Projects
As well as supporting several health research fellowships, The George Foundation funds work in the following areas, either alone or in partnership with other agencies. Many include new or ongoing projects that the Foundation has seed-funded and require complementary funding to ensure their completion.
Cardiovascular Disease in China
Cardiovascular disease is a health problem which kills 2.6 million people in China annually - a figure that is predicted to rise significantly by 2020. The Foundation supports two projects in this field. The first that will develop, implement, evaluate and document clinical practices for the management of acute coronary syndromes. The second project will determine the effects of dietary salt substitute on blood pressure - a major cause of cardiovascular disease. For more information on these projects, see Clinical Pathways in Acute Coronary Syndromes in China - CPACS and China Salt Substitute Study - CSSS.
Safety in China
Seatbelt use is low throughout China, particularly in rural areas - a stark contrast to the situation in Australia where seatbelt use is as high as 92 per cent. This higher rate is a result of legislation and enforcement, effecting a major reduction in road fatalities and major injuries. An intervention is underway to raise seatbelt use by up to 30 per cent within two years in a targeted region in China. The project has huge potential to save lives, reduce health costs and preserve families. For more information on this project, see China Seatbelt Intervention.
Renal Health in China
In China, as in other parts of the world, the ageing of the population and the projected growth in prevalence of diseases such as diabetes are creating challenges for health systems. The increasing incidence and prevalence of chronic kidney disease in China means that many people will progress to end-stage kidney disease. With the current global shortage in the availability of organs for transplantation, dialysis will remain the mainstay of their treatment. Using an established network of Chinese clinical and research collaborators, a multi-centre study will provide key evidence regarding clinical outcomes and cost of service provision to facilitate health planning in China and internationally.
Rural Health in India
Over half a billion people live in rural India, with only rudimentary health care. The initiative involves 140 villages in five districts of rural Andhra Pradesh, where activities include the development of a mortality surveillance system, a survey of disease prevalence, and measures to enhance capacity-building. A network of multipurpose health workers is being trained to run intervention studies for adults at high risk of heart and vascular disease. For more information on this project, see Andhra Pradesh Rural Health Initiative - APRHI.
Stroke Research in China
Stroke has become a major public health problem in China, with more than one million stroke deaths occurring each year. In order to allocate healthcare resources in an efficient and equitable manner, policy makers require reliable information on the costs and outcomes of competing healthcare interventions. The study aims to assess the appropriateness of acute stroke care, prevention and rehabilitation and to understand factors that contribute to variations in health outcomes after stroke. This will form the basis of future work to develop, implement and evaluate systems to improve post-acute stroke care in China. For more information on this study, see Quality Evaluation of Stroke Care and Treatment - ChinaQUEST.
Obesity Research in Asia
The epidemic of obesity is sweeping through the low and middle-income countries of Asia, correlating with escalating levels of diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and stroke. In collaboration with the International Obesity Task Force and the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands, this project will document the extent of obesity in a broad range of countries across Asia and will quantify the association between obesity and the risk of heart and vascular disease. For more information on this study, see Obesity in Asia Collaboration.
Primary Health Care in Indonesia
The Foundation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Muhammadiyah, a moderate Islamic non-profit organisation, committed to the provision of Health, Education and Welfare activities across Indonesia. The organisations aim to work together to identify post-tsunami projects of priority to the Indonesian Government, and to seek funding to support such projects.
Trauma Care in Vietnam
This project will implement and evaluate the cost benefits of different models of pre-hospital trauma care in urban areas of Vietnam, looking particularly at accessibility, response times, transport times, initial resuscitation and outcomes. The project's recommendations will provide advice for a cost-effective pre-hospital trauma care network across the country. In a parallel project, a team of Australian trauma care specialists will introduce a training program for both pre-hospital and hospital trauma care staff, including ambulance personnel, nurses and doctors in selected sites in Vietnam with the opportunity for further training in Australia.
