College of Medicine & Dentistry
Dena Francis
- Lecturer, Molecular Genetics
- deanne.francis@jcu.edu.au
Brittany Moller
- Doctor of Philosophy (Health)
- brittany.moller@my.jcu.edu.au
Doris Pierce
- Lecturer, Dental Sciences
- doris.pierce@jcu.edu.au
Alkira Deren
- Clinical Research Officer
- alkira.venn@jcu.edu.au
Jenny Elliman
- Senior Lecturer
- jennifer.elliman@jcu.edu.au
Vicki Dunk
- Lecturer, Biomedicine
- vicki.dunk@my.jcu.edu.au
Joyce Cooper
- Associate Professor, Pharmacy
- joyce.cooper@jcu.edu.au
Michael Robinson
- JCU Lecturer
- michael.robinson@jcu.edu.au
Shaun Solomon
- Senior Lecturer, Indigenous Health
- shaun.solomon1@jcu.edu.au
Manjunath Rajashekhar
- Senior Lecturer in Clinical Dentistry and Dental Public Health
- manjunath.rajashekhar@jcu.edu.au
Lowitja Foundation Grant in Support of PhD Candidate Jenifer Darr
PhD Candidate Ms Jenifer Darr received funding from the Lowitja Institute to conduct her research project on CQI in Aboriginal Community Controlled Services in Australia.
Parasitic Disease Wastewater Surveillance to Inform Public Health Action in Remote Northern Queensland
Intestinal parasites are chronic, preventable infectious diseases of poverty that disproportionately affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in northern Australia. Public Health Surveillance for these diseases is time-consuming, costly, difficult and intrusive, requiring faecal and blood testing of community members. This project will validate and pilot the use of wastewater testing for the surveillance of important intestinal parasites, including strongyloidiasis, whipworm, giardiasis, and amoebic dysentery infecting people in north Queensland. The use of wastewater sampling will augment the capacity for public health surveillance by facilitating time and cost-efficient parasitic disease surveillance simultaneously in multiple communities.
A pilot trial of combined hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) and a Lifestyle Medicine (LM) program for multimorbid conditions
Lifestyle Medicine is a rapidly emerging modality of treatment to optimise chronic disease management and prevention. Its application is underutilised in primary and tertiary healthcare with research showing low risk and great benefit with this non-conventional approach. Lifestyle medicine incorporates 6 pillars of health and wellbeing, including nutrition, physical activity, minimising stress, enhancing sleep, addressing addictive behaviours and maintaining community connectedness. Patients at the Department of Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine (DDHM) have treatment plans that are daily Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) sessions undertaken in a compression chamber. The daily treatments can extended upwards of 4-8 weeks. The majority of patients have 2 or more chronic conditions (multimorbidity) and take 5 or more medications (polypharmacy). Multimorbidity and polypharmacy are known to increase non-adherence to medical advice, risk of side effects, cost to the patient and health system, and shorten quality and quantity of life. Lifestyle Medicine reduces severity of chronic disease and supports health and wellbeing, thereby reducing the overall burden of illness and its impact on the person and healthcare services. The DDHM provides the perfect opportunity for a patient-centred LM approach that can be attached to standard care with minimal interruption to services, staff, patients, or budget, with provision of a template that can be adapted to meet acceptability and feasibility feedback from participants and staff. The LM program supports the overaching goals of HBOT integration by supplementing a siloed approach to health provision with a LM group based program during standard patient care in the DDHM. This program will ideally enhance patient health, wellbeing and service satisfaction, plus support staff satisfaction through their involvement with provision of holistic health care.
A pilot trial of combined hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) and a Lifestyle Medicine (LM) program for multimorbid conditions
Lifestyle Medicine is a rapidly emerging modality of treatment to optimise chronic disease management and prevention. Its application is underutilised in primary and tertiary healthcare with research showing low risk and great benefit with this non-conventional approach. Lifestyle medicine incorporates 6 pillars of health and wellbeing, including nutrition, physical activity, minimising stress, enhancing sleep, addressing addictive behaviours and maintaining community connectedness. Patients at the Department of Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine (DDHM) have treatment plans that are daily Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) sessions undertaken in a compression chamber. The daily treatments can extended upwards of 4-8 weeks. The majority of patients have 2 or more chronic conditions (multimorbidity) and take 5 or more medications (polypharmacy). Multimorbidity and polypharmacy are known to increase non-adherence to medical advice, risk of side effects, cost to the patient and health system, and shorten quality and quantity of life. Lifestyle Medicine reduces severity of chronic disease and supports health and wellbeing, thereby reducing the overall burden of illness and its impact on the person and healthcare services. The DDHM provides the perfect opportunity for a patient-centred LM approach that can be attached to standard care with minimal interruption to services, staff, patients, or budget, with provision of a template that can be adapted to meet acceptability and feasibility feedback from participants and staff. The LM program supports the overaching goals of HBOT integration by supplementing a siloed approach to health provision with a LM group based program during standard patient care in the DDHM. This program will ideally enhance patient health, wellbeing and service satisfaction, plus support staff satisfaction through their involvement with provision of holistic health care.
IFT27 links the BBSome to IFT for maintenance of the ciliary signaling compartment
- 2014
- Cell Press
- Researchers:Richard Francis
Global genetic analysis in mice unveils central role for cilia in congenital heart disease
- 2015
- Nature Publishing Group
- Researchers:Richard Francis
DNAH6 and its interactions with PCD genes in heterotaxy and primary ciliary dyskinesia
- 2016
- Public Library of Science
- Researchers:Richard Francis
Title:
Men are shaving off their eyelashes on TikTok, here's why that might be a bad idea, The Conversation
Start Date:
14 May 2025
Start Date:
15 May 2025
Start Date:
03 Jun 2025
Start Date:
01 Jan 2012
Title:
Grants Review
Start Date:
01 Jan 2024
End Date:
01 Jan 2024
Title:
Public Health Advocacy
Start Date:
01 Jan 2024
End Date:
01 Jan 2024
Start Date:
16 Jun 2025