Following our Fellows

Introducing our 2022 Telethon Fellows who are undertaking ground breaking clinical research projects, thanks to the support of Telethon donations.

Dr Weihao Lee

Perth Children’s Hospital Paediatric Emergency Registrar Dr Weihao Lee is one of this year's Telethon Fellows.

Dr Lee is investigating a better way of diagnosing or ruling out appendicitis for children who present to emergency departments (ED) with abdominal pain by using a clinical score.

He said there are more than 30 scores reported in the literature but few of them have been tested in children who present to EDs in Australia with abdominal pain so they are rarely used.

Diagnosis of appendicitis is often challenging and may require a combination of blood tests, ultrasonography or CT scans.

Dr Lee said the challenges can result in unnecessary transfers of children to PCH for a surgical opinion.

He said using a proven clinical score could change the way ED staff deal with abdominal pain.

“It could potentially save time, money and reduce the risk of radiation exposure for children by limiting the need for CT imaging as a diagnostic tool.”

The study is paving the way for a multi-centre trial endorsed by the Australian PREDICT network of paediatric emergency research with PCH as the lead site.

Dr Lee said it was excellent to have dedicated research time to review the literature around a topic of interest thanks to his fellowship win.

“It makes us better doctors to reflect on our practice, our evidence and consider if and how we can do better.

“Research is hard but rewarding work,” Dr Lee said.

Dr Jaslyn Ong

Perth Children’s Hospital Clinical Research Fellow in Immunology Dr Jaslyn Ong will use her Telethon Fellowship to undertake a clinical research project supporting parents involved in a peanut allergy trial. 

Dr Ong is part of the team running an Australian first Early Peanut Immunotherapy in Children (EPIC) trial aiming to desensitise children who are allergic to peanuts.

Her study recognises the need to support, empower and educate parents of the children involved in this trial through monitoring changes in their quality of life.

Peanut allergy is one of the most common causes of life-threatening reactions (anaphylaxis) among children in Australia.

“At present, there is no approved treatment option for peanut allergy in Australia so strict avoidance remains the standard of care,” Dr Ong said.
“We also know the stress associated with avoiding certain foods such as nuts can reduce quality of life for children and their families.

“Longer term we hope results from our clinical trials will help pave the way towards offering oral immunotherapy as part of our routine clinical care.”

Running the parental research in parallel with the clinical trial will help ensure PCH can potentially develop a holistic service in the future that best supports parents and children affected by food allergies.

The results of this study have a wider benefit given food allergies are one of the most common causes of childhood illness in Australia

Dr Ong said she was excited to be connected to research that impacts so many Australian families through her fellowship.

Director of Research Professor Tim Jones, who was also the inaugural recipient of the fellowship in 1986, said PCH was grateful to Telethon for their long running support of this program.

“Our patients and families have directly benefited through this research program for more than 35 years.

“We congratulate Dr Ong and Dr Lee on their fellowship success and we look forward to their contribution to our proud legacy of Telethon supported research,” Professor Jones said.