The Univeristy of Melbourne The Royal Melbourne Hopspital

A joint venture between The University of Melbourne and The Royal Melbourne Hospital

Regional projects

WHO Regional Reference Laboratory for Invasive Bacterial - Vaccine Preventable Diseases program in the Western Pacific Region

Microbiological Diagnostic Unit Public Health Laboratory
Project Leader(s): Professor Benjamin Howden
Collaborators(s): Pasteur Institute, Ho Chi Minh City VietnamNational Institute of Hygeine and Epidemiology, Hanoi, Vietnam; Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, Manila, Philippines; Mataika House, Suva, Fiji 

The Microbiological Diagnostic Unit Public Health Laboratory at the Doherty Institute is the WHO Regional Reference Laboratory for Invasive Bacterial - Vaccine Preventable Diseases program in the Western Pacific Region, supporting laboratories in the region in detection and characterisation of pathogens, including quality assurance, bacterial typing and ongoing training, support and mentorship.

Observerships

National Centre for Antimicrobial Stewardship
Project Leader(s): Professor Kirsty Buising, Professor Karin Thursky and Dr Rodney James
Collaborators(s): World Health Organisation

NCAS offers observerships to clinicians and policy-makers who are interested in learning about antimicrobial use surveillance and antimicrobial stewardship in Australian hospitals.

European AIDS Vaccine Initiative 2020

Kent group
Project leader(s): Professor Stephen Kent
Funding: 2015 NHMRC-EU Collaborative Research Grants

A vaccine to prevent AIDS is urgently needed. The European Union recently awarded over 20 million euros to a European consortium, called EAVI2020, to advance multiple HIV vaccines into human testing. Five Australian HIV vaccine experts are named investigators on this award to provide advanced laboratory analyses and intellectual input into the five year program.

WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis

WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis
Project leader(s): Professor Benjamin Cowie
Collaborator(s): World Health OrganisationWHO Western Pacific RegionWHO Regional Office for South East Asia

The WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis assist with:

  • Viral Hepatitis research
  • Surveillance
  • Policy and advocacy
  • Experty advisory capacity
  • Laboratory capacity strengthening
  • Regional reporting and implementation of GHHSVH and Regional Action Plan for Viral Hepatitis

Regional Expert Panel on Heptatitis B Elimination Verification

Biggs group
Project Leader(s): Dr Christopher Morgan
Collaborators(s): WHO Regional Office for South East Asia

Dr Christopher Morgan is a member of an expert group that examines progress towards control of hepatitis B by infant vaccination in south and south-east Asian countries.

"Impact of human and vector mobility on sustaining Impact of human and vector mobility on sustaining transmission of Onchocerca volvulus"

McVernon group and the Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory
Project leader(s): Professor Jodie McVernon
Collaborators(s): La Trobe University, WHO Tropical Disease Research

This project used models to consider the impact of movement of people and black fly vectors on the risk of reintroduction of Onchocerca volvulus (river blindness) in areas of West Africa following withdrawal of preventive chemotherapy treatment.

Development of Guidelines for Antimicrobial Stewardship for low and middle income countries

National Centre for Antimicrobial Stewardship 
Project leader(s): Professor Kirsty Buising
Collaborators(s): World Health Organisation
Funding: WHO Western Pacific Region

In collaboration with the World Health Organization, NCAS has developed Guidelines for antimicrobial stewardship for low and middle income countries.

WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis

Project leader(s): Professor Benjamin Cowie
Collaborator(s): World Health OrganisationWHO Western Pacific RegionWHO Regional Office for South East Asia

The WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis at The Doherty Institute has been designated as one of only five Collaborating Centres for Viral Hepatitis globally. The Centre performs a broad range of activities supporting  global control of viral hepatitis, including basic research and reference virology, surveillance, treatment and prevention initiatives, and training and capacity building.

WHO Measles and Rubella Regional Reference Laboratory for the Western Pacific Region

Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory
Collaborator(s): World Health OrganisationWHO Western Pacific Region,

The Centre run out of VIDRL at the Doherty Institute in Melbourne, provides a reference service for measles diagnosis and surveillance for laboratories within the WHO Western Pacific region; provides a timely diagnostic service for measles surveillance and outbreak investigation; and develops alternative laboratory methods for measles diagnosis and surveillance that may be appropriate for resource poor countries.

WHO Hepatitis B Regional Reference Laboratory for the Western Pacific Region

Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory
Collaborator(s): World Health OrganisationWHO Western Pacific Region,

Run out of VIDRL at the Doherty Institute in Melbourne, the aim of the Reference Laboratory is to provide comprehensive diagnostic services for Hepatitis A, B, C, D and E viruses and also provide diagnostic support for the Western Pacific Region of the WHO (WPRO). The Regional Reference Laboratory’s work is not contained to diagnostic work; laboratory staff also undertake a wide range of research projects including investigations into unusual genotype patterns for the hepatitis virus, and investigations into unusual banding interpretation charts.

WHO Regional Poliovirus Reference Laboratory for the Western Pacific Region

Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory
Collaborator(s): World Health OrganisationWHO Western Pacific Region,

Not all countries have the resources to host such a laboratory, which must be accredited by the World Health Organization, and so the polio lab at the Doherty Institute also acts as the national reference laboratory for Brunei Darussalam, the Pacific Island countries and territories and Papua New Guinea.

WHO Collaborating Centre for Mycobacterium ulcerans

Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory
Collaborator(s): World Health OrganisationWHO Western Pacific Region,

The centre collects and manages information on the incidence, epidemiology and control of Mycobacterium ulcerans (Buruli ulcer) in the Western Pacific Region, and to perform and coordinate appropriate research projects with the aim of determining the ecology and mode(s) of transmission of M. ulcerans to humans and animals will potentially contribute to worldwide management of Buruli ulcer.

Member, Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation and Vaccine-Preventable Diseases in the Western Pacific Region.

Biggs group
Project Leader(s): Dr Christopher Morgan
Collaborators(s): World Health Organisation

Dr Christopher Morgan is a member of the Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation and Vaccine-Preventable Diseases in the Western Pacific Region. This is an expert group that reviews progress and new strategies for national immunisation programs of countries in east Asia and the Pacific.