Welcoming new AUSiMED Fellow – Dr Ophir Bar-On

Welcoming new AUSiMED Fellow – Dr Ophir Bar-On

AUSiMED is pleased to welcome Dr. Ophir Bar-On to Australia. Ophir is an outstanding paediatric respiratory disease physician and researcher, who has been working as a senior physician at the Pediatric Pulmonology Institute at Schneider Children’s Medical Center of Israel(Schneider) since 2014.

During his AUSiMED 12-monthLowy Paediatric Fellowship at the Respiratory Department at the Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, Ophir will share his clinical expertise with his counterparts at RC Hand participate in important research in the area of environmental insults on airway cilia function under the supervision of Prof. Phil Robinson, Director, Dept Respiratory and Sleep Medicine at RCH.

Prof Dario Prais, Director of the Pediatric Pulmonary Institute (PPI)at Schneider Children’s Medical Center believes that this fellowship will:

  • Enrich the institute’s expertise in the field of ciliary dyskinesia and children’s lung disease in general;
  • Prepare Ophir for taking up a more senior role at Schneider Children’s Medical Center and contribute to the future development of Schneider’s PPI;
  • Strengthen ties between these two leading paediatric respiratory departments; and
  • Benefit children with lung diseases and their carers both in Australia and Israel.

This AUSiMED Fellowship has been made possible by the generous support of the Lowy Foundation.

We wish Ophir a very fruitful and enjoyable experience in Australia. 

Welcoming Julie Owens to the AUSiMED Team

Welcoming Julie Owens to the AUSiMED Team

We extend a warm welcome to Julie who commenced working at AUSiMED in July 2023.

Julie has joined AUSiMED as Director of Development andher work will support us in our efforts to facilitate exciting medical and health developments that benefit Australia, Israel and the world. She will work closely with Dr Karen Teshuva, our National Program Director.

Julie is an experienced senior manager in philanthropy, with significant skills and experience in the not-for-profit sector, previously working in education, religious and health organisations. She has also volunteered at many charities, supporting them in their fundraising, administration and sustainability.

She holds a Masters in Social Investment and Philanthropy from Swinburne University of Technology, and Graduate Certificate in Business, with a major in Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies from Queensland University of Technology.

Nurturing sustainable and caring relationships with colleagues, staff, supporters, and stakeholders is at the heart of her approach to work and philanthropy, and she brings a commitment to AUSiMED to see it achieve the goal to make a real and tangible difference to local and global healthcare.

We are delighted to have her on board as we commence our journey for the next 10 exciting years.

Welcoming new AUSiMED Fellow – Ms Inbar Irron

Welcoming new AUSiMED Fellow – Ms Inbar Irron

We are pleased to welcome AUSiMED Fellow Inbar Irron, a PhD candidate from Rambam Medical Center to Australia. During her fellowship, Inbar will obtain training in ovarian cancer translational research at the Hudson Institute. At the completion of her fellowship she will use her newly acquired knowledge to advance the Ovarian Cancer research collaboration between Dr Ruth Perets, Rambam Hospital and Assoc Prof Ron Firestein, Hudson Institute.

Ms Deborah Travers joins the AUSiMED Board of Directors

Ms Deborah Travers joins the AUSiMED Board of Directors

We are pleased to introduce Deborah Travers, appointed as a Non-Executive Director, and member of the AUSiMED Development Committee in early 2023. Deborah has an academic background in Genetics and Biochemistry. Her career spans merchant banking, business, and real estate. Deborah‘s multi-faceted interests and vast experience come together seamlessly at AUSiMED where she can interweave her commercial experience with her passion for science, health, nutrition, and technology.

“I am looking forward to advancing AUSiMED’s ground-breaking work and strengthening the bond between Australia and Israel for the betterment of people worldwide.”

Putting the AUS front and centre in AUSiMED

Putting the AUS front and centre in AUSiMED

Prof Lewin AO, Ron Finkel AM and the delegation

In 2022, with COVID still high on the public health agenda, AUSiMED facilitated the visit to Israel, of fifteen of Australia’s leading Public Health experts.

Led by Professor Sharon Lewin, the Director of the Doherty Institute, the 15-person group, including the Chief Health Officers (CHO) of NSW and South Australia, the Deputy CHO of Victoria, engaged with their Israeli counterparts in a rewarding exchange of learnings from the battle with COVID-19. This was made possible by the generosity of our supporters.

A further major outcome of the Lewin mission was the connections made between the Australian delegates and their Israel counterparts in the Digital Health Innovation space.

In 2023, AUSiMED is working to strengthen these connections and facilitating exciting Digital Health initiatives with Israeli experts that will benefit Australia’s health care system.

The benefits of shared experiences are highlighted by delegation members ProfJodie McVernon, Director of Doherty Epidemiology, Doherty Institute and Dr Fergus Gardiner, Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), Director of National Emergency Response, Public Health and Research.

“We can learn from Israel about turning complex record systems into data sets that can used as ‘information for action’ by practitioners and epidemiologists.”ProfJodie McVernon

“The introduction ofgame-changing Israeli telehealth technology to facilitate remote medical examinations could result in major health benefits for Australians living with chronic diseases and people living in remote and rural communities.” Dr Fergus Gardiner