PHTM - Research Methods

Michael Meehan

Senior Lecturer, Biostatistics
michael.meehan1@jcu.edu.au

Jemma King

Lecturer, Public Health
jemma.king@jcu.edu.au

Iyke Emeto

Associate Professor, Biostatistics
theophilus.emeto@jcu.edu.au

Abdul-Aziz Seidu

Lecturer, Public Health
abdulaziz.seidu@jcu.edu.au

Hannah Mason

Lecturer, Public Health
hannah.mason@jcu.edu.au

Julie Parison

Associate Lecturer
julie.parison@my.jcu.edu.au

Maru Castellanos Reynosa

Senior Lecturer, Epidemiology & Communicable Disease Control
maria.castellanosreynosa@jcu.edu.au

Improving Australia’s health and biosecurity through a greater marriage of infectious diseases modelling and genomic surveillance (Old ID 26942)

Michael Meehan

04 Jan 2021 - 18 May 2025

Emerging infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance are among the greatest threats to the Australian health system, and current surveillance tools may fail to detect and mitigate infectious disease outbreaks in real time. This project will develop advanced phylodynamic methods (i.e. mathematical models of infectious disease transmission and pathogen evolution) to enable real-time surveillance of infectious disease outbreaks as they emerge and monitor levels of drug resistance.

Developing phylodynamic models of bacterial evolution to investigate the tuberculosis (TB) outbreak in Daru, Papua New Guinee (Old ID 26449)

Michael Meehan

01 Jan 2019 - 31 Dec 2019

Australia's nearest neighbour, Papua New Guinea (PNG), is listed by the WHO as one of 30 high TB-burden countries, and Daru Island, off the southern coast of PNG, has been identified as a major TB hotspot. Given the immediate and porous border between Daru and Far-North Queensland (FNQ), cross-border transmission of drug-resistance tuberculosis into mainland Australia is a major public health concern. Here we use phylodynamic models (i.e mathematical models of infectious disease transmission supplemented with genetic data) to investigate the scale and severity of TB transmission in Daru and prevent similar outbreaks among FNQ communities.

Research capacity building for control of neglected tropical diseases: A path for sustainable societies on the tropics (Old ID 27483)

Maru Castellanos Reynosa

01 Apr 2022 - 28 Feb 2023

The international community has pledged through the Sustainable Development Goals to eliminate neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) by 2030. NTDs are distributed in several regions in the world, including Oceania and The Americas, and are estimated to affect close to 2 billion people. Guatemala and Queensland, Australia share similar ecological and tropical environments that enhances their susceptibility to epidemics caused by NTDs, particularly considering the effect of climate change. The Universidad del Valle de Guatemala (UVG) and James Cook University (JCU) will conduct a project to build NTDs data analysis capacity and support the efforts of early and middle career researchers to conduct collaborative research in Australia and Guatemala. The project consists of a mixture of online workshops and online research meetings.

Suspected Pulmonary Embolism Exclusion with D-dimers in Emergency Departments (SPEED-ED)

Iyke Emeto

16 Jul 2024 - 01 Dec 2026

Pulmonary embolism (PE) is defined as obstruction of the pulmonary artery or one of its branches, most often by blood clot circulating from a distant site. Acute PE is common, potentially fatal and is associated with a major global burden of disease. predicted to increase in an ageing society Global hospital admission rates have also increased in recent years. The clinical presentation of PE is non-specific due to an overlap of clinical features with other conditions and can vary from asymptomatic to sudden death, meaning the diagnosis is both challenging to make, and important. This has resulted in the development of clinical decision rules (CDRs) and algorithms to aid the diagnostic process and minimise practice variation. These rules employ a combination of clinical probability assessment, laboratory plasma D-dimer measurement and imaging modalities like Computed Tomography Pulmonary Angiography (CTPA) or Ventilation-Perfusion(V/Q) scan. Modified Wells’ score, Revised Geneva Score, Pulmonary Embolism Rule out Criteria (PERC) and Age-adjusted D-dimer threshold are the major validated CDRs in current clinical use that aim to improve consistency and minimise variation.

Enhancing notification-driven linkage to care for people living with hepatitis C in Queensland: System constraints and solutions

Iyke Emeto

14 Aug 2024 - 14 Aug 2026

This project aims to identify and address system barriers hindering the effective use of notification data to identify individuals with untreated hepatitis C (HCV) infection in Queensland, Australia. The study will focus on improving surveillance and linkage to care processes. Despite the availability of curative treatments, HCV remains a significant public health issue, particularly among high-risk populations. Current surveillance systems and case definitions are inadequate for identifying individuals with active HCV infection who require treatment. The project involves a comprehensive approach, including a literature review, system mapping, and gap analysis of the Queensland HCV surveillance system. Additionally, a pilot study will analyze HCV notification data to inform potential data outputs and system improvements. The ultimate goal is to develop recommendations for enhancing HCV surveillance and linkage to care in Queensland, contributing to Australia’s HCV elimination targets

Modelling future testing needs for SARS-CoV-2 (Old ID 27032)

Michael Meehan

21 Oct 2020 - 22 Oct 2020

The Project will enable greater understanding of the current and projected future testing demand for severe acute respiratory acute syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) in Australia. The scope of this project is limited to assessing the demand for laboratory based, or near patient point-of-care, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing, the gold standard test to diagnose COVID-19.

Research capacity building for control of neglected tropical diseases: A path for sustainable societies on the tropics (Old ID 27483)

Iyke Emeto

01 Apr 2022 - 28 Feb 2023

International travel and medical events- an Australian travel insurance perspective in the Covid-19 era.

Maru Castellanos Reynosa

01 Apr 2024 - 31 Dec 2027

This PhD project will measure the impact of international travel on the medical wellbeing of Australians. No such data currently exists. By investigating the relationship between traveller features and communicable and non-communicable diseases, an indication of the true medical risks associated with such travel will be established. The measurements will reflect long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on medical literacy, travel preferences, and public attitudes. The results will inform future product design for insurers and assist travel medical providers to advise clients on their risk for medical incidents during travel. The findings will assist in setting the healthcare expectations for contemporary Australian international travellers.

Efficacy of pressure pad vs pressure bandage immobilisation for snake bite first aid

Iyke Emeto

01 Oct 2024 - 05 Mar 2029

Snakebite affects thousands of Australians annually, with fatalities rare due to effective first aid and prompt medical intervention. Optimal first aid should be straightforward, standardised, employ readily available resources, and be effectively administered with minimal or no formal training. However, the efficacy of current Australian snakebite first aid protocols has been questioned, with emerging evidence suggesting potential harm from certain techniques. Moreover, there is a paucity of robust experimental data supporting current practices. This research project aims to investigate and compare the efficacy of two first aid methods by tracking the dissemination of a simulated venom through a model system. This will provide crucial data to evaluate the suitability of existing Australian techniques and assess the effectiveness of a proposed simpler alternative. Demonstrating the efficacy of this alternative approach would provide a strong foundation for revising current snakebite first aid recommendations