THE PACIFIC RHD PROGRAM
Our story
Currently headquartered at The Kids Research Institute Australia, we are working with our partners to unify two decades of work on rheumatic heart disease (RHD) in the Pacific region. With the support of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Australia (DFAT), the initiative introduces a new mechanism to grow and expand Pacific health leadership.
This Fiji-based Pacific RHD "Knowledge Hub" is a centre of easily accessible resources and research that will continue to evolve with our work. It signifies a new era of coordinated, sustainable and impactful activity, addressing urgent unmet health needs in our region.
Our team
Program Director
Dr Joseph Kado
Dr Kado is an i-Taukei Fijian paediatrician/cardiology-lead, RHD researcher who recently completed his PhD. He is a pre-eminent Pacific
paediatrician, and past President of Pacific Paediatric Association and collaborated in Pacific RHD control. Pre-PhD he led the Fiji MHMS RHD Control Program, and is a technical advisor for Cure Kids-MFAT support for the RHD Control Program Fiji.
Technical Advisor
A/Prof Rosemary Wyber
A/Prof Rosemary Wyber is a a pakeha/balanda/non-Indigenous general practitioner and researcher focusing on Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander cardiovascular health. A/Prof Wyber completed her medical training in Aotearoa, her Master of Public Health at the Harvard School of Public Health and general practice training in Aboriginal Community Controlled Clinics in the Northern Territory of Australia. A/Prof Wyber’s research has focused on rheumatic heart disease, in Australia and internationally. She was the lead author of the RHD Endgame Strategy to eliminate RHD in Australia by 2031 and her PhD thesis addresses policy options to address RHD. She is a Chief Investigator on the NHMRC STARFISH Synergy grant. A/Prof Wyber is a Senior Adjunct Research Fellow at The University of Western Australia. A/Prof Wyber is also a Research Fellow at Australian National University on chronic disease risk assessment and management for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people within the National Centre for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Wellbeing Research.
Program Manager
Christine Everest
Christine has over 25 years in corporate administration management in various industries, with strengths in finance, legal & corporate
compliance. She oversees a portfolio of projects as part of the Strep A Translation team at The Kids Research Institute Australia.
Project Coordinator
Jessica Daw
Jess began working at The Kids Research Institute Australia in 2018. She completed her Honours in Biomedical Science in 2019, where
she investigated the disease-causing mechanisms of Strep A. She has since completed systematic reviews on the burden of Strep A diseases, Strep A transmission mechanisms, and environmental health initiatives to prevent Strep A transmission. She has recently been involved as a Project Coordinator for the Pacific Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) Program funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).
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