4 minute read
A Message from the Director
Image Supplied: Zachary Robinson
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As members of the Tasmanian emergency medicine community we have the privilege, honour and obligation to care for patients, often at their most vulnerable. In 2019-2020, across all Tasmanian Emergency Departments this care was represented by a total of 319,117 presentations.
How we cared for these patients is developed through education and knowledge established through a wealth of research. Reflecting on how we care for patients, from the considered selection of analgesics, the best imaging modality to investigate a clinical question, development of a nurse navigator role as well as our various ‘code’ protocols, we find that most are underpinned by decades of research.
As people who work in and around emergency care in Tasmania, the benefits of inspiring a research culture goes beyond the direct research question. Such culture inspires the everyday practice of critical thinking, inquiry and advancement of a sharpened clinical instinct. It is not necessary for all of us to reach for the heights of principal investigator on an NHMRC grant. Instead, as practitioners of evidence-based medicine, our prerequisite is to understand the rules of evidence to enable appraisal of the strengths, weaknesses and applicability of research for the patients we care for. By updating our knowledge using evidence-based sources through mediums such as journal clubs, conferences or social media, we are creating and contributing to this notion of critical thinking and acknowledging the importance of research in practice. The inaugural publication of the Tasmanian Emergency Medicine Research Group: Research Highlights 2019-20, celebrates the birth of this culture by heralding a coordinated effort to promote research in Tasmania. This publication reflects on the efforts thus far and in doing so, acknowledges the fact that our research is part of the spirit of emergency medicine (EM) that drives excellence in care.
Emergency Medicine, Research & Tasmania
Emergency medicine in Australasia is one of the youngest specialities, being recognised as such in 1993. For comparison, the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and the Royal Australasian College of Physicians were founded in 1927 and 1938 respectively. Our youth as a specialty is therefore also represented in our presence and eminence in clinical research.
Other challenges with succeeding in research in our speciality includes the very nature of our craft. With the magnification of access block, the rise of burnout and coupled with the limited ownership of specific disease processes and limited contact time in the patient journey, how we practice EM research can often be dictated by less time-poor and more research-experienced specialities. Although many of these factors may seek to exonerate EM from comparison
with other research specialities, it should be seen as a manifesto of how to cultivate EM research. As a young speciality, we have the benefit of tailoring the successes and avoiding some of the mistakes encountered along the research journey to fit the EM agenda.
As a state structured as ‘One health care service, One University’, Tasmania is well-positioned to act as a ‘living laboratory’ to deliver robust research thanks to the contained geographical and organisational environment.
The size and harmonic nature of EM health care delivery in Tasmania also enables an adaptable and efficient process of translation and tangible realworld impact. This will further inspire excellence in critical thinking and research.
A Recognisable Identity
In order to progress our research agenda in an efficient, pragmatic and sustainable manner, our strategic priority has been to consolidate our research efforts under a coordinated and identifiable entity. Through this need, the Tasmanian Emergency Medicine Research (TASER) group was created.
TASER also represents a significant collaboration between the University of Tasmania and the Tasmanian Health Service, pairing passionate and experienced EM care providers with equally dedicated and accomplished researchers. Through this partnership, we have and will be able to leverage the strengths of clinicians and researchers to promote practical research and expedite real-world translation. Furthermore, these links will enhance our researcher development program for those chosen few who yearn for more. I would encourage you to read more about TASER and our strategic vision on pages 8-9 and 28.
Collaboration the Cornerstone for Success
Our research strategy is also underpinned by collaboration from outside the walls of our EDs to enable, and empower our program through opportunity and mentorship.
Throughout this publication, you will see that our introduction into research has had the privilege of being helped by many expert researchers. Significant guidance and opportunity have come from the likes of Clinical Professor Simon Craig (Monash University, Monash Medical Centre), Associate Professor Amanda Neil (University of Tasmania) and Clinical Associate Professor Gerard O’Reilly (Monash University, Alfred Emergency and Trauma Centre) as well as organisations such as the Paediatric Research in Emergency Departments (PREDICT) network.
Discovering the Researcher in All of Us
The platform of care that we deliver is built on the pillars of education, research, safety and quality. Our emphasis on each pillar determines its stability. As the Tasmanian EM community, our platform can only be strengthened by building more research into our clinical environment and fostering the spirit of inquiry to those that work in and around EM.
This publication chronicles the start of the Emergency Medicine research journey for Tasmania, focusing on core research priorities and opportunities that have arisen in 2019-20 from the COVID-19 pandemic, to mental health as well as contributing to multi-centred trials both nationally and internationally. I implore anyone that works with and around our craft to join us as we seek to enhance emergency care in Tasmania through research and evidence-based medicine.
Dr Viet Tran
Director of Emergency Medicine Research, Royal Hobart Hospital and the Tasmanian Emergency Medicine Research Group, University of Tasmania
