Eastern Health

The Allied Health Clinical Research Office, established in 2006 as a joint initiative between Eastern Health and La Trobe University, coordinates a wide range of research projects. The research team promotes research culture within the organisation and provides clinician education and training to build capability in evidence-based practice. The Allied Health Clinical Research Office has become a central point of coordination and advocacy for allied health research at Eastern Health.

The partnership embodies Eastern Health’s values: to understand that healthcare is about people caring for people; to strive for excellence; and to employ kindness, respect, agility and humility in professional relationships between staff, and with patients and their families.

About Eastern Health

Since its establishment in 2000, Eastern Health has played a key role in the provision of public health services in Melbourne’s eastern and outer eastern suburbs. Today, it’s one of Melbourne’s largest metropolitan public health services.

Geographically, Eastern Health covers the municipalities of Boroondara, Knox, Manningham, Maroondah, Whitehorse and Yarra Ranges. Services are located across 2800 square kilometres in the east, the largest geographical catchment area of any metropolitan health service in Victoria.

Eastern Health is committed to developing and delivering services that meet the needs of a diverse and growing community. It encompasses seven hospitals, three emergency departments and more than 10,000 employees. It delivers 45 clinical services to more than 750,000 people.

Eastern Health provides a range of emergency, surgical, medical and general healthcare services. This includes maternity, palliative care, mental health, drug and alcohol, residential care, community health and state-wide specialist services to people and communities that are diverse in culture, age, socio-economic status, population and healthcare needs.

Eastern Health’s research is highly productive with 481 publications in 2021.

As a progressive, responsive and innovative health service, Eastern Health demonstrates its commitment to excellence through external accreditation with the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards.

Allied Health Research

The partnership between Eastern Health and La Trobe University leverages a strong research culture to improve the efficiency, effectiveness and delivery of health services, along with evidence-based practice. Research is driven by real world problems and the findings are quickly translated into practice.

The research program encompasses:

• Improving mobility after hip fracture
• Physical activity for cancer survivors
• Reducing waiting time for outpatient and community services
• Building research culture and capacity in allied health services

Education

The partnership between Eastern Health and La Trobe University provides clinical education placements for allied health students across acute hospitals, rehabilitation services, mental health settings, aged care and community-based services.

Each year Eastern Health provides more than 10,000 clinical placement days for students in physiotherapy, occupational therapy, social work, podiatry, audiology, dietetics, pharmacy and speech pathology. The number of pre-registration students undertaking clinical placements with Eastern Health continues to grow, in part funded by a Department of Health and Human Services Training and Development Grant.

La Trobe University is Eastern Health’s primary partner for allied health placements. In the last two years the education partnership has been expanded to include undergraduate nursing students and co-delivery of the Masters of Nursing in Intensive Care, Emergency Care and Cardiac Care. This postgraduate program ensures that Eastern Health staff working in these specialty areas have the requisite skills to provide high quality, evidenced-based care for our patients.

An Associate Director in Learning and Teaching provides support and governance of student programs, increasing student exposure to benefit the organisation’s recruitment and workforce strategies.