May 20, 2025Clinical trials offer patients the chance to try the latest treatments and medicines, benefiting their health now and for future generations.
Today is International Clinical Trials Day. This day honours James Lind’s ground-breaking work in 1747, marking the first randomised clinical trial. It highlights the crucial role of clinical research in advancing public health and recognises the contributions of everyone involved.
This Year’s Theme: “Rethinking Clinical Trials: Inclusivity in Practice” emphasises the importance of inclusive and representative trials. At Northern Health, we are dedicated to making clinical research accessible to all, understanding that diversity is key to developing treatments that benefit everyone.
With residents from over 185 countries speaking 106 languages, more than 50 per cent of our cancer patients need language support services from TALS. However, those from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds are still underrepresented in clinical trials.
There are now more than 90 open clinical trials at Northern Health across multiple specialties. Northern Health is one of the only health services in Australia to be assessed as a fully mature clinical trials service against the National Clinical Trials Governance Framework.
Our clinical and TALS staff have created patient-specific lay language clinical trial information sheets in multiple languages to reach CALD communities.
“The growth in clinical trial capacity at Northern Health is truly inspirational. It reflects the commitment of researchers at our organisation to strive to continually improve the quality of care provided to our diverse community,” according to A/Prof Mayur Garg, Acting Director of Research and Director of Gastroenterology.
Since 2022, Northern Health has partnered with TrialHub at Alfred Health to enhance our clinical trial workforce and increase cancer trials. Watch our video, created with TrialHub, to learn more about how clinical trials are available to everyone, regardless of age or ethnicity.
Dr Belinda Lee, Medical Oncologist and Head of Cancer Clinical Trials Unit, says, “Our goal at Northern Health is to ensure that every patient, regardless of background, has equal access to the opportunities and benefits that clinical trials offer our community.”
Join us tomorrow, Wednesday, May 21, at the Ideas Lab, NCHER Level 3, for a one-hour Research Grand Round. Reflect on promoting inclusivity in clinical research and hear from Dr Sharni Norouzi about key barriers impacting CALD participation in cancer trials. The session will conclude with networking opportunities to discuss enhancing inclusivity in our research and practices.
To receive a calendar, invite for this session, please email NH.Research@nh.org.au
Pictured in featured image (L-R): Dr Belinda Lee, Medical Oncologist and Head of Cancer Clinical Trials Unit with Gurinder Kaur JP.
