People living with diabetes in the Goulburn Valley could soon have access to innovative new treatments thanks to a partnership between Goulburn Valley Health and the University of Melbourne.
GV Health will be assisting vital research into diabetes after it was named as one of 70 collaborative partners in a University of Melbourne-led research program.
University of Melbourne endocrinologist Associate Professor Elif Ekinci will steer the program along with all the collaborators.
Established by MTPConnect’s Targeted Translation Research Accelerator Initiative, the Australian Centre for Accelerating Diabetes Innovation was one of two new national research hubs announced with funding of $23.3 million over the next four years, aimed at improving the lives of people living with diabetes.
Co-contributions from academic and industry partners will allow the ACADI to progress 18 research projects addressing diabetic kidney disease, peripheral neuropathy and diabetic foot syndrome, short-term complications of hypoglycaemia, hyperosmolar hyperglycaemic syndrome and ketoacidosis.
GV Health executive director of medical services and chief medical officer Dr John Elcock said this national partnership allowed cutting-edge care closer to home for people in the Goulburn Valley.
“This gives us the opportunity to bring innovations to people of the Goulburn Valley as quickly as possible,” Dr Elcock said.
“A lot of research and a number of cutting-edge treatments are available in metropolitan centres where they're supported by university and research departments, and people from the country then have to travel to the city in order to be able to access that.
“Our involvement as one of these partner organisations will enable us to be part of the ACADI’s work and means that the people of the Goulburn Valley can access those treatments in a safe way as early as possible.”
GV Health director of research Associate Professor Rafiqul Islam said GV Health being a part of a national research program showed the importance of providing quality care to regional communities such as Shepparton.
“We are one of 70 collaborative organisations across Australia, the majority of them are very large metropolitan universities or organisations,” Dr Islam said.
“And to the best of my knowledge a very few regional centres are collaborative partners of this initiative – GV Health being one of them – so we are very proud of that.”
Dr Elcock said the partnership showed GV Health’s commitment to work in the research space and the scope for further research partnership opportunities.
“Goulburn Valley Health being involved in this does indicate that national initiatives such as ACADI see us as strong players in regional research,” he said.
“It definitely reinforces our work in the research space and it contributes to the increasing body of research that we've got going on here.”