Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences

Our researchers have joined a new global collaboration creating Lancet MedZero, an open-access platform designed to help the health sector measure and reduce its #carbon footprint. Professor Forbes McGain, Dr Scott McAlister and Catherine O'Shea are working with international partners to build a shared database of carbon impacts across medical devices, interventions and medicines. The platform launched at #COP30 and will be available worldwide in 2026. Find out more → unimelb.me/3MGEKQJ 📸 Centre for Sustainable Medicine, Singapore

This week, our Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences came together to recognise the outstanding contributions of our academic and professional staff for 2025. From groundbreaking research to sector-leading teaching, and from community partnerships to initiatives that strengthen inclusion and wellbeing, each nomination reflects the impact our people create across the University of Melbourne and the communities we work alongside. Congratulations to everyone acknowledged this year. Read the full list of recipients → unimelb.me/4iwS8mp

Oral gonorrhoea is rising fast, becoming harder to treat, and is now recognised as a major site where antibiotic resistance develops. But until now, we haven’t had a reliable way to study how the infection actually behaves in the mouth. A new world-first 2D laboratory model, developed by Associate Professor Antonio Celentano at the Melbourne Dental School, with clinical direction from Associate Professor Fabian Kong at the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, is finally giving researchers the visibility they’ve needed. The model shows how the bacteria attach and spread, and why current treatments fail, providing a clearer path towards better-targeted antibiotics and practical prevention tools… including the potential for medicated chewing gum. The work is supported by the World Health Organization and industry partners, and creates a faster, more ethical way to test new approaches without relying on human or animal studies. Read the full story → unimelb.me/4irSPNP

Congratulations to our early-career researchers recognised in this year’s ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards. These projects will drive new insights across health, disability equity and the future of learning, strengthening Australia’s research capability and supporting emerging leaders to deliver community impact. Read the full announcement → unimelb.me/4pyqlV1

AI companions are advancing faster than the policies designed to protect young people. Associate Professor Grant Blashki MD MBBS FRACGP explores why under-18 restrictions are only the beginning, and what real child-safe design should look like as emotional #AI becomes more embedded in young people’s lives. From blurred emotional boundaries to policy gaps and emerging legal cases, this piece unpacks the risks, the early action in Australia, and what needs to happen next. Read the full article via #Pursuit → unimelb.me/3LX9dtP

A huge congratulations to Professor Simine Vazire. Her commitment to rigour, transparency and better science has changed the field for the better and inspired so many emerging researchers along the way 💙

Young Australians are facing significant mental health challenges. One in five young people experiences mental illness, including anxiety, depression and substance abuse disorders. A groundbreaking Victorian trial found that group-based ‘nature prescriptions’ – where health practitioners prescribe nature-based activities for patients – can deliver compelling results and value for money. Conventional therapies can be costly and frequently involve long waiting periods. In contrast, spending time in nature offers an alternative that is affordable, widely accessible, and grounded in a long-standing truth: being in natural environments supports our well-being. Tap through to read more → unimelb.me/3LZS7vc

We’re looking forward to welcoming Professor Christopher Dowrick from the University of Liverpool for a conversation about how creative arts can strengthen mental health and wellbeing. Professor Dowrick will unpack emerging research on how art, music and writing can help people express difficult emotions, build dignity and self-worth, and transform experiences of distress into something meaningful. Join us Wednesday 3 December in Parkville → unimelb.me/4816XKA

Dr Mary Schramm’s career took her from a small Tasmanian town to Fiji, where she helped build midwifery programs, strengthen women’s health, and support culturally informed care across the Pacific. On her recent visit back to campus, Mary was struck by how much more today’s students must juggle part-time work, long study hours, and growing financial pressure. Her response? Creating the Mary Schramm Scholarship, supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in Biomedicine and Science as a pathway into medicine. Through her generosity, future First Nation doctors will be supported to stay connected to community, culture and Country throughout their studies. Read Mary’s full story → unimelb.me/44gqqEE

Black Friday pushes our brains to decide fast, not carefully. Dr Daniel Feuerriegel, from our Prediction and Decision-Making Lab, breaks down how urgency and scarcity cues shift us into impulse mode, and the simple strategies that help us stay in control.