Clinical trials ‘roadmap' launched in Bunbury in bid to converge medical research
The Cook Government will unveil the WA-first plan at the Future Health Research and Innovation Fund Open Day in Busselton on Thursday.
It sets out a plan to build a 'strong clinical trials ecosystem that brings together universities, hospitals, medical research institutes, industry sponsors, consumers, and the WA Health system', the government says.
'The WA Clinical Trials Roadmap is a bold strategy to take our State's clinical research to new heights by empowering our talented researchers and building global partnerships,' Medical Research and Science Innovation Minister Stephen Dawson said.
'The Roadmap will deliver innovative, evidence-based treatments and make a real difference for the people of WA and beyond.
'The Cook Government is committed to building a strong clinical trials ecosystem that attracts investment, improves care, and puts WA at the forefront of personalised, precision medicine.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
ABC News
6 days ago
- ABC News
WA government reintroduces long-awaited surrogacy, IVF reforms
The WA government will reintroduce legislation to overhaul the state's surrogacy and IVF laws, eight years after it first promised the long-awaited reform. Premier Roger Cook said a bill would be introduced to state parliament on Tuesday that would "streamline and modernise" WA's assisted reproductive laws and "bring WA into line" with the rest of Australia. Mr Cook said the changes would allow more West Australians to start a family because it would remove the requirement for people to demonstrate medical infertility to access assisted reproductive technology, including surrogacy and IVF. It would also allow same-sex male couples, single men, transgender and intersex people to access altruistic surrogacy, which is currently limited to heterosexual couples and single women. "This is an historic day for our state and one that many Western Australians have been waiting for ... in many cases too long." Mr Cook said. The changes have been on the cards for almost a decade, with former Premier Mark McGowan first promising the reforms in 2017 when he led WA Labor to a landslide victory. In 2019, an independent review found the state's surrogacy and assisted reproductive technology laws were "discriminatory" and 25 years out of date. But the government's attempts to modernise the laws were scuttled when Upper House Liberal MP Nick Goiran used one of the longest filibuster speeches in WA Parliament's history to delay a vote on the contentious issue. The bill was then put on the backburner as attention turned to social reforms like voluntary euthanasia, before the COVID pandemic hit. Over the next few years, the legislation languished despite WA Labor gaining total control over both houses at the 2021 election. In 2022, Former Health Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson appointed a panel of experts to redevelop the laws, but it has taken another three years to get them back on the table. The government will still face roadblocks in getting the new laws across the line this time round, with Mr Goiran still wielding influence in the upper house, where five crossbench MPs could also throw a spanner in the works.
Perth Now
08-08-2025
- Perth Now
Granny makes history after horrific caravan fall in Perth
When a grandmother fell and severely injured her shoulder on Christmas Eve, she never thought a robot would be the one to surgically repair it. Kerry Stubbings and her husband had embarked on a grey nomad adventure and were in Perth when she slipped out of a caravan, landing directly on her shoulder. The pain got worse until she started losing function of her arm and was unable to open car doors or hang washing on the line, ensuring many sleepless nights. Ms Stubbings needed medical attention so the couple made the lengthy drive back home to Mackay in far north Queensland. 'It was a long drive home,' she told AAP. The 66-year-old was sent to Townsville's Mater Hospital and was told she would need a total reverse shoulder replacement after tearing most of her tendons. When Ms Stubbings got a call a few weeks later telling her that a robot would be doing the procedure in an Australian-first, she was shocked. A robot has performed shoulder replacement surgery for the first time in Australia. (PR IMAGE PHOTO) Credit: AAP 'I didn't expect it in my lifetime,' she said. 'I thought this was just out of this world, it was amazing.' Orthopaedic surgeon Levi Morse explained the benefits of robotic surgery, saying it was less invasive, had smaller wounds, was more comfortable and had a better recovery time. 'That sealed the deal for me,' Ms Stubbings said. Townsville's Mater Hospital has had the Stryker Mako Ortho Robot since 2011 and has been performing knee and hip reconstructions. But it was recently upgraded to include new technology for shoulder surgeries. The robot has an implant plan uploaded before the surgery, then uses signalling devices in real time to detect the patient's bones and anatomy so that cuts are made within particular parameters, much like bumper bars at 10-pin bowling. Ms Stubbings' surgery went very well, paving the way for more to be done, Dr Morse said. Both Ms Stubbings and Dr Morse felt it was a huge honour to be part of the Australian-first surgery, with Mater Hospital becoming the sixth in the world to perform the procedure. 'It was a privilege to be selected to be the first surgeon, and even more so being in Townsville,' Dr Morse said. Ms Stubbings said her operation showed robotic surgery was safe and not something to be feared. 'It's a nice little legacy to pass on in the family history,' she said. 'If I'm going to have 15 minutes of fame, I couldn't think of a better way to do it.' Her recovery is going well, and the grandmother is excited to have no pain when doing everyday tasks. 'Even just to lift something out of your wardrobe, a coat hanger or something,' Ms Stubbings said.
Perth Now
07-08-2025
- Perth Now
First robotic surgery gives granny '15 minutes of fame'
When a grandmother fell and severely injured her shoulder on Christmas Eve, she never thought a robot would be the one to surgically repair it. Kerry Stubbings and her husband had embarked on a grey nomad adventure and were in Perth when she slipped out of a caravan, landing directly on her shoulder. The pain got worse until she started losing function of her arm and was unable to open car doors or hang washing on the line, ensuring many sleepless nights. Ms Stubbings needed medical attention so the couple made the lengthy drive back home to Mackay in far north Queensland. "It was a long drive home," she told AAP. The 66-year-old was sent to Townsville's Mater Hospital and was told she would need a total reverse shoulder replacement after tearing most of her tendons. When Ms Stubbings got a call a few weeks later telling her that a robot would be doing the procedure in an Australian-first, she was shocked. "I didn't expect it in my lifetime," she said. "I thought this was just out of this world, it was amazing." Orthopaedic surgeon Levi Morse explained the benefits of robotic surgery, saying it was less invasive, had smaller wounds, was more comfortable and had a better recovery time. "That sealed the deal for me," Ms Stubbings said. Townsville's Mater Hospital has had the Stryker Mako Ortho Robot since 2011 and has been performing knee and hip reconstructions. But it was recently upgraded to include new technology for shoulder surgeries. The robot has an implant plan uploaded before the surgery, then uses signalling devices in real time to detect the patient's bones and anatomy so that cuts are made within particular parameters, much like bumper bars at 10-pin bowling. Ms Stubbings' surgery went very well, paving the way for more to be done, Dr Morse said. Both Ms Stubbings and Dr Morse felt it was a huge honour to be part of the Australian-first surgery, with Mater Hospital becoming the sixth in the world to perform the procedure. "It was a privilege to be selected to be the first surgeon, and even more so being in Townsville," Dr Morse said. Ms Stubbings said her operation showed robotic surgery was safe and not something to be feared. "It's a nice little legacy to pass on in the family history," she said. "If I'm going to have 15 minutes of fame, I couldn't think of a better way to do it." Her recovery is going well, and the grandmother is excited to have no pain when doing everyday tasks. "Even just to lift something out of your wardrobe, a coat hanger or something," Ms Stubbings said.
