Nurse-led Research

The nurse-led research group at Peter Mac, led by Professor Mei Krishnasamy in Cancer Nursing, relocated to the Department of Health Services Research. This move establishes the group within a dedicated team of multidisciplinary HSR clinicians and academic researchers, committed to practice and service level improvement.

The nurse-led research group currently has ten members, with six affiliated multidisciplinary MPhil and PhD students. The team includes Lisa Brady, Dr Heather Cameron, Holly Chung, Elizabeth Crone, Dr Meabh Cullinane, Catherine Devereux, Melanie Dowling, Nicole Kinnane, Tennille Lewin, and Mei. The team works across a range of projects that focus on four key areas:

Equitable access to care
Supportive care
Older adults with cancer
Nursing workforce

Working across nine studies supported by competitive research grants totalling AUD $3.2m, the team also supports nurses across Peter Mac to develop and implement their own practice change initiatives. Team members are sought out to work across many state-wide and national multidisciplinary studies and, over the past five years, have contributed to competitive grants totalling over AUD$20m.

The Department of Health Services Research was established in 2021 by Professor Karin Thursky. It has rapidly gained national and international recognition as a leader in cancer Health Services Research. Embedding the nurse-led research group with the Department of Health Services Research recognises the criticality of nurses as drivers and enablers of system innovation and improved patient outcomes.