Life Course Centre Chief Investigator Professor Abdullah Mamun, an NHMRC Leadership Fellow at The University of Queensland Poche Centre for Indigenous Health, and his team have been awarded a $5 million Synergy Grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council.
The funding will support their research project (iPreventRHD) which will use a life course approach to help detect, prevent, manage, and ultimately end rheumatic heart disease in Indigenous populations.
Rheumatic heart disease is entirely preventable yet a leading cause of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, with disproportionate impacts on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and other vulnerable communities.
Professor Mamun and his team will partner with communities to develop and implement evidence-based knowledge and culturally appropriate practices to end rheumatic heart disease in Australia, while building capacity among researchers, communities and community-controlled health organisations.
The NHMRC Synergy Grants scheme supports collaborative, multidisciplinary research led by diverse teams to tackle major health challenges, from early discovery to translation.