Volume 204 Issue 1

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Cate Swannell

Cochrane now has a dedicated online tool, Covidence, for managing several steps of the review process

Steve McDonald · Tari Turner

We must ensure that people of refugee background have the confidence, support and resources to manage their health

Elisha Riggs BAppSc(Hons), PhD · Jane Yelland BAppSc, PhD · Philippa Duell-Piening BOccTher, BErgonomics, MIntCommunityDev · Stephanie J Brown BA(Hons), PhD

Increased treatment costs of bowel cancer are a stimulus for considerable effort in the areas of prevention and early detection

Terry D Bolin MD, FRACP, FRCP · Melvyn G Korman MB BS(Hons), PhD, FRACP · Fiona Nicholson MB BS, FRACP, PhD · Lynne Pezzullo BEc(Hons) · Jeffrey Engelman MB BS(Hons), MD, FRACP · Katherine Collings BScNutr(Hons), MScDiet · David Gilchrist Creelman BEc, BCom

Electronic cigarettes have the potential to enable substantial improvements in public health

Colin P Mendelsohn MB BS(Hons)

Lack of data on drug safety is concerning

Tilenka Thynne MB BS, FRACP · Genevieve M Gabb MB BS(Hons), FRACP, GradDipClinEpi

Although a large proportion of Australians are estimated to have vitamin D deficiency … moderate to severe deficiency is only present in about 4% of people

Steven C Boyages PhD, FRACP, FAFPHM

Shifting cultural and financial reliance away from pharmaceutical company sponsorship

Jessica Dean BMedSci(Hons) · Erwin Loh MB BS, PhD, FRACMA · Justin J Coleman MB BS, FRACGP, MPH

Completing an Annual Cycle of Care is central to patients with diabetes being in glycaemic control

Adrian J Esterman PhD, MSc, BSc(Hons) · Tim Fountaine MB ChB, PhD · Robyn McDermott MB BS, MPH, PhD

Most reports occur when there is an impediment to mutually managing the risks posed by the reported practitioner

Marie M Bismark MD, LLB, FAFPHM · Matthew J Spittal PhD, MBio · Jennifer M Morris BA, BSci, GDSciComm · David M Studdert LLB, ScD, MPH

The natural history of mild dental fluorosis indicates that it is not a cause for major concern

Loc G Do DDS, MScDent, PhD · Diep H Ha PhD, MDS, DDS · A John Spencer MScDent, MPH, PhD

GPs in more remote areas must often also care for people with oral health problems

Tony Barnett PhD · Ha Hoang PhD · Jackie Stuart BDSc · Leonard Crocombe BDSc, MBA, PhD

A combination of multiple facial papules, spontaneous pneumothorax and a personal or family history of renal cell carcinoma should trigger consideration of BHD

Ludi Ge MB BS(Hons) · Patricia Lowe MB BS(Hon), MMed, FACD

Health professionals should specifically question patients about supplement use

Rosemary J Smith MB BS, MRCPUK · Christina Bertilone MB BS, FRACGP, MPH · Andrew G Robertson FAFPHM, FRACMA, MPH

A wide-ranging national debate in Australia is needed regarding the ethics and law of paid surrogacy across international borders

Ainsley J Newson PhD(Bioethics), LLB(Hons), BSc(Hons)

A tooth that’s not a tooth

Katie Herman MFA in Creative Writing

Priscilla Kincaid-Smith (1926–2015) was a towering figure in Australian and international medicine

Judith Whitworth AC, FTSE, FRACP

Barcoo Rot, sperm that untie a knot and other medical tales from the back o’ Bourke and beyond

Charles S Guest MB BS, PhD, FAFPHM

Turfed to eternity was how we euphemized

Jan Steckel MD

A vital part of supporting the victims of domestic violence is the collection of forensic evidence for use in court. In Australia, there are few experts in the field. Dr Maria Nittis, from Sydney’s western suburbs, is one of them

Cate Swannell

University of Melbourne immunologist Associate Professor Katherine Kedzierska, from the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, has won the Australian Academy of Science’s 2016 Jacques Miller Medal for Experimental Biomedicine. “Associate Professor Kedzierska researches immune responses to virus outbreaks, including influenza, with a particular focus on how best to protect vulnerable and high-risk groups. Her cutting-edge work could lead to the development of a one-shot flu jab for life.” Professor Fabienne Mackay, Head of the School of Biomedical Sciences, said this is only the second time the Jacques Miller Medal has been awarded. The award will be formally presented at the Academy’s annual 3-day celebration of Australian science, Science at the Shine Dome in Canberra in May 2016. http://newsroom.melbourne.edu/news/leading-female-scientists-recognised-australian-academy-science-awards James Cook University has appointed tropical and public health specialist, Professor Maxine Whittaker as Dean of the College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences. Professor Whittaker is currently Professor of International Health at the University of Queensland and was formerly the Director of the Australian Centre for International and Tropical Health at UQ. Professor Whittaker will oversee teaching and research in public health, tropical medicine, biomedical sciences, veterinary science, and molecular and cell biology. She joins Professor Lee Stewart and Professor Richard Murray as the Deans of the three Colleges in the Division of Tropical Health and Medicine. Professor Whittaker takes up the position in Townsville in late February, 2016. https://www.jcu.edu.au/news/releases/2015/october/jcu-appoints-tropical-health-dean Bond University medical researcher Professor Paul Glasziou and a team of eight investigators from Bond, University of Sydney and the University of Laval in Canada have been awarded a $2.4 million grant from the NHMRC to study ways to improve the uptake of new research findings by GPs. Professor Glasziou, who is Director of the University’s Centre for Research in Evidence-Based Practice (CREBP) — and a former GP himself — said there was currently no reliable system for ensuing GPs received information about new and emerging research findings. The grant will see a new Centre of Research Excellence established as part of CREBP, with a focus on translating evidence into best practice in primary care. Working alongside Professor Glasziou as chief investigators will be A/Professor Tammy Hoffmann, Professor Chris Del Mar and Professor Jenny Doust from Bond; Professor Lyndal Trevena, Professor Kirsten McCaffery and Professor Glenn Salkeld from University of Sydney; and Professor France Légaré from University of Laval, Canada. https://bond.edu.au/news/47342/bond-researchers-secure-24m-nhmrc-grant-aid-uptake-new-research-gps Scientist Dr Ali Zaid has joined Griffith University’s Institute for Glycomics to lead a project on Ross River Fever. “Dr Zaid is one of only a handful of scientists who have the skills and knowledge to capture real-time images of viruses and observe the life and the immune response deep within living tissue.” He will lead a world-first 3-year research project that uses intravital multiphoton microscopy to track the mosquito-borne virus that affects thousands of people each year. Dr Zaid moved from the University of Melbourne’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology. The project is funded by a $491,503 research grant from the NHMRC. https://app.secure.griffith.edu.au/news/2015/12/03/dr-zaids-rare-skills-a-win-for-griffith-university/ Professor Louis Schofield, director of the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM) at James Cook University in North Queensland has received a $2.8 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to pursue the pre-clinical development of a vaccine aimed at the goal of malaria eradication. The research will be conducted in collaboration with researchers from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute in Melbourne, and other colleagues and institutions in the US. The basic research was previously supported by a $1.3 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The new funding will expand the pre-clinical development to improve the potency and efficacy of this experimental vaccine. https://www.jcu.edu.au/news/releases/2015/november/jcu-researchers-receive-aus$2.8m-grant-to-develop-malaria-vaccine Five of Monash University’s researchers, four from the newly established Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute and one from the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, have been announced as winners of the 2016 Diabetes Australia Research Program (DARP) funding pool. The DARP $3.9 million fund provides money for basic, clinical, psycho-social and translational research into all types of diabetes. The Monash researchers awarded DARP funding are Professor John Bertram (pictured), Dr Garron Dodd, Associate Professor Ian Smyth and Dr Bo Wang from the Monash BDI, and Professor Raymond Norton from MIPS. http://www.med.monash.edu.au/news/2015/monash-researchers-win-diabetes-aust-funding.html A research partnership between The University of Melbourne and Monash University has won the $80,000 GSK Award for Research Excellence to help continue groundbreaking work on how the immune system identifies and fights disease. The research could assist the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease, peptic ulcers and tuberculosis, and lead to better vaccines. The successful team, led by Professors James McCluskey (pictured) and Jamie Rossjohn, has uncovered insights into how the immune system recognises pathogens such as salmonella and tuberculosis. http://www.med.monash.edu.au/news/2015/gsk-award-research-excellence.html Dementia, bowel cancer and glaucoma-induced blindness are among the diseases to be addressed by medical researchers at Flinders University who have received National Health and Medical Research Council funding of nearly $5.1 million. The recipients include Dr Kate Laver of the School of Health Sciences, whose work focuses on the development of a telehealth intervention program aimed at delaying functional decline in people with dementia living in the community. She has received a $476,398 Dementia Research Development Fellowship, jointly funded by the NHMRC and the Australian Research Council. http://blogs.flinders.edu.au/flinders-news/2015/11/09/the-fight-against-dementia-cancer-and-eye-disease-receives-5-1m-funding/ Flinders University researcher Melanie Fuller’s work in improving the efficiency of gene therapy in the treatment of cystic fibrosis through nanotechnology has been recognised with a place in the finals of this year’s ‘Winnovation Awards’. Ms Fuller, a Nanotechnology Honours student at Flinders, was one of three finalists in the Science section of the South Australian program, which showcases and celebrates the success of game-changing female innovators in South Australia. http://blogs.flinders.edu.au/flinders-news/2015/11/12/flinders-winnovator-battles-cystic-fibrosis-through-nanotech A passion for Japanese health policy and how it can be used to develop under-resourced areas of the Australian health care system in rural and remote regions is the focus for Griffith University medical student Grace Yeung, recipient of one of this year’s prestigious New Colombo Plan scholarships. Launched in 2013, The New Colombo Plan is an Australian Government initiative, which aims to lift knowledge of the Indo-Pacific in Australia by supporting Australian undergraduates to study and undertake internships in the region. The New Colombo Plan is a scholarships program which funds selected students for periods of study of up to one year. This is the first time that a medical student has been awarded the scholarship. Ms Yeung says she plans to use her scholarship to complete a 2-month health policy research project at Meio University in Okinawa, Japan. https://app.secure.griffith.edu.au/news/2015/12/01/new-colombo-scholarship-awarded-to-griffith-medicine-student/ Dr Karen Mather has been awarded the Dean’s Rising Star Award for “significant contributions to research” at the University of NSW Medicine Dean’s Awards. Dr Mather is the leader of the Genetics & Genomics group at the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA) and her Rising Star award follows a highly successful period in which she has received funding from the NHMRC, Yulgilbar Foundation and Sachdev Foundation. Dr Mather was also awarded funding from the Mason Foundation for research using an integrated ‘omics’ approach to better understand the development of Alzheimer’s disease. http://med.unsw.edu.au/news/dr-karen-mather-%E2%80%93-rising-star-cheba

Cate Swannell

This calendar includes conferences based in Australia into the foreseeable future, as far as can be confirmed. If you have an event you would like to add, please include relevant details in an email to cswannell@mja.com.au January 2016 29 Jan-1 Feb MRI in Practice, The Course, Sydney, NSW February 2016 2-5 Australasian Workshop on Health Informatics and Knowledge Management (HIKM), Canberra, ACT 5-6 3rd International Four Corners of Cardiology Meeting, Melbourne, VIC 7-11 International Conference on Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICONN), Canberra, ACT 12-13 RANZCO Australian and New Zealand Glaucoma Interest Group Scientific Meeting, Auckland, NZ 18-19 Mental Health Services Summer Forum 2016, Sydney, NSW 23-25 4th National Elder Abuse Conference, Melbourne, VIC 26-27 Obstetric Intensive Care Symposium, Adelaide, SA 26-28 Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia Pathology Update 2016, Melbourne, VIC 26-28 RANZCOG 2016 Tas/Vic Annual Scientific Meeting, Launceston, TAS 26-28 Pathology Update: A Diamond Date, Melbourne, VIC 27 Hot and Steamy in Brisbane: the ASM of the Australasian Chapter of Sexual Health Medicine, Brisbane, QLD 27 Feb-1 Mar 16th Congress of the International Society for Peritoneal Dialysis, Melbourne, VIC March 2016 1 Mar Asian-Australasian Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery Meeting, Cairns, QLD 2-4 Internal Medicine Society of Australia and New Zealand (NZ Branch) Conference 2016, Marlborough, NZ 3-4 Evidence Review in Emergency Medicine FSM, Wollongong, NSW 3-5 AGES XXVI Annual Scientific Meeting 2016, Brisbane, QLD 3-5 RANZCR Australasian Brachytherapy Group 25th ASM, Fremantle, WA 4-5 Australian and New Zealand Strabismus Society Meeting, TBC 5 RANZCO Victorian Branch Annual Scientific Meeting, Melbourne, VIC 5-6 Highlights of the American Society of Hematology in Asia-Pacific, Brisbane, QLD 6-8 Australian Society of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery ASM 2016, Melbourne, VIC 7 ICU Research Coordinator Workshop 2016, Noosa, QLD 8-10 18th Annual Meeting on Clinical Trials in Intensive Care, Noosa, QLD 9 39th International Conference on Medical and Health Sciences, Melbourne, VIC 10-11 WA Mental Health Conference, Perth, WA 10-11 Australian and New Zealand Cornea Society Meeting, Melbourne, VIC 11 5th International Medical Symposium: Future Challenges for the Medical Profession, Sydney, NSW 11-12 UroGynaecological Society of Australasia Annual Scientific and General Meeting, Auckland, NZ 11-13 2016 ANZSNR Meeting, Hunter Valley, NSW 11-14 Australian and New Zealand Academy of Eating Disorders 2016 Workshop Series, Canberra, ACT 12-13 RACS New Zealand Association of General Surgeons, Auckland, NZ 12-13 2016 Neuromodulation Society of Australian and New Zealand 11th Annual Scientific Meeting, Perth, WA 13-16 Australian Pain Society 36th Annual Scientific Meeting: Pain: Meeting the Challenge, Perth, WA 14-17 Trans Tasman Radiation Oncology Group 28th ASM, Brisbane, QLD 15-18 Workshop on Surgical Techniques in the Laboratory Mouse, Moss Vale, NSW 16-19 6th New Directions in Leukaemia Research Meeting, Noosa, QLD 18-19 2016 Symposium: Silent Contributors Injury/Illness/Performance, Bruce ACT 19 RANZCO NSW Branch Annual Scientific Meeting, Hunter Valley, NSW 19-20 Rural Health West Annual Conference: Yin and Yang of Rural Health Care – Men and Women’s Health from the Adolescent to the Elderly, Perth, WA 19-23 Ottawa and ANZAHPE 2016 Conference, Perth, WA 20-24 14th International Workshop on Radiation Damage to DNA, Melbourne, VIC 21-23 23rd World Congress on Controversies in Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Infertility, Melbourne, VIC 25 Mar-8 Apr Autism, ADHD and Developmental Disabilities New Zealand Cruise, Sydney, NSW 29 Mar-1 Apr Asia Pacific Orthopaedic Association Congress 2016, Melbourne, VIC 30 Mar-1 Apr ANZICS New Zealand Regional Meeting, Rotorua, NZ 31 Mar-1 Apr Social Research Conference on HIV, Viral Hepatitis and Related Diseases: Margins and Belonging, Sydney NSW April 2016 1-3 Abdominal Radiology Group Australia and New Zealand Annual Meeting, Fremantle, WA 1-3 Future of General Practice 2016 Conference, Brisbane, QLD 1-6 Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand ASM 2016, Perth, WA 3-6 NETNEP 2016, Brisbane, QLD 7-9 41st Annual Scientific Meeting of the New Zealand Pain Society, New Plymouth, NZ 8 ANZCP Trauma on the Border, Tweed Heads, NSW 12-14 World Indigenous Cancer Conference: Connecting, Communicating and Collaborating Across the Globe, Brisbane, QLD 13-16 General Assembly and International Conference on Asian Pacific Organisation of Cancer Prevention, Brisbane, QLD 16 Academics World 35th International Conference on Recent Advances in Medical and Health Sciences, Melbourne, VIC 16-19 Urological Society of Australia and New Zealand ASM, Gold Coast, QLD 17-19 Children’s Healthcare Australasia and National Rural Health Alliance 2016 Conference: Caring for Country Kids, Alice Springs, NT 22-24 11th Annual Scientific Meeting of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy, Brisbane, QLD 22-25 Annual Scientific Meeting of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Nuclear Medicine (ANZSNM): Hot Science: An Eruption of Isotopes, Rotorua, NZ 30 Australasian Musculoskeletal Imaging Group Annual Meeting, Sydney, NSW 30 Apr-4 May ANZCA 2016 Annual Scientific Meeting, Auckland, NZ 30 Apr-4 May 57th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Australian Rheumatology Association, Darwin, NT May 2016 2-3 12th International Conference on Rapid Response Systems and Medical Emergency Teams, Melbourne, VIC 6 Centre for Palliative Care Research and Education Annual Research Conference, Brisbane, QLD 6-7 2016 Australian Diabetes Educators Association WA Branch Conference: Creating Links, New Norcia, WA 11-12 Association of Regulatory and Clinical Scientists Australia’s Scientific Congress, Sydney, NSW 14-17 49th Australasian College of Dermatologists ASM, Perth, WA 16-17 3rd Eating Disorders and Obesity Conference, Gold Coast, QLD 16-18 Royal Australasian College of Physicians Annual Congress, Adelaide, SA 18-20 9th National Medicines Symposium, Canberra, ACT 18-20 The Australian and New Zealand Addiction Conference: Addiction 2016, Gold Coast, QLD 19-20 ACEM Queensland Autumn Symposium, Brisbane, QLD 22-25 Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand 20th Annual Congress: Perinatal Topics in the Tropics, Townsville, QLD 24-27 Australian and New Zealand 2016 ASM, Perth, WA 25-27 International Clinical Cardiovascular Genetics Conference 2016, Brisbane, QLD 26-28 2016 Asia Pacific Lymphology Conference, Darwin, NT 27-28 RANZCO NZ Branch Annual Scientific Meeting, Dunedin, NZ 30-31 5th Australian and New Zealand Disaster and Emergency Management Conference, Gold Coast, QLD

Cate Swannell