2025 RACP Fellows Research Establishment Fellowship ($75,000)

Recipient: Dr Genevieve Martin

Project: Identifying host immune factors that drive severe outcomes across multiple viral infections

Dr Genevieve Martin is a clinician-researcher who has recently completed specialist training in Infectious Diseases through the Royal Australasian College of Physicians. Dr Martin completed medicine at Monash University. She obtained her Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) in 2018 at the University of Oxford with her doctoral research focusing on immune responses during primary HIV infection and the relevance of these for HIV cure approaches. Dr Martin was supported for this study by multiple competitive scholarships including a General Sir John Monash Scholarship.

Dr Martin undertook her clinical training in Melbourne and Darwin, including roles at the Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory (VIDRL) and Menzies School of Health Research. During this period, she contributed to several impactful projects on SARS-CoV-2, Japanese Encephalitis Virus (JEV), and hepatitis B. Dr Martin is interested in furthering our understanding of immune responses to viral infections, and applying this knowledge for the prevention and treatment of these infections. In 2025, she will be working in the Kedzierska Group at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity.

2025 Cottrell Research Establishment Fellowship ($75,000)

Recipient: Dr Matthew Hare

Project: Closing gaps in evidence and practice for diabetes and related conditions among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities

Dr Matthew Hare MBBS(Hons) BMedSc(Hons) FRACP PhD Matt is a clinician-researcher whose focus is working in partnership to understand and address the intergenerational diabetes epidemic among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. He is a Staff Specialist and Clinical Lead for Remote Services within the Endocrinology Department at Royal Darwin Hospital, and a Senior Research Fellow at Menzies School of Health Research. Matt has particular interests and expertise in epidemiology and data-linkage research, but also leads a growing body of clinical and translational projects. He currently serves as President of the Australasian Diabetes in Pregnancy Society and is a member of the NT Diabetes Network, the International Diabetes Epidemiology Group, and the Australian Diabetes Society (ADS) Research Advisory Committee.

2025 Jacquot Research Establishment Fellowship ($90,000)

Recipient: Dr Aspasia Pefanis

Project: Treating kidneys on machine perfusion to improve transplant outcomes

Dr Sia Pefanis is a nephrologist and transplant physician at Austin Health and St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, and a Senior Clinical Lecturer with the University of Melbourne. She holds a Master of Public Health and completed a basic science PhD examining kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury with The University of Melbourne (2023).

Sia has a strong interest in cell death and inflammation, and her post-doctoral research focuses on exploring novel ways to reduce kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury during the transplantation process. This grant will make a valuable contribution to the field of transplantation by enabling the assessment and treatment of donor organs prior to transplantation, thereby improving timely access to donor kidneys for patients suffering from end-stage kidney disease.

2025 Jacquot Research Establishment Fellowship ($90,000)

Recipient: Dr Monica Ng

Project: Kidney Extracellular Vesicle Atlas – an Initiative to Advance Clinical Translation of Nanoparticle Analytics

Dr Monica Ng is a nephrologist and clinician scientist at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital. She was awarded her PhD from the University of Queensland in 2019. Since then, her research has focused on the clinical application of extracellular vesicles for kidney disease diagnostics; kidney disease epidemiology and management of chronic kidney disease. She currently leads the Translational Kidney Pathobiology group at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital Kidney Health Service.

The Jacquot Research Establishment Fellowship will enable Dr Ng to elucidate universal kidney markers on urinary extracellular vesicles to enable high-throughput isolation of kidney extracellular vesicles for next-generation minimally-invasive diagnostics for kidney disease. Moreover, this work will facilitate high-resolution phenotyping of urine extracellular vesicle subtypes to identify molecular signatures that can be leveraged to identify people most likely to respond to therapy and people at risk of adverse kidney outcomes.

2025 Jacquot Research Establishment Fellowship ($90,000)

Recipient: Dr Benjamin Lazarus

Project: Improving surveillance of bloodstream infections among chronic haemodialysis patients in Queensland

Ben is the Assistant-Director of In-Centre Haemodialysis at the Princess Alexandra Hospital, an editorial fellow at the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, and senior lecturer at the University of Queensland. He completed his PhD in 2024 through Monash University, in collaboration with The George Institute, and is recognised internationally as an emerging leader in haemodialysis access research, with an established track record of research leadership.

This grant will allow Dr Lazarus to develop a statewide program of surveillance for haemodialysis access related infections in Queensland, that will improve the accuracy, objectivity and transparency of existing surveillance and reporting systems. The findings will be fundamental to improving outcomes for patients receiving haemodialysis in Queensland and may be extended to other States in the future.

2025 Jacquot Research Establishment Fellowship ($90,000)

Recipient: Dr Kushani Jayasinghe

Project: The Evolution of Genomic Applications in Nephrology: From Research to Clinical Practice

Dr Kushani Jayasinghe is a consultant nephrologist and undertaking dual training in clinical genetics at Monash Health. She has a special interest in genetic kidney disease and is the clinical lead for genetic kidney disease at Monash Health. She completed her PhD research at Monash University on the clinical utility and feasibility of genomic sequencing in kidney disease. Dr Jayasinghe is passionate about improving the uptake of genomic medicine in routine nephrology care, which is a focus of her postdoctoral research at Monash University.

2025 Sir Roy McCaughey Research Establishment Fellowship ($72,880)

Recipient: Associate Professor Venessa Chin

Project: Personalising Immunotherapy Choices (PIC) based on Genetic Factors

Dr Venessa Chin is a clinician-scientist with dual appointments at The Garvan Institute of Medical Research and St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney, maintaining a balanced engagement between clinical medicine and research. Since completing a PhD in 2017, Dr Chin has focused on translational lung cancer research, aligning seamlessly with clinical specialisation.

As a member of Professor Powell's single-cell sequencing laboratory, Dr Chin leads significant cancer projects, including managing a comprehensive blood and tissue biobank, investigating predispositions to never-smoking lung cancer, and examining cancer cell heterogeneity in ALK-positive lung cancer and identifying genetic determinants of immunotherapy response. Alongside these research activities, Dr Chin actively participates in clinical patient care, serving as the chair of the lung cancer multidisciplinary and leading the institution’s clinical trial portfolio for lung cancer.

2025 Robert Maple-Brown Research Establishment Fellowship ($60,000)

Recipient: Dr Elizabeth Paratz

Project: Implementing the globally-leading CODEX registry to drive new insights into sudden cardiac death

Dr Elizabeth Paratz is a cardiologist, an Emerging Leader with the World Heart Federation, and a member of the Asia-Pacific Society of Cardiology. She received her medical degree with honours from the University of Melbourne in 2010 and completed her cardiology training in 2017. Alongside her clinical training, she also undertook studies in pulmonary hypertension at Imperial College London (2007-08) and biostatistics and epidemiology at Harvard University (2015-16). Dr Paratz completed her PhD in 2023 at the Baker Heart & Diabetes Institute, with research focusing on young cardiac arrest. Her work earned several prestigious awards, including the Clinical Ralph Reader Cardiac Society Prize, the Melbourne University Chancellor’s Prize for Excellence, and the Dean’s Award for Excellence in the PhD Thesis. She has 95 peer-reviewed publications and has delivered 40 oral presentations at both national and international conferences. Dr Paratz also serves as Deputy Medical Director of the Timor-Leste Hearts Fund and is 1 of 6 designated aviation cardiologists in Australia.

2025 Robert Maple-Brown Research Establishment Fellowship ($60,000)

Recipient: Dr Emma Foster

Project: Overcoming barriers to optimal treatment for epilepsy in Australia using co-designed interventions

Dr Emma Foster is an early career academic neurologist at Alfred Health and Monash University (Melbourne, Australia). She is specialising in epilepsy and headache medicine, with a focus on health economics and outcomes research. Dr Foster is internationally recognised for her expertise in new-onset epilepsy management, exemplified by invitation to co-first author a 2024 The Lancet Neurology review on 'Improving epilepsy diagnosis across the lifespan: approaches and innovations'. Her first author research has informed clinical guidelines, for example 'Comorbidities and complications of epilepsy in adults' in UpToDate, used by >2 million clinicians in >190 countries. Dr Foster is first, co-first, or senior author on 30 of her 52 career publications in high-ranking international peer-reviewed publications.

As Chief Investigator A, she has secured $1.6 million to fund her research program, and has secured an additional $1.1 million as a named investigator on other grants. Dr Foster is regularly invited to present and chair at national and international conferences, has presented twice on the American Academy of Neurology's prestigious podcast series (combined >15.4K listens / 34 countries), on the International League Against Epilepsy (global epilepsy authority) webinar series, and for the 2024 Royal Australasian College of Physicians webinar.

2025 Servier Staff ‘Barry Young’ Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Dr Ashray Gunjur

Project: Defining the relationship between the gut microbiome and pancreatic cancer cachexia at strain-resolution

Dr Ashray Gunjur is an early-career medical oncologist with a focus on gut microbiota and its impact on cancer initiation, progression, and response to therapies. He is completing his PhD at the Wellcome Sanger Institute (UK), where his research investigates the gut microbiome’s role in immune checkpoint blockade responses across various cancer types. In 2025, with the support of this fellowship, Dr Gunjur will undertake a post-doctoral fellowship at the Wellcome Sanger Institute to examine how the gut microbiome influences pancreatic cancer cachexia, aiming to develop microbiota-targeted interventions to mitigate this condition.

2025 Vincent Fairfax Family Foundation Research Establishment Fellowship ($60,000)

Recipient: Dr Jessica Fairley

Project: Harnessing the power of big data to understand the heart in scleroderma

Dr Jessica Fairley is a rheumatologist and clinician-researcher completing the final year of her PhD at the University of Melbourne, supported by an NHMRC postgraduate scholarship. Dr Fairley’s research focuses on the cardiopulmonary manifestations of rheumatological diseases, particularly systemic sclerosis (commonly known as scleroderma). Her research aims to utilise big data to increase knowledge and understanding of cardiopulmonary manifestations of rheumatological conditions through multidisciplinary collaboration. She currently leads several novel postmortem studies of rheumatic disease in collaboration with the National Coronial Information System and the Victorian Department of Justice and Community Safety, providing insights into the pathology and mechanisms of cardiopulmonary disease. This fellowship will support data linkage work between the Australian Scleroderma Cohort Study and the National Health Data Hub. Dr Fairley is actively engaged in teaching and mentorship for physician trainees and junior doctors.

2025 RACP Australian Diabetes Society Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Dr Ryan Jalleh

Project: Protein pre-loads and gastric emptying in women with gestational diabetes mellitus

Dr Jalleh is an endocrinologist and early career clinician-scientist. He graduated (MBBS) from the University of Adelaide as the top graduate of his year, and was awarded both the prestigious Everard Prize for the highest overall grade in medical school, and the University Medal for outstanding academic merit. His PhD, focused on the relationship of gastric emptying with glucoregulatory responses and incretin physiology, conducted in the Centre of Research Excellence in Translating Nutritional Science into Good Health, was highly productive with 17 publications in major subspecialty journals (first author in 15). His thesis was accepted in Jan 2024 and he was awarded the Dean’s Commendation for Doctoral Thesis Excellence. The theme of his research continues to be the relationships of gastric emptying with glucoregulatory responses and incretin physiology.

2025 RACP Bayer Australia Medical Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Dr Rajan Rehan

Project: Insights into Novel Therapies for Patients with Angina and No Obstructive Coronary Arteries

Dr Rajan Rehan is an Interventional Cardiologist and accomplished researcher who completed his NHMRC-funded PhD at the University of Sydney. His research focused on innovative mechanisms in patients with angina and no obstructive coronary artery disease (ANOCA). During his PhD, Dr. Rehan received the Australia and New Zealand Endovascular Therapies Early Career Research Award and was a finalist for the prestigious Ralph Reader Award by the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand. He led the establishment of Australia’s first dedicated ANOCA clinic, advancing both clinical care and research for this challenging patient cohort. Looking ahead, Dr. Rehan aims to develop and evaluate novel therapies for patients with ANOCA in collaboration with leading institutions, including the Royal Brompton and Guy’s & St Thomas’ Hospital in London.

2025 RACP Diabetes Australia Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Dr Hashrul Rashid

Project: EMPRESS study (Empagliflozin and Coronary Stent Restenosis in Type 2 Diabetes)

Dr Hashrul Rashid is an interventional, structural, and CT cardiologist. He graduated with honours from Monash University and completed his cardiology training at Monash Health. Dr. Rashid further honed his expertise through fellowships at MonashHeart and St. Thomas’ Hospital in London. Throughout his clinical training, he was awarded the RACP Australian Trainee of the Year and the ANZET Geoff Mews Fellow’s Prize, the highest Australian award for a medical and interventional cardiology trainee, respectively.

Dr Rashid completed his PhD at Monash University, with his thesis examining the role of CT imaging in various heart diseases. He received the Molly Holman Medal for the best higher degree thesis at Monash University. His research has received various national and international awards, including the prestigious Australian cardiology trifecta (ANZET Early Career Research Prize, CSANZ Cardiac Imaging Prize and RACP Trainee Research Award). He was recently awarded the TCT Asia Pacific Best Young Scientist award, the highest interventional cardiovascular research accolade in Asia Pacific for an early-career researcher. He was previously a first runner-up finalist for ACC, AHA, EuroPCR and SCCT young investigator awards.

Dr Rashid is an early-career cardiovascular researcher, and with this fellowship, he will examine the role of SLGT2 inhibitors in coronary stent restenosis rates.

2025 RACP Endocrine Society of Australia Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Dr Christopher Muir

Project: ThyroLDN - a phase 2, double blind, randomised controlled trial of low dose naltrexone for treatment of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis in patients with residual hypothyroid symptoms despite optimal thyroid hormone replacement

Dr Muir is a Staff Specialist Endocrinologist at St Vincent's Hospital and Senior Lecturer in Medicine at the University of New South Wales. He has a Visiting Scientist position within the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, where he conducts clinical research. He is an early-career clinician scientist with a special interest in thyroid diseases. He completed his specialist endocrinology training at St Vincent's Hospital and Concord Repatriation General Hospital in 2019. He completed a PhD in 2023 at The University of Sydney studying thyroid immune-related adverse events supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council Postgraduate Scholarship.

He supervises graduate and undergraduate student researchers and has published over 30 original articles or reviews in high-impact journals such as Nature Reviews Endocrinology, the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, and Thyroid.

2025 RACP Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Dr Michael Loftus

Project: Priority Evidence for Action on Climate Health (PEACH)

Dr Michael Loftus is an academic infectious diseases physician with clinical appointments at both Alfred Health in Melbourne and the Mildura Base Public Hospital in regional Victoria. His NHMRC-supported PhD assessed the rates, impacts and drivers of antimicrobial resistance in the Pacific Islands, under the supervision of Prof Anton Peleg.

Since completing his PhD in antimicrobial resistance, Michael has now shifted his research activities onto a different ‘wicked’ problem: climate change. He is currently the inaugural postdoctoral research fellow at Monash University’s Health and Climate Initiative, under the leadership of Prof Karin Leder. His research focuses on the intersections between climate change and human health – both the health impacts wrought by climate change, as well as the large carbon footprint of healthcare.

2025 RACP Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Associate Professor Jasneek Chawla

Project: Sleep for Health in Hospitals

Associate Professor Jasneek Chawla is a Paediatric Respiratory and Sleep Medicine Specialist at Queensland Children’s Hospital, Brisbane, and leads the Kids Sleep Research Group at the Child Health Research Centre, University of Queensland. Her research interests include sleep in children with complex disability conditions, sleep in hospitals, and the development of novel diagnostic sleep technology. She is currently leading a multi-centre MRFF (government)-funded study focused on improving the diagnosis and management of sleep disorders in children with neurodisability.

Jas has recently been elected as the incoming president for the Australasian Sleep Association, having previously held the roles of education chair and deputy conference chair. She is a strong advocate for paediatric respiratory and sleep medicine and is committed to impactful clinical research that will improve the outcomes of children across Australia.

2025 RACP Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Associate Professor Stephen Bacchi

Project: Evidence-based results tracking with artificial intelligence for efficient healthcare systems

Associate Professor Stephen Bacchi, MBBS PhD FRACP, is a neurologist with interests in clinical research, artificial intelligence, and education. His PhD focused on clinical applications of machine learning in stroke and general medicine. In 2024, Stephen undertook a research fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University, supported by a Fulbright Scholarship. He has over 250 peer-reviewed publications across a range of medical and surgical specialties.

Stephen plans to use pragmatic research, including artificial intelligence, to improve patient outcomes across multiple specialties throughout Australia and internationally. He strongly believes that people at all levels of seniority and background can contribute to the advancement of science and medicine. Stephen values diverse multidisciplinary collaboration and always enjoys discussing new and exciting ideas.

2025 RACP Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Dr Shiraz Badurdeen

Project: Getting Oxygen Right for Preterm Newborns

Shiraz is a consultant neonatologist at the Mercy Hospital for Women and the inaugural Melbourne Children’s Global Health Postdoctoral Research Fellow. As an early-career researcher, he aims to make oxygen therapy safer and more effective for critically unwell newborns across diverse settings. His research focuses on personalising oxygen therapy to fit specific pathophysiological contexts. Supported by a diverse team of collaborators, Shiraz is undertaking translational studies and developing novel applications of technology to address key knowledge gaps in newborn oxygenation.

In 2022, he earned a Translational Research PhD from Monash University. He has a particular interest in research methods and serves as an associate editor for Archives of Disease in Childhood Fetal & Neonatal Edition.

2025 RACP Research Establishment Fellowship ($50,000)

Recipient: Dr Oneil Bhalala

Project: Using liquid brain biopsies to study dementia with Lewy bodies

Dr Oneil Bhalala is a Consultant Neurologist at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in the Watson/Yassi Lab at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute. He earned his PhD in Neuroscience from Northwestern University, Chicago in 2012, where he studied the role of microRNAs in spinal cord injury using animal models. Following this, he earned his MD with Distinction from the University of Melbourne in 2016 and completed his Neurology Fellowship in 2023.

Dr Bhalala's clinical work specializes in the diagnosis and management of dementia. His research centers on developing risk prediction models for dementia using blood-based biomarkers and genetic data. He is leading multiple clinical studies aimed at evaluating the use of blood tests in real-world clinical settings to facilitate earlier detection of dementia and predict disease progression. Additionally, his work explores the potential of blood tests to anticipate treatment responses, advancing the field of personalized care.

With a strong commitment to improving outcomes for people living with dementia, Dr Bhalala’s research bridges clinical care and innovative diagnostic approaches. His goal is to enhance the precision and effectiveness of dementia care, providing better insights and tailored treatments for patients and their families.