Dr Elizabeth Paratz awarded Ralph Reader Clinical Cardiology Prize

Dr Elizabeth Paratz from the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences was awarded the Ralph Reader Prize at the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand at the Annual Scientific Meeting in Perth. The prize recognised Dr Paratz’s research into sudden cardiac death in young and middle-aged people as part of her PhD work.

“Sudden cardiac arrest is one of the most significant emergencies I manage as a medical doctor: there are lots of teams involved such as paramedics, emergency, intensive care and cardiology and the need for rapid effective patient care. Following a cardiac arrest, we need to find out why it has happened and support the patient and family,”  Dr Paratz said.

In her research, between 2019 and 2023, Dr Paratz created a state-wide registry that links ambulance and forensic resources to examine every case of young cardiac arrest in Victoria, both on a case-based level, and a larger systems level. This registry will be used to help inform  optimal personalised care, by providing large-scale epidemiological information and highlighting at-risk subgroups, such as those experiencing cardiac arrest in pregnancy, people living with obesity, mental ill-health and other medical conditions.

“Identifying such patterns helps identify missed opportunities, which informs guidelines and clinical changes that help to reduce future episodes of cardiac arrest,” Dr Paratz said.

“My research has also led to the establishment of a clinic where we support cardiac arrest survivors, as well as families of people who died from their cardiac arrest,” she said. “Winning the award is a career-pinnacle moment, as it is the most prestigious cardiovascular research award in Australia for early-career researchers. It is an absolute honour to win the Ralph Reader and I am over the moon.”

In the next steps of research, Dr Paratz will be expanding the registry to all ages and going back through historical findings.

"We have exciting collaborations planned internationally with research teams in many countries and are really moving to a big data analysis phase,” she said.