Welcome to Professor of Child Health Informatics - Jim Buttery
It is my pleasure to announce the commencement today of Professor Jim Buttery as the inaugural Professor of Child Health Informatics in the University of Melbourne Department of Paediatrics.
As well as this role, Jim will also be taking a position with MCRI and a clinical role as an infectious disease’s physician at the Royal Children’s Hospital.
Professor Buttery is a senior clinical researcher who was working at Monash Children’s Hospital and Monash University. He is an infectious diseases physician with a strong track record of building and developing health services in hospital medicine and public health using informatics and data. Jim developed Australia’s leading vaccine safety service, SAEFVIC and remains the Head of Epidemiology and Surveillance for SAEFVIC. He was also the Chair of Monash Partner’s Data Executive, which is responsible for data strategy for what is currently the largest academic health translation research centre in Australia.
The Centre for Child Health Informatics is a partnership between the University of Melbourne Department of Paediatrics, the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and the Royal Children’s Hospital and is generously supported by the Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation. It aims to become an international leader in the use of data to improve all aspects of patient care, operations and research, data, information, and technology can improve effectiveness, efficiency, and equity of care. Professor Buttery has a vision for child health informatics that is well-aligned with this vision of our campus partners and the Centre for Health Informatics, and we believe he will bring great leadership in building a partnership between academics and clinical practice. His vision includes five pillars for improved use of data in direct patient care, patient care processes, public health, population health and policy, and engagement with our community.
Many will already know Jim as he worked at RCH for many years before his work at Monash. His impressive research outputs and impact have been delivered within busy clinical roles. He has authored over 170 peer-reviewed publications, has an H-index of 35, with over 4000 citations. His qualities as a leader, collaborator and successful researcher pertaining to data, and the values he displays will contribute to success. We are very grateful to him for accepting this role.
Jim will work closely with existing campus staff who have interest and expertise in informatics and will play a leadership role in developing child health informatics in the first centre of its kind in Australia while gaining from the broader opportunities provided by the Centre for Digital Transformation of Health at the University of Melbourne. Jim’s appointment is therefore strategically important and builds capacity in the area of health informatics while strengthening all our partnerships on the Melbourne Children’s Campus. Please join me in welcoming him.
Prof Sarath Ranganathan MBChB MRCP FRCPH FRACP PhD ATSF
Stevenson Chair and Head, Department of Paediatrics