IN THE COMMUNITY

 The Raine Medical Research Foundation’s connection with Charter Hall goes beyond mere collaboration; deeply rooted in the rich history of Mary Raine. Through the remarkable generosity and foresight of this visionary woman, the Raine Medical Research Foundation has been able to support innovative research that has investigated some of the most complicated health challenges facing us today.

 Charter Hall’s unwavering support of the Raine Foundation’s research endeavours began in 2018, marking the beginning of a meaningful collaboration dedicated to advancing Child Health Research. This invaluable support has significantly deepened our understanding of various health conditions affecting children.  From pioneering new treatments for childhood cancer to developing innovative approaches for addressing mental health issues in children. The collaborative efforts between Charter Hall and the Raine Foundation have also propelled research into clinical trials. Moreover, through the Raine Foundation's Research Collaboration Award program, generously supported by Charter Hall, researchers have had the opportunity to gain expertise at prestigious international research institutes which they have brought back to Australia. This exchange of knowledge and expertise assist in enhancing health outcomes for Australian children affected by illness.

  With over $60 million distributed to over 600 researchers, the Raine Medical Research Foundation has built an extraordinary knowledge base that continues to drive cutting-edge medical research providing hope and opportunity for those impacted and living with health conditions. Charter Hall's contributions to this Endeavor highlight their commitment to advancing medical research and in particular  to improving the lives of children and families suffering from health conditions.

The Charter Hall Visiting Postdoctoral Scholar Award program that facilitates the visit of high-achieving international postdoctoral research scientists who are in the early stages of their career. Visiting scientists bring many benefits to the WA scientific community including advances in health and medicine, cross-fertilisation of skills and ideas, networking and collaboration, as well as important reciprocal exchange programs. Visiting scientists also make a significant contribution to the teaching and research programs in their specialist field of medical research. Dr Emanuela Zannin from Politecnico di Milano, Italy was awarded the first Charter Hall Postdoctoral Scholar Award and visited Perth in October 2018. Dr Zannin is a biomedical engineer who looks at ways of improving biomedical technologies to help pre-term babies that are often born with respiratory problems.

Charter Hall’s fundraising project during the Raine Square development in 2018 supported medical research to treat children with neurodevelopmental disorders, such as ADHD, learning difficulties, autism and range of communication and motor disorders. The study was led by Professor Stephen Houghton, Director of the Centre for Child and Adolescent related disorders, with his team at the University of Western Australia. The research concentrated on identifying different scenarios and groups of kids with neurological disorders that deal with loneliness throughout metro and rural Western Australia. The research resulted in the development of an app that helps improve the lives of children living neurodevelopment disorders via a 3-D animated interactive self-paced programme.

In 2019, the Charter Hall Research Collaboration Award programme was established, which aims to facilitate national and international research collaboration opportunities, skill and knowledge transfer, and conference attendance for early-career child health researchers. Dr Gizachew Tessema from Curtin University was supported in 2020 to develop a collaboration with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health to investigate whether the time between two successive births impacts on the frequency of adverse birth outcomes, while eliminating biases that were introduced in other studies due to not including pregnancy loss. This research aims to improve clinical recommendations to minimise adverse birth outcomes.

In 2021, this award was granted to Dr Cele Richardson from the School of Psychological Science at the University of Western Australia. This research is investigating whether inclusion of bright light therapy improves sleep and mental health outcomes for young people with depression.