Dr Jess Heerde awarded MDHS Momentum Fellowship and NHMRC Investigator Grant

Congratulations to Dr Jess Heerde who was awarded the MDHS Momentum Fellowship as well as the NHMRC Investigator Grant 2021.

MDHS Momentum Fellowships support the career pathways of our early to mid-career researchers (Level B and C) who have experienced extraordinary personal circumstances that have clearly impacted their career trajectory.

Dr Jess Heerde is a Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Paediatrics at the Melbourne Medical School. She has established and leads a program of research that highlights both drivers of homelessness and the health consequences of homelessness in the young.  This Fellowship will support Jess to progress her outstanding work and build research momentum for future funding applications.

NHMRC Investigator Grant provides the investigator with flexibility to pursue important new research directions as they arise and to form collaborations as needed, rather than being restricted to the scope of a specific research project. This funding awarded for her research "Improving the health status and reducing the mortality gap for vulnerable young Australians" will allow her to lead research that characterises mortality and access to health care among the young homeless, identify modifiable drivers of homelessness and identify intervention points for both reducing morbidity and mortality and ensuring young Australians make a successful transition into stable housing.

The Department congratulates Jess on her wonderful achievements and well-deserved recognition as a research leader in youth homelessness.  We look forward to hearing more about the research she will undertake with the support of the grant funding.