Awards now open for rising stars of medical research

The Victorian Government is encouraging the state’s brightest health and medical researchers to apply for the 2022 Premier’s Awards for Health and Medical Research.

Applications are open for the prestigious awards which recognise the outstanding achievements of early career researchers and reflect the breadth of research being undertaken across Victoria.

Researchers can apply for one of five award categories – Basic Science, Clinical Research, Health Services, Public Health, and a category for Aboriginal researchers in any health or medical field.

Each category winner will receive $5,000, with one selected to receive the coveted Premier's Excellence Award and an additional $15,000.

Last year’s winner of the Premier’s Excellence Award and Basic Science Researcher Award, Dr Xiaodong Liu, was recognised for his research into stem cell therapies in early pregnancy.

Dr Liu helped create a new model of human embryos from skin cells, termed an iBlastoid, that can be used to study diseases that affect early development and infertility.

Through his innovative work with the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Dr Liu has enabled researchers to better study early human development and has increased the understanding of diseases and complications experienced during early pregnancy.

In 2022 the Victorian Government released the Health and Medical Research Strategy: 2022-2032, which provides a framework for Victorian activity and investment in health and medical research over the next 10 years, including investments in talent to ensure the incoming research workforce is well supported.

The Premier’s Awards were established in 1995 in partnership with the Australian Society for Medical Research.

To find out more and apply, visit the Premier’s Awards for Health and Medical Research. Applications close at 5 pm on 15 February 2023.