eProtocol

Creating Difference

In 2023/24, Bellberry celebrated its 20th year of operation.

As part of the campaign to mark our 20th year of operation in 2024, Bellberry launched a podcast series, ‘From Lab To Life’.

Please find below links to all the podcasts in the series so far. These can also be found by searching for ‘Bellberry’ in your favourite podcast platform.

Listen to our podcast series, ‘From Lab To Life’, where we go behind the scenes to understand more about the clinical trial and medical research sector. You’ll hear from experts in the sector, including researchers, clinical trial participants and members of Human Research Ethics Committees, exploring challenges and opportunities facing the health and medical research world.

Introducing Bellberry’s new podcast series, From Lab To Life – join us as we go behind the scenes to understand more about the clinical trial and medical research sector.

As Bellberry celebrates its 20th year of operation in 2023/24, in this first episode ‘Creating Difference’ we speak with Bellberry’s CEO, Kylie Sproston, to understand what Bellberry is and how it works.

The role of a Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) is to ensure that all kinds of research involving or impacting on humans conform to the highest standards of ethical practice and academic integrity. In this episode, ‘Behind Closed Doors’, we meet four members of Bellberry’s HRECs to understand what motivates people to take on this responsibility and how the process works.

As a Not-For-Profit organisation, Bellberry allocates surplus funds raised from HREC review back into the health and medical research sector. In this episode, ‘Chasing The Money’, we hear about Bellberry’s flagship philanthropic program, the Bellberry-Viertel Fellowship, and the impact this funding can have on research careers.

Bellberry has a record of bringing people from all sides of the fence together to make progress in some of the most difficult issues in medical research. In this episode, 'Tackling A Wicked Problem', we hear from experts from across the globe who were brought together by Bellberry to attend an International Scientific Congress in Adelaide in June 2023 to examine how to achieve better outcomes for patients when it comes to accelerated access to potentially beneficial medicines.

Bellberry’s award winning work is supported by a dedicated, talented and growing team. In this episode, 'All In A Day's Work',we meet some of the members of the Bellberry team and find out why they do what they do. They give us an insight into the organisation, the work they do and what gets them out of bed every day.

In this episode of From Lab to Life, we hear the insights from some of the smartest researchers in the country about how they have succeeded in their careers. In 'Speaking From Experience' we hear from Laureate Professor Ingrid Scheffer, Professor Doug Hilton, Emeritus Professor Ian Frazer, Professors Marnie Blewitt, Kim Jacobson and Di Yu about how they have navigated a successful path in the complex and demanding field of medical research.

What are the changes in medical treatment that are going to affect us in the coming years? In our latest episode of From Lab to Life we hear from three researchers and Bellberry HREC members who have a front row seat to the latest developments. 'On the Horizon' reveals that one of the biggest influences on medical innovation is the pandemic. Despite having a devastating effect across the globe it has forced immense change in medical research.

In 'The Quiet Achiever' we met someone who has made an extraordinary contribution to Australian health in a career spanning over six decades. Professor Emeritus Lloyd Sansom AO started his career as a pharmacist, going on to become Professor of Pharmacy as well as Head of the School of Pharmacy and Medical Sciences at the University of South Australia. In 2002 he was awarded an AO and in 2004 his contribution to the University was recognised with the naming of the Sansom Institute for Health Research. He was also Chair of the Australian Pharmaceutical Advisory Council from 1991-2000 and Chair for the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee from 2001-2012. Recently Lloyd retired as a member of Bellberry’s Board and in this episode he gives us insight into his life, work and lessons learnt.

Without the patient or participant we would not have clinical trials. These are the people who, in some cases, are volunteering to have treatments that have never been tried on humans before. In 'It’s All About the Participant' we hear first-hand about what it’s like to be the participant and ask how could the experience be improved for others? In Episode 9 of From Lab to Life we take a deep dive into the experience of those that have been on life-changing clinical trials.

In 'The Balancing Act' we meet Professor Andrew Wilson AO, the recently retired Chair of the PBAC. Andrew is a former Chief Medical Officer of Victoria and has spent his career trying to get the best possible outcomes in public health through our state and federal governments. For someone focused on evidence based research, engaging in the political system can be a huge challenge.

In 2004 Bellberry was founded as a disrupter and paradigm breaker. An institutionally independent not-for-profit company that offers Human Research Ethics Committee services. Today Bellberry provides ethics reviews for more than 40% of the CTN clinical trials that take place in Australia and has re-invested $12 million into the research sector. In 2024 we celebrated 20 years of Bellberry with a focus on the difference we’ve made since we began. This was recognised with Bellberry winning the Telstra Best of Business award for Championing health late last year. In this episode of From Lab to Life called “Eye on The Prize” we hear about the impact of Bellberry from some of the people we work with.

Worldwide there is growing focus on using NAMs (Non-Animal Models also known as Novel Approach Methods) in the development of therapeutics. In other words, removing animals from pre-clinical testing. In this episode of From Lab to Life, we take you to a symposium hosted by Bellberry and ASCEPT (Australasian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists and Toxicologists) held late in 2024. Regulators, ethicists, researchers and industry gathered to discuss shaping a nationally coordinated approach – find out more in “All About NAMs”.

Bellberry Global Symposium 2023