Reflecting on 2024: Celebrating Excellence and Innovation in the AVATAR Community

As 2024 comes to a close, we’re reflecting on an extraordinary year of dedication, innovation, and impact within the AVATAR community. Here are some recent highlights from our incredible team:

• Dr Mari Takashima earned her PhD with a thesis featuring 5 published papers, combining clinical expertise, statistical acumen, and remarkable perseverance. Her work on childhood lung health promises a bright future ahead.
• Dr Amanda Corley was awarded the Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control Seed Research Grant 2024 for her project: ‘Vascular haemodialysis catheters in intensive care: a survey of bedside maintenance practices to address high infection rates and catheter failure.’ Her collaborators included Emily Larsen, Prof Nicole Marsh, and Prof Melissa Bloomer.
• Prof Nicole Marsh received the Elaine Graeme Robertson Award for best oral presentation at the 2024 Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control conference. Her STICKY Trial involved collaboration with esteemed colleagues including Catherine O’Brien, Emily Larsen, Evan Alexandrou, Robert S Ware, India Pearse, Fiona Coyer, Maharshi S Patel, Ruth H Royle, Claire M Rickard, Kellie Sosnowski, Patrick N A Harris, Kevin B Laupland, Michelle J Bauer, John F Fraser, Craig McManus, Joshua Byrnes, and Amanda Corley.
• Dr Jessica Schults was named Early Career Researcher of the Year at the UQ Centre for Clinical Research (UQCCR) Director’s Awards and also received the 2024 Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences Staff Award for Early Career Research Excellence from The University of Queensland.
• On 17th November, AVATAR and AVAS hosted a very successful pre-conference workshop day at the Australasian College of Infection Prevention and Control (ACIPC) conference in Melbourne. Sponsored by Solventum, the full-day event, themed "Let’s Rein in Blood Stream Infection from Vascular Catheters!", attracted 100 in-person participants and 30 online attendees. With exceptional speakers like Rebecca McCann, Prof Andrew Stewardson, Prof Diana Egerton-Warburton, and others, the workshop sparked robust engagement and discussion around practical applications of research to prevent bloodstream infections.
• The Smart Management of PIVCs: Strategies for Success Seminar offered clinicians, students, and research fellows insights into PIVC management. Held on Friday, 8 November, the event featured interactive sessions on standards, safety, insertion, maintenance, and removal.

We are so proud of every member of the AVATAR community for their unwavering commitment to improving healthcare outcomes. Here’s to continuing our shared mission in 2025!

Wishing you all a joyful holiday season and a wonderful year ahead!