Local research, global impact

 

The Telethon Institute for Child Health Research , under the leadership of 2003 Australian of the Year Professor Fiona Stanley , has pioneered a multidisciplinary approach in child health research that brings together scientists from a wide range of expertise to examine the most costly, common, damaging or debilitating issues affecting young people today.

Established in 1990, the Institute now has nearly 500 dedicated staff and students. Based in Perth, Western Australia, the Institute has collaborations with leading research organisations around the world.

The Telethon Institute for Child Health Research has a proven track record of translating research findings into actions that make a real difference to the lives of children everywhere. Achievements include:

  • Significant progress towards the prevention of asthma including developing and trialing the world’s first asthma vaccine; better measures of lung function and improved treatments.
  • Almost total elimination of one form of meningitis by advocating and promoting the introduction of a specific infant vaccination.
  • Reducing the incidence of spina bifida and other neural tube defects as part of the international collaboration that demonstrated the importance of folate in preventing birth defects. The Institute spearheaded advocacy that has resulted in Australia adopting mandatory fortification of food with folate.
  • Improving outcomes for Indigenous children and their families based on the findings of the most comprehensive survey ever undertaken of Aboriginal child health.
  • Contributing to international research that has improved survival rates for young cancer and leukaemia sufferers from 20% to almost 80%.
  • Effective models of suicide prevention, including for indigenous youth.
  • Evaluation of the SIDS prevention program to show its ineffectiveness in Aboriginal populations and the instigation of a novel prevention with Aboriginal people.
  • Better models for maternal and child health policy in both Indigenous and the general population.
  • Identifying and quantifying the benefits of breastfeeding in promoting mental health and development.
  • Developing a blood test that can identify which children are at higher risk of relapse in cancer treatments.
  • Developing innovative models to measure and reduce childhood obesity in school children and identifying new risk factors.
  • Developing a new class of peptide drug candidates that are more targeted, easier to administer and cheaper to produce than existing therapies – the basis of our spin-out company, Phylogica.
  • Early, and more effective, intervention programs to reduce behaviour problems and improve educational competencies in high-risk populations – now rolled out statewide.

>> Click here for more information about the research of the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research.

Last updated 15 October 2007