Professor Christina Mitchell AO inducted to Monash Honour Roll
Executive Dean, Professor Christina Mitchell AO.
Executive Dean of Monash University’s Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, and academic clinical haemotologist, Professor Christina Mitchell AO, has been inducted to the Monash Honour Roll.
Honour Roll inductees are recognised for their ability to build and sustain successful teams and cultures, their generosity in contributing to the broader academic agenda, and their willingness to share knowledge, expertise, and experience with their colleagues and their expertise in their research field.
Professor Mitchell is a health and medical research leader and physician-scientist specialising in clinical haematology. Professor Mitchell’s research focuses on the characterisation of the metabolic pathways that regulate phosphoinositide signalling in human cancer. She leads one of the top phosphoinositide research groups worldwide, and is the leading researcher in her field in Australia. She has published over 150 papers, has an h-index of 64 and has 11,000+ citations.
Professor Mitchell has been awarded over $30 million as Lead Chief Investigator from funding bodies such as the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), the Australian Research Council, the National Breast Cancer Foundation and mRNA Victoria. Professor Mitchell received the Sir John Monash Distinguished Professorship at Monash University in 2010 and was elected as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences in 2014. In 2015, she was inducted to the Victorian Honour Roll of Women and received the Lemberg Medal for Excellence in Biochemistry from the Australian Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. In 2019, she was bestowed an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to medicine in the field of haematology, to medical education and research, and to academic leadership.
Professor Mitchell has an extensive and impressive 24-year leadership record at Monash University. She was the Head of the Department of Biochemistry from 1999-2006 and the Head of the School of Biomedical Sciences from 2006-2010 before being appointed as Executive Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (MNHS) in 2011, a role she continues to fulfil with distinction. During her tenure as Dean, Professor Mitchell has shaped the faculty into a world-leading research and education powerhouse. Professor Mitchell was the first woman to be appointed Dean of Medicine at a Group of Eight university.
Under Professor Mitchell’s leadership, MNHS’ research income has increased from $155 million in 2013 to over $390 million in 2023. Professor Mitchell has built excellent relationships with the executive leaders of Monash University affiliated hospitals, both public and private, resulting in increases in research productivity, willingness to take Monash students for placements and university-associated clinical trials. Under her leadership, MNHS now educates a large proportion of the Victorian healthcare workforce, with participation rates of Indigenous students doubling since 2016, and the participation of women, regional and remote students continuing to grow.
As Executive Dean, Professor Mitchell has overseen unprecedented growth in research and education activity, revenue and impact. The Faculty has risen in global rankings across a broad range of subject areas. Numerous disciplines are now ranked in the top 30 in the world, with Nursing and Midwifery ranked 3rd globally in the ShanghaiRanking GRAS 2023 and Anatomy and Physiology ranked 17th globally in the QS World University Rankings by subject 2024.
Professor Mitchell contributed to the development of three world-class Biomedical Sciences precincts, providing space for 800 researchers and delivering a critical mass for the conduct of cutting-edge medical research, and supported the development of the $65 million Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute (ARMI) and provided senior leadership for the development of major research platforms, including genomics, structural biology, cellular imaging, histology and phenomics. Professor Mitchell also contributed to successful bids to establish the Victorian Heart Hospital and the National Centre for Health Ageing, and supported key initiatives such as the Victorian Heart Innovation Centre, theTranslational Research Facility and Monash Health.
Under Professor Mitchell’s leadership, international partnerships have also flourished. Monash’s key role in the M8 Alliance also resulted in the recent co-hosting of the World Health Summit 2024 regional meeting in Melbourne.
Professor Mitchell has also been an outstanding role model and mentor for many academics across Monash and the broader tertiary sector. She has mentored the development of women in medical research through identifying, encouraging and appointing female leaders, and championing the appointment of female Heads of Schools and Deputy Deans.
Dean of the Sub-Faculty of Health Sciences Professor Wayne Hodgson congratulated Professor Mitchell on behalf of the faculty. “I am delighted that Professor Mitchell has been inducted into the Monash Honour Roll,” he said. “She is an exceptional leader who is the driving force behind the faculty’s growth and success. We’re very pleased that she’s been recognised by the wider Monash community for her outstanding contribution to the University.”