Menzies School of Health Research’s Jana Lai has been selected as one of 3 finalists for the NT Young Achiever Award, in the science and engineering category.

The Darwin schooled Research Assistant was selected from a pool of 210 candidates, for her work in developing a molecular diagnostic for identifying two key bacterial pathogens in childhood pneumonia.

“Pneumonia is the number one killer of children around the world,” Jana Lai said. “It kills two million children a year, so it actually kills more children every year than HIV, Malaria and TB combined.”

The 24 year old recently received funding to continue her work in the Northern Territory, finding a novel molecular diagnostic to be used at the Royal Darwin Hospital.

Finding ways to diagnose pneumonia early has huge implications for child health outcomes in the Northern Territory’s remote indigenous communities, where some of the highest rates of childhood pneumonia in the world are recorded.

The work also has international implications.

“The methods that we are trying to develop here could have wider impacts globally, particularly in light of the World Health Organisation’s ‘Millennium Goal Four’, which aims to reduce child mortality around the globe by up to two thirds by 2015.

Miss Lai is now working to apply her knowledge in China. An initial scoping trip has taken place, identifying the Sichuan province, recently devastated by powerful earthquakes, as a possible research site.

“China is a really big country and there are a lot of important ties, not just economically but also for research. There’s a really big opportunity to head over there and I guess with the language skills I have I am able to do that. Hopefully this will open up a lot of ties between Menzies School of Health Research and research institutes in China.” Jana Lai said.

The winner of the Young Achiever Award will be announced on the 10th of April.

For more information or to arrange an interview please contact
Laetitia Lemke 0447 275 415 or laetitia.lemke@menzies.edu.au