classes (final year) of 2006 (14th June), 1996 (16th June), and 1986 (21st June) and 1976 (23rd June).

Associate Professor Angela Morgan, Director of Speech Pathology, has been awarded an NHMRC Practitioner Fellowship to advance the diagnosis, prognosis and management of childhood speech and language disorders.

Together, DOVS and the University of Melbourne Optometry Student Society hosted an engaging evening to hear Emeritus Professor Barry Cole’s personal take on “A History of Australian Optometry”.

A big thank you to all those who attended our "Seeing Beyond Lecture Series” on the 20th of April. Our speakers were Professor Allison McKendrick and Associate Professor Bang Bui, who focussed on the latest research advances in glaucoma assessment and pathogenesis. Allison discussed new developments in macular assessment for glaucoma while Bang covered new insights into non-IOP risk factors in glaucoma.

Professor Lou Harms and Associate Professor Lisa Gibbs from the University of Melbourne, chief investigators on the Beyond Bushfires project, have identified which social determinants help people bounce back after a traumatic event.

A number of Optometry staff were awarded grants in the most recent NHMRC round.

A few years ago no one wanted to know about domestic violence. This deafening silence was something Professor Cathy Humphreys was determined to change.

The scholarship will provide registered nurses the opportunity to be specifically trained in the area of gynaecological and ovarian cancers.

The University of Melbourne entry-to-practice nursing students have again achieved high rates of graduate year program offers for 2016.

Each year the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (Vic Branch) awards students who show distinction in the "attributes which are intrinsic to nursing practice".

A number of Physiotherapy staff were awarded grants and fellowships in the most recent NHMRC round.

The department has had some success in the Melbourne Neuroscience Institute Interdisciplinary Seed Funding Grant scheme for 2016.

Dr Bang Bui and Prof Erica Fletcher (Anatomy & Neuroscience) have been awarded an ARC Discovery grant with funding of $359,800 over 3 years.

The Department's Dr Laura Downie, leading a team of researchers comprising of Dr Lauren Ayton, Professor Robyn Guymer, A/Prof Peter Keller and Professor Algis Vingrys, was awarded a Blackmores Macular Disease Foundation Australia (MDFA) Grant for $100,000 over three years.

Dr Julia Sarant's research into the academic benefits of double cochlear implants for children was reported on Channel 9 News and in the Herald Sun.

The Physiotherapy department are proud to present an upcoming keynote presentation by  Dr Peter Morris.

This is the highest honour awarded at the Women's Staff Awards at the Royal Women's Hospital.

Our Department was very well represented at the Australian Physiotherapy Conference in early October, as both presenters and attendees.

A comprehensive overview of MSHS graduate research, featuring over 60 oral and poster presentations in physiotherapy, social work, nursing, audiology, speech pathology, optometry and vision science.

A/Prof Erica Fletcher, and Dr Bang Bui (Optometry and Vision Sciences, School of Health Sciences) have been awarded $351,953 for a project that aims to detail the precise effects that lasers have on eye cells, cell populations and the body as a whole. Laser treatments for sight problems are increasing but the effects of these laser applications on the unique immune systems of the eye and brain are unknown.

Our congratulations to Professor Sanchia Aranda, whose extensive contributions to the care of cancer patients over a long career included 14 years as Head of Nursing in the Faculty, has been announced as the new CEO of Cancer Council Australia. She is also currently President-elect of the Union for International Cancer Control in Geneva.