Charities

Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute
The Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute (Victor Chang Institute) is recognised as one of the world’s premier research institutes for cardiovascular disease which kills more people than any other disease in the world.

Internationally recognised for the quality of its discoveries, the Victor Chang Institute has pioneered the use of novel transplantation techniques, advanced stem cell research, bioengineering, structural biology, complex molecular and genetic analyses to diagnose, treat and ultimately prevent cardiovascular disease.

http://www.victorchang.edu.au

Black Dog Institute
As a medical research institute and not-for-profit the Black Dog Institute aims to improve the lives of people affected by mental illness. Their vision is of a mentally healthier world. In Australia each year, 1 in 5 people experience a mental health problem and around 3,000 people die by suicide. The Black Dog Institute are pioneers in the diagnosis, early intervention, prevention and treatment of mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and at the forefront of suicide prevention research and programs. They place research at the heart of everything they do, developing evidence-based education programs, clinical treatments and online mental health interventions for the community.

http://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au

Brain and Mind Centre, Sydney University
Brain and Mind Centre is transforming brain and mind health with world-leading research. Brain and Mind Centre teams partner across borders and disciplines in pursuit of a common goal: the development of better treatments for conditions of the brain and mind, improving health outcomes now and for future generations.

Disorders of the brain and mind are among the greatest health challenges faced in the 21st century. These diseases are devastating for those affected, their families and society, and threaten the social and economic participation of people of all ages across the world.

Brain and Mind Centre takes a patient-centred approach to understanding and treating conditions of the brain and mind. It brings people together, integrating its clinical practice and research to pioneer new systems of care.

https://sydney.edu.au/brain-mind/

The Children's Hospital at Westmead - Paediatric Intensive Care Unit, Research
The Children's Hospital at Westmead treats over 81,000 children a year from across NSW, Australia and the Pacific Rim. With over 57,000 Emergency Department presentations and 859,000 outpatient visits, the Children's Hospital at Westmead is the place that cares for the sickest kids. Supported by the Sydney Children's Hospitals Foundation the Children's Hospital at Westmead relies significantly on philanthropic support to fund research across the hospital. Through Lab-based discovery science and biomedical research the Children's Hospital at Westmead translates research results into clinical practice.

Caring for the youngest patients the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) is a 21-bed unit providing supportive care to 1400 infants, children and adolescents each year. Patients come to PICU with the entire spectrum of critical care problems. Patients may be admitted following surgery including cardiac surgery, neurosurgery, liver or renal transplant or with a range of other conditions such as respiratory illness, trauma, burns or other severe medical conditions as well as an outreach service.

Research within PICU is focused on ensuring the very best chance of survival of the youngest patients after major surgery as well as minimising the long term health effects that can result from such intrusive procedures.

The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health
The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health (Florey Institute) is one of the largest and highly respected brain research centres in the world.

The Florey Institute works on a range of serious diseases including stroke, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and motor neurone diseases, depression and addiction (amongst others). The Florey Institute is a world leader in imaging technology, stroke rehabilitation and large population studies to improve patient care around the world.

The Florey Institute is committed to finding causes, treatments and cures for conditions affecting the brain and mind and are seeking ways to help people live without suffering and to improve health on a global scale.

The Centre of Human Psychopharmacology, Swinburne University
The Centre for Human Psychopharmacology (CHP) is one of the leading international research centres studying the effects of a wide range of 41 pharmacologically active pharmaceuticals, nutrients and illicit drugs on important cognitive, mood and biological processes.

CHP houses more than a dozen full-time academic researchers in the area of human psychopharmacology who are assisted by specialized clinical trial staff (e.g., nurses, GP, Clinical Trials Coordinators). CHP operates clinical trial facilities in custom built human facilities. These include blood taking facilities, biological processing (for instance, markers of inflammation and oxidative stress, gut biome, and other biomarkers relevant to neurocognitive processes).

The key areas of research include novel pharmacological compounds for neurocognition; plant-based medicines for Major Depression and Generalized Anxiety Disorder; the effects of illicit medicines on cognition; the relationship between the microbiome and cognition, mood and brain function and Developing Emotional Intelligence in Schools.

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/research/human-psychopharmacology/

Multiple Sclerosis Research Australia Limited
Multiple Sclerosis Research Australia Limited (MS Research Australia) is the largest Australian not-for-profit organisation dedicated to funding, coordinating, educating and advocating for multiple sclerosis (MS) research as part of the worldwide effort to solve MS. The primary mission is to accelerate research towards the prevention, better treatments and, ultimately, a cure for MS.

MS is the most common acquired chronic neurological disease affecting young adults, often diagnosed at around 30 years of age and, in Australia, affects 3 times more women than men. As yet, there is no cure. There is no known single cause of MS, but many genetic and environmental factors have been shown to contribute to its development.

In MS, the body’s own immune system mistakenly attacks and damages the fatty material, called myelin, around the nerves. Myelin is important for protecting and insulating nerves so that the electrical messages that the brain sends to the rest of the body, travel quickly and efficiently. This means that the brain cannot talk to other parts of the body, resulting in a range of symptoms that can include a loss of motor function (e.g. walking and hand and arm function, loss of sensation, pain, vision changes and changes to thinking and memory).

The incidence of MS in Australia is on the rise and the economic costs associated with the disease are spiralling.

Many experts believe that drastically increasing research funding in to MS could mean the disease could become manageable within a 15 year time frame.

https://msra.org.au/

Orygen
Orygen is the global leader in early intervention for youth mental health, improving outcomes for young people and families through research, clinical services, training and policy. Orygen pioneered Australia’s early psychosis programs and designed and rolled out Australia’s headspace centres. There are now over 110 headspace centres throughout Australia and replicated in over 10 countries around the world. Orygen’s innovative work in youth mental health led to Professor Pat McGorry receiving the 2010 Australian of the Year award. Orygen has over 500 staff, with the main campus in Parkville, Melbourne.

Youth Mental Health

Mental health is the biggest issue for Australia’s youth. Suicide is the biggest killer of people under 44 and people with mental illness are the largest group on Australia’s Disability Support Pension. Mental illness is a young person’s disease with 75% diagnosable by the age of 25. Over one million young Australians suffer from mental illness annually. This has an overwhelming impact on the ability of a young person to finish school, secure a job and form healthy relationships going into adulthood. Orygen’s early intervention work targets young people aged 12 to 25.

https://www.orygen.org.au/

Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, research
Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (RPA), in Sydney Local Health District, is one of Australia's premier tertiary referral hospitals and is recognised as a worldwide leader in healthcare excellence and innovation.

RPA is a centre of excellence for medical research, known internationally for pioneering highly complex interventions and novel treatments and as a training ground for the next generation of clinicians.

The team of experienced clinicians in the RPA Emergency Department cares for patients and their families 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Supporting RPA research will help them drive advancements in translational research improving trauma, emergency and critical care. Moneys donated to RPA will be preferentially directed to supporting research in emergency medicine, critical care and related fields.