The five-year collaboration aims to build a world-leading Clinical Data Nexus (CDN), using de-identified patient data from intensive care units (ICUs), and applying AI and machine learning to help researchers develop critical new predictive and diagnostic tools.

Griffith University Pro Vice Chancellor Sciences, Professor Andrew Smith, said it would bring specialist data scientists at the University and Datarwe together with Griffith health researchers and clinicians, to maximise the value of real-world data available from Queensland hospitals.

“This data is a rich resource that we can apply in many beneficial ways,” Professor Smith said.

Andrew Smith (Image: Supplied)

“Our PhD research projects will be targeted to a range of outcomes; from improving recovery for patients with traumatic brain injuries, to better managing ICU resources in infectious diseases outbreaks, helping to predict risks of bacterial infection, and empowering clinical decision-making using medical data processing.

“Important issues of governance, policy, privacy, security and ethics will also be explored.

“Our broad research, under the direction of a new Chair in Digital Health, who will be an industry-focused academic and leader in the field, will cover the development of acute, community and population digital health systems that embrace genomics and also aim to personalise care through safe and reliable medical devices and the Internet of Things (IoT).”

Datarwe CEO Steve Woodyatt said the partnership would deliver health and commercial benefits, with the goal of translating research into innovative digital health products that can be deployed in healthcare in Australia and overseas.

“What we have is a wealth of data – millions of data points from intensive monitoring of thousands of patients in acute care which requires expert ‘cleaning’ and ‘enriching’ by our team of data scientists so that it is ready to be used for research and development,” Mr Woodyatt said.

“We are not about replacing clinicians but assisting them to make informed decisions at the patient’s bedside. These data-enabled innovations will build upon the talent and expertise in our hospitals giving patients more personalised medical care.”

The Griffith Datarwe partnership is supported through a $1.5m Advance Queensland grant to Datarwe, co-located opposite the University in the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct (GCHKP).

The collaboration cements existing ties between Griffith and Datarwe, with the data lab already employing three PhD graduates.