CCRG welcomes Kenyan High Commission and Professor Kathryn Maitland
Professor Kathryn Maitland OBE, Imperial College London, and Professor John Fraser, Founder and Director, Critical Care Research Group
We are honoured to have recently hosted His Excellency Ambassador Mr John Tipis, High Commissioner for Kenya in Australia and New Zealand, represented by Mr Kapchianga Simatwa, and Professor Kathryn Maitland OBE for a suite of events in celebration of decades of international research collaborations.
To mark the occasion, Professor Maitland, who is based full-time in Kilifi at the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, presented a keynote on her game-changing research, life in sub-Saharan Africa, and her career working to save the lives of critically ill children in low resource settings.
As a multidisciplinary group spanning more than 60 countries, CCRG works extensively with scientists, clinicians and researchers in Low and Lower Middle Income countries (LMIC) to further our understanding of critical illness. Our collaborative research projects in North and South Africa have seen many transoceanic exchanges and visits to the region to witness first hand the advancements in critical care led by Professor Maitland and the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, based in Kilifi, Kenya.
CCRG has welcomed two outstanding KEMRI-WTRP Fellows into the fold at our Brisbane campus, Dr Sophie Uyoga and Dr Nchafatso Obonyo, and we look forward to the launch of additional studentship opportunities through the Initiative to Develop African Research Leaders (IDeAL) headed by Professor Samson Kinyanjui.
“As a multidisciplinary group spanning more than 60 countries, we work extensively with scientists, clinicians and researchers in Low and Lower Middle Income countries to further our understanding of critical illness. Our collaborative research projects in North and South Africa have seen many transoceanic exchanges and visits to the region to witness first hand the advancements in critical care led by Professor Maitland, KEMRI-WTRP and my colleagues at CCRG.
We are honoured to be able to return this hospitality and host Professor Maitland and His Excellency here in Brisbane as we celebrate the sharing of knowledge across continents,” said Professor John Fraser.
(L-R): Michael Nissen, Director of Research, TPCH; Anthony Mbugua, Kenyans in Queensland; Professor Thomas Williams, KEMRI-Wellcome; Ms Tami Photinos, Executive Director, TPCH; Dr Nchafatso Obonyo, CCRG Research Fellow; Professor Kathryn Maitland OBE; Professor John Fraser; Mr Kapchianga Simatwa, Edith Kamundi, Kenyans in Queensland; Mr Keith McNeil; Dr Maggy Lord, African Professionals in Australia; Michael Hornby OAM; Jim McGowan AM; Ms Lara Lowndes, The Common Good Board
(L-R): Dr Nchafatso Obonyo, CCRG Research Fellow; Lara Lowndes, Director, The Common Good Board; Mr Kapchianga Simatwa, Deputy Head of Mission, High Commission for Kenya; Mr Michael Hornby OAM, CEO, The Common Good
Professor John Fraser with Mr Kapchianga Simatwa, representing HIs Excellency Mr John Tipis, High Commissioner for Kenya in Australia and New Zealand
Professor Keith McNeil, Assistant Deputy Director General and Chief Clinical Information Officer for Queensland
Mr Kapchianga Simatwa, Deputy Head of Mission, High Commission for Kenya representing His Excellency Ambassador Mr John Tipis
Professor Kathryn Maitland OBE, Professor of Paediatric Tropical Infectious Diseases, Imperial College, London, based at the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programmer in Kilifi, Kenya
Professor John Fraser (centre) receives gift from Mr Simatwa and Edith Kamundi, President, Kenyans in Queensland
Professor Maitland with Dr Nchafatso Obonyo, Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Critical Care Research Group and KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme Alumni
Metro North Health Board Members (L-R): Dr Robert Franz, Director of Surgery at The Prince Charles Hospital; Jim McGowan AM, Board Chair; and Ms Nera Komaric
Meet Professor Maitland
Professor Kathryn Maitland MBBS, FRCPCH, PhD, FMEDSci, OBE is Professor of Paediatric Tropical Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, and Director of the International Centre of African Research and Engagement (ICCARE) Institute for Global Health Innovation Division of Medicine, Imperial College London St Mary's Campus, United Kingdom; Principal Investigator, KEMRI Wellcome Trust Programme, Kilifi Campus, Kenya; and Honorary Fellow at MRC Clinical Trials Unit, University College London, United Kingdom.
Based in East Africa, Professor Maitland is largely focused on assessing and improving the techniques used in the emergency care of children in resource-limited hospitals in sub-Saharan Africa. Earlier this year Professor Maitland was recognised in the Queen’s Jubilee Birthday Honours List, awarded an OBE for her work improving the care of critically ill children, including studying the impacts of malaria, bacterial sepsis, and severe malnutrition.
Meet Dr Nchafatso Obonyo
Dr Obonyo joined the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme in 2011 to work alongside Professor Maitland to examine the supporting evidence for the septic shock treatment guidelines. Subsequently in 2013, he was awarded the prestigious Global Health Research Fellowship from the Wellcome Trust’s Centre for Global Health Research at the Imperial College London for his work on the management of septic shock in critically ill children.
Dr Obonyo joined The Prince Charles Hospital’s Critical Care Research Group in 2014 and awarded a Research Fellowship and an Innovation Grant from The Common Good in 2021.
Dr Obonyo was recently invited to a reception to His Excellency Amb. John Tipis, High Commissioner for Kenya (pictured) to discuss his research and future collaborations with his home country. The event was organised by Kenyans in Queensland, a networking group that promotes Kenyan culture and foreign exchanges across the state.