Message from the Head of School

I am continuously inspired by the positive impact our Melbourne Medical School (MMS) alumni community is creating here in Australia as well as around the globe. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your leadership and support in healthcare, and for your continued engagement with the School.

Professor Nicola Lautenschlager, Head of the Melbourne Medical School.

The launch of the Precision Cancer Care Centre is an inspiring step forward in transforming how genomics and precision oncology is delivered in Australia. The Centre is a collaborative effort between the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and the University of Melbourne, and it will enable strong connections with global clinical trial networks and industry.

Equally exciting is the inauguration of the Victorian Collaborative Centre for Mental Health and Wellbeing. This world first unique Centre will bring lived experience experts together with researchers and mental health services to drive transformative change for more person-centred and compassionate care for all Victorians.

The School continues to advocate for primary care reform, and I was delighted to hear Professor Lena Sanci, Head of the Department of General Practice and Primary Care, was appointed Chief General Practice Advisor to Victoria’s Department of Health. Professor Sanci will strengthen connections between government, primary care, and hospitals for greater community health outcomes.

The recent launch of the Gateway Health Psychology Clinic in Wangaratta provides vital and affordable mental health services to the community, and a nurturing vocational experience for our provisional psychologists. The clinic is delivered through a partnership between the Departments of Rural Health in the MMS, Monash, La Trobe and Deakin universities, together with Gateway Health and Budja Budja Aboriginal Cooperative.

This year we saw the launch of two remarkable female-founded healthcare start-ups, which the University has proudly committed a significant pre-seed investment to support the two endeavours. Kali Healthcare, co-founded by Dr Fiona Brownfoot from the Department of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Newborn Health in the Melbourne Medical School, is an innovative technology transforming pregnancy monitoring for high-risk pregnancies. Torch Recruit, founded by Associate Professor Jo-Anne Manski-Nankervis from the Department of General Practice and Primary Care in the Melbourne Medical School, is a new clinical tool designed to automatically identify eligible patients for clinical trials in general practices across Victoria. I look forward to seeing the impact these projects will have on healthcare practices and patient outcomes.

Throughout the year, the School Executive team and I have been developing our strategic foundations for 2023 that will, in time, inform our School’s overarching strategic plan. A key part of this process was a Planning Day with key health service and institute partners, as well as students and consumers, to hear their invaluable insights. The School Executive team look forward to sharing these outcomes with the broader community in the near future.

Supporting women in medicine remains one of our top priorities, and the Melbourne Medical School was delighted to host the second Women Clinician in Academic Leadership Symposium earlier this year. The symposium was an inspiring event, focusing on what is needed now to change the system and culture for women in medicine. It was wonderful to see attendees engage with the speakers and one another throughout the day.

I was also pleased to be a part of the MMS Research Symposium , co-hosted by the Melbourne Medical School and the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health. The collaboration sought to explore how research groups within the two Schools can work together effectively, with a view to stimulate future grant submissions and other collaborative activities.

This year’s MD Student Conference was another resounding success. It was an honour to witness more than 1,300 Doctor of Medicine students across all year levels of the program come together and explore facets of medicine not covered by the curriculum. I would like to thank the entire student-led team for their tremendous effort and hard work.

Student attendees at the 2023 MD Student Conference.

Finally, I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to Professor Sarath Ranganathan for his appointment as the next Head of the Melbourne Medical School, commencing mid-January 2024. Professor Ranganathan is an internationally recognised clinician-scientist and expert in respiratory medicine. He will be known to many of you through his leadership roles in the Faculty including Stevenson Chair and Head of the Department of Paediatrics within the Melbourne Medical School since 2020. I have every confidence that Professor Ranganathan will make a substantial impact on our students, staff, and broader community.

Over the past thirteen months , it has been my absolute pleasure to lead the Melbourne Medical School and witness these significant milestones. These initiatives represent just a fraction of the many accomplishments that have defined our year, and I look forward to watching the continued growth of the Melbourne Medical School.

Best wishes,

Professor Nicola Lautenschlager
Head, Melbourne Medical School