BIOSTATISTICS IN CLINICAL TRIALS
Kate Francis, Biostatistician (Snr Research Officer)
Murdoch Children’s Research Institute &
Honorary Research Fellow,
Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne &
Affiliate Biostatistician,
The Royal Children’s Hospital,
Melbourne, Australia
RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Melbourne, Australia | July 2025
Kate Francis is a biostatistician with the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI), an Honorary (Senior Fellow) within Department of Paediatrics, the University of Melbourne and Affiliate biostatistician with Royal Children’s Hospital in Narrm (Melbourne), Australia.
As a biostatistician working in research and clinical settings, she plays a vital role in ensuring all projects adhere to best practice guidelines and are transparently reported. She has served as the lead statistician for the analysis of clinical trials across a broad range of subject areas, including neonatal resuscitation, BCG for allergy and infection, convulsive status epilepticus and her work has been published in the top journals such as The New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, and The Lancet. Most recently she was awarded the 2025 Excellence in Trial Statistics Award for her work on the PLUSS trial.
Kate is also an expert in the measurement of adolescent health behaviours, determinants, and outcomes and this was recognised with her invitation to be a commissioner for the second Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health and Wellbeing which was recently released at the 2025 World Health Assembly meeting.
Kate believes in the importance of gender equity, diversity, and inclusion and was key team member in helping MCRI achieve bronze accreditation in the Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) program.
Source: Supplied
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Clinical pathways for acute care in Tasmanian Emergency Departments
Assoc Prof Viet Tran has built Emergency Medicine Research in Tasmania from the ground up, which has culminated in the success of a AUD$3 million Australian Government Medical Research Futures Fund grant looking into the Implementation of Clinical Pathways for Acute Care in Tasmania project. Dr Tran is also the Emergency Medicine Discipline lead within the Tasmanian School of Medicine and has key roles to play within Emergency Medicine training. He feels privileged to be able to teach and mentor across the whole spectrum of becoming a doctor, from watching students grow into junior doctors, senior registrar and as fellow medical specialists.
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Mental wellbeing in rural and regional communities dealing with environmental challenges
Associate Professor Suzie Cosh is a psychologist and clinical researcher. Her work focuses on the intersection of climate change and mental health and she currently leads a body of work that focuses on supporting small rural communities to recover from and prepare for extreme weather events such as bushfires, floods and droughts.
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Indigenous Australian health and ear disease
Professor Kelvin Kong feels incredibly fortunate to lead a fulfilling life surrounded by his loved ones. With a demonstrated history of service in the health industry, he brings a wealth of expertise across various sectors including clinical research, medical education, surgery, paediatrics, health policy, and Indigenous education. Kelvin started his university, residing at New College in 1992, which brings him fond memories. Graduating from medicine from the University of NSW, Kelvin continued his studies and became a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) and Australian Society of Otolaryngology, head & neck Society (ASOHNS).
