The Wal-yan Respiratory Research Centre's dedicated team members, along with special guests, embarked on a journey to Wadjemup (Rottnest Island) on 9 and 10 November.
The two-day immersion brought together great minds to delve deeper into the diverse range of research initiatives within the Centre, encouraging active participation and knowledge sharing.
In addition, the scientific retreat served as a platform to discuss prospective partnerships, innovative concepts, and strategies for enhancing the research endeavours of the Centre.
There were many highlights throughout the retreat, including:
- Attention-grabbing Seed Funding pitches by four researchers aiming to secure $20,000 in funding to help progress their bold ideas to the next stage.
Congratulations to the winners David Hancock (pictured far right alongside Wal-yan Centre Director Professor Stephen Stick), and Andrew Vaitekenas (pictured left) and Joshua Iszatt (absent from photo) whose winning ideas were:
- Bridging the gap between the lab and the clinic for novel asthma treatments – David Hancock
- VADER: Viral Antibacterial Data for Endolysin Recovery – Andrew Vaitekenas and Joshua Iszatt
- Impressive ‘New Investigator’ presentations by four students within the Wal-yan Centre. Natasha Bear came away with first prize and Rohan Flint was awarded runner up, with both students receiving prize money for professional development activities.
- Delivery of engaging PechaKucha presentations on The future of respiratory medicine and research – where do we want to be in 20 years? by Professor Stephen Stick, Associate Professor Anthony Kicic and Reanne Ho. Following the presentations all retreat attendees workshopped ways forward to enable realisation of team members’ 20-year visions.
- Special presentations by Dr Alen Faiz from the University of Technology Sydney on Using single-cell sequencing and multi-omics to understand complex disease and treatment response, and Professor Michelle Giles - an adult infectious diseases physician at the Royal Women’s Hospital, Alfred Health and Monash Health in Melbourne – on Vaccination in pregnancy - the “3 for 1” deal.
- Over 20 outstanding presentations on a wide range of childhood respiratory disease areas, including cystic fibrosis, asthma, the effects of being born premature, respiratory infections and viruses, the consequences of our environment and other chronic respiratory diseases.
- The delivery of a beautiful Welcome to Country Smoking Ceremony and Sand and Water Ceremony to start the conference by Walter McGuire, of Go Cultural Aboriginal Tours and Experiences.
The Wal-yan Respiratory Research Centre – a powerhouse partnership between The Kids Research Institute Australia, Perth Children’s Hospital Foundation and Perth Children’s Hospital – has a united goal to prevent childhood respiratory illness and ensure that all children have healthy lungs for life.
The annual scientific retreat is a highlight on the Centre’s calendar, providing a platform to bring the team together to ensure impact is made through the research taking place.