University of Newcastle 'trailblazers' honoured with prestigious research awards

Crowned: Laureate Professor Clare Collins, from the University of Newcastle, received a prestigious NHMRC Excellence Award on Wednesday night.

TWO University of Newcastle and HMRI researchers have been awarded prestigious National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) awards overnight.

Dietetics researcher Laureate Professor Clare Collins received the NHMRC Elizabeth Blackburn Investigator Grant Award for Leadership in Clinical Medicine and Science at a gala event in Canberra on Wednesday night.

Professor of Nursing Brett Mitchell - who is investigating strategies to prevent healthcare acquired infections - was awarded the Peter Doherty Investigator Grant Award for Emerging Leadership. The Research Excellence Awards are presented annually to top-ranked researchers and teams following peer review of applications to NHMRC's highly competitive grant schemes.

Award: Professor Brett Mitchell's expertise also contributed to the design of a portable single isolation room, used extensively in the UK in its COVID-19 response.

Laureate Professor Collins's research focuses on nutrition technologies and targets under-served population groups based on life-stage, socio-economic status and geographic location. Professor Mitchell is tackling the looming global threat of microbial resistance.