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Telethon Kids Institute is one of Australia’s leading child health research facilities. We have over 700 staff and 200 research projects. Our research focuses on four key Research Focus Areas: Early Environment, Brain and Behaviour, Chronic Diseases and Aboriginal Health. These areas are inherently interconnected and designed to attract a diversity of expertise and a range of disciplines. They provide a forum for collaboration with the community, external researchers, and health services, foster a positive environment for debate and discussion, and provide a fertile ground for ideas and energy, so we are better able to make a difference.
Asthma\Cystic fibrosis\Environmental medicine & lung diseases\Epithelial cell\Paediatrics
Global fellowships (outgoing initial phase only)
The Institute is located within the Perth Children’s Hospital and comprises two full floors of special purpose laboratories, equipment and instrument rooms, offices, clinical suites and meeting rooms. It has a state-of-the-art cell sorting facility, bio-resources facility, bioinformatics expertise, and specialised laboratory equipment that includes two clinical testing rooms, a clinical assessment library, cutting-edge phenotyping equipment and bio-banking facilities. The Institute is a recognised leader in childhood respiratory health research in Australia and is home to the Telethon Kids Respiratory Research Centre.
Funding for specific research projects in the respiratory field is sought from a wide range of national and international NGO and government funding bodies through competitive processes. In Australia these include the NMHRC, CF Australia, the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand, Asthma Australia and others.
The Institute aims actively engages with community, practitioners and policy makers to set priorities that ensure our research is relevant and translatable. Through our close relationship with the children’s hospital, we have access to large clinical cohorts of patients and national datasets, and in-house expertise to help with clinical trial design and the creation of commercialisation/IP opportunities to translate research findings into clinical strategies and novel treatments. Nationally, there is ongoing investment into respiratory research from NGOs (e.g. CF Australia, the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand, Asthma Australia etc.) and government departments (e.g. the Department of Health).
In 2018, the Institute hosted 126 students comprising of 12 Honours, 4 Masters, 21 MD and 89 PhD students. Over the past 5 years 55 PhD students have successfully completed their doctorate. The Institute provides considerable assistance to early career researchers to facilitate their progression to research independence. The Student Leadership Group and the Early/Mid-Career Council support students and provide them with a representative voice at the Institute. A robust internal presentation agenda ensures that all staff present their work at an early stage for comment and encouragement. Early career researchers are particularly encouraged to attend and present at local, national and international scientific meetings and funds are available to specifically support students in these activities. Students are also encouraged to belong to professional organisations and to apply for research funding.
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