Four leading clinician-researchers from Sunshine Coast Health have been awarded major funding to tackle core healthcare challenges, that will have real-world impact for the Sunshine Coast region and beyond.
The 2025 SERTF-Wishlist Collaborative Research Grant is supporting clinicians undertaking important studies into cancer, kidney disease, newborn health and surgical innovation.
Supported by the Study, Education, Research Trust Fund (SERTF) and Wishlist, the grants provide up to $150,000 over three years to support Sunshine Coast Health clinicians conducting research in partnership with universities, research institutes, and industry partners.
"These research projects are grounded in real needs of our communities. We're proud our clinician-researchers are partnering with multiple Queensland universities to undertake high-quality, collaborative research that can translate directly to improving health outcomes," said Sunshine Coast Health Executive Director Medical Services Dr Marlene Pearce.
One of the winning research projects, led by Professor James O’Beirne, Gastroenterologist and Hepatologist at Sunshine Coast Health, aims to understand why liver cancer recurs after surgery, by studying gene and protein activity in the surrounding “normal” liver tissue, using advanced spatial technologies. The goal is to identify early indicators of recurrence, helping to better monitor and treat at-risk patients.
In another winning project, Orthopaedic Surgeon Dr Hans Lombard is looking to improve outcomes of reverse shoulder replacements, by developing personalised computer simulations to predict how patients' shoulders will perform in real-life tasks, based on different implant positions and designs. By providing surgeons with detailed, patient-specific insights before surgery, this technology will enable more precise planning and execution.
Meanwhile Associate Professor Nicholas Gray, Renal Physician, will investigate whether the buildup of glycogen in the kidneys of people with diabetes, contributes to diabetes-related kidney damage. The study will use kidney tissue from local participating patients and powerful laboratory imaging to better examine glycogen, potentially leading to new ways of preventing kidney damage in diabetes.
Women's and Children's Nurse Researcher Dr Roni Cole's project aims to improve care for newborns in neonatal units by testing whether medical glue can better secure peripheral intravenous catheters (PIVCs) that are used to deliver fluids and medications. Researchers will compare the outcomes of glue, compared to standard dressings, which often cause the tubes to fail, leading to pain and repeated insertions.
Wishlist CEO Brendan Hogan saidbacking the grants is another way for the charity to help deliver better health outcomes in this region.
“As the local hospital charity we will always support initiatives which help to improve the health experiences of people on the Sunshine Coast or in Gympie,” Mr Hogan said.
“Wishlist is proud to be a part of Sunshine Coast Health's commitment to research through applicant grant rounds."
“Quality research is key to innovation and continual improvement in delivery of quality care - this aligns with our mission to support health care close to home.”