OPTIMAL CRE

OPTIMAL Centre of Research Excellence

Overview

Visit the OPTIMAL CRE website

OPTIMAL is a NHMRC-funded Centre of Research Excellence in OPTimising Immunoglobulin Management in Australia. Bringing together patients, leading researchers, health professionals and health economists it aims to generate the new knowledge and research capacity required to design, build and implement better systems for delivering immunoglobulin therapy and improve clinical outcomes for patients.

Immunoglobulin products are precious national resources manufactured from plasma donated and paid for by the community (product costs alone >$800m per year). Supplies of immunoglobulin products are limited and clinical demand continues to grow. We need better evidence to inform policy and practice, and better systems and processes to deliver these therapies to patients, with monitoring of outcomes, adverse effects, and data to understand patient values, preferences and experiences.

OPTIMAL will address national priorities to inform national and international policy and practice to ensure immunoglobulin is being used where it is the most valuable and reduce costs to the community. OPTIMAL will achieve this by generating new knowledge across two broad steams addressing immunoglobulin use in different clinical areas:

  1. Immunoglobulin replacement to prevent infections in patients with blood cancers
  2. High-dose (immunomodulatory) immunoglobulin in two exemplar groups: patients with Kawasaki Disease & Myasthenia Gravis

The OPTIMAL CRE is funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council (Project number APP2024876).

Investigators

  • Professor Erica Wood AO, Principal Investigator (Monash University)
  • Professor Zoe McQuilten, Chief Investigator (Monash University)
  • Professor Dennis Petrie, Chief Investigator (Monash University)
  • Ms Linley Bielby, Chief Investigator (Department of Health, VIC)
  • Dr Laura Fanning, Chief Investigator (Monash University)
  • Professor David Burgner, Chief Investigator (Murdoch Children's Research Institute)
  • Professor Jason Roberts, Chief Investigator (University of Queensland)
  • Associate Professor Anneke van der Walt, Chief Investigator (Monash University, Alfred Health)
  • Associate Professor Leah Heiss, Chief Investigator (Monash Art, Design and Architecture)
  • Associate Professor James Daly, Chief Investigator (Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, Queensland University of Technology)

View the full list of investigators on the OPTIMAL CRE website

Program administration and partners

OPTIMAL CRE is a national network coordinated by the Transfusion Research Unit, in the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University. We are supported by the invaluable contributions and expertise of our investigator team, consumer partners, working groups, stakeholder advisory committee, and individual health professionals and researchers across Australia.

Contact us

Lead Chief Investigator, Professor Erica Wood AO
erica.wood@monash.edu

Program Manager, Dr Lauren Young
optimal.cre@monash.edu

Phone
+61 3 9903 0115

Mail
OPTIMAL CRE Program Manager
c/- Transfusion Research Unit
Monash University
553 St Kilda Road
Melbourne VIC 3004