Research programs
Person-centered obesity care – design, implementation and evaluation
Our team works with consumers, clinicians and academics to co-design, deliver and evaluation person-centred obesity assessment and treatment programs. It includes specialists in psychology, nutrition, exercise, medicine, pharmacy and research methods.
Our programs are rooted in the science of changing habits, developing autonomy and improving food literacy to develop strong foundations in self-management to improve outcomes that matter to people living with obesity.
Our research spans the development, implementation and evaluation of complex obesity care, where weight loss can improve health outcomes and/or access to healthcare.
Our studies have demonstrated effective implementation of obesity treatment using an interdisciplinary team delivered 12-month obesity treatment program including a very low energy diet and exercise program, together with group-based support, and developed a co-designed obesity model of care for broader implementation.
Current projects:
- Paving the way: Demonstrating a health practitioner led complex obesity management pathway can improve health outcomes and develop research capacity
- Co-designing person-centred obesity models of care
Discovery to implementation: obesity and chronic kidney disease
We have a large program of research spanning international and local collaborations to characterise, understand, and treat the double burden of obesity and kidney disease. Emerging treatments such as GLP1-RAs can slow the progression of cardio-kidney-metabolic disease , but we do not yet understand the impacts on nutritional status, diet quality and bone health. Our work sets out to understand weight stigma, interactions between adipose tissue and kidney function, and how obesity treatments can improve quality of life and diet quality.
Read more about this program.
Current projects:
- Kidney-adipose tissue cross-talk during weight loss in adults with obesity and chronic kidney disease
- Understanding obesity attitudes, practices and interventions to support kidney transplantation in people living with obesity and kidney failure
Nutritional epidemiology of obesity and critical care
Our team leverage existing data to define associations and relationships between nutritional variables, severity of illness and treatment outcomes to guide future critical care practice and service planning.