The Douglas and Lola Douglas Scholarship in Medical Science

The Douglas and Lola Douglas Scholarship in medical science was made possible through a generous bequest made by Lola Rachel Maude Douglas, a philanthropist with a keen interest in medical research. Her main charity was the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney but one of her great wishes was to support young researchers and this bequest enables the Academy to help to fulfil this wish.

The Scholarship is offered as a ‘top up’ scholarship to a high-ranked PhD candidate awarded a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Training Scholarship in one of the areas of Indigenous or Primary Health Care, with preference given by the Academy to the area of Indigenous Health Research.   It is awarded initially for one year (currently AUD $7,000 per annum) with funding available for a maximum of 3 years.  It is awarded on condition that the scholar continues to hold the NHMRC scholarship and is enrolled in a PhD program, and the Academy receives a satisfactory annual report. The award’s purpose is to cover costs of small items of equipment, research materials, travel, or research assistance.

Areas of research funded to date include:

2012 - Study on “Bacteriology of bronchiectasis in Australian Indigenous children”.

2011 - Vitamin D and acute lower respiratory tract infection in Indigenous children.

2010 - Randomised controlled trial of co-trimazole versus intramuscular penicillin for impetigo in Aboriginal children.

2009 - Beating Scabies and strongyloidiasis in a remote Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory.

2008 - The relationship of obesity, insulin resistance and inflammation in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders with diabetes mellitus and renal impairments.

2007 - Burden of severe disease due to influenza and other respiratory viruses in Aboriginal children in the Northern territory.

2006 - Polycystic Ovary Syndrome in Indigenous Women.

2005 - Pneumonia in Children Territory-wide Using radiological Endpoints, and the impact of pneumococcal vaccine strategies.