Australia’s first hospital-based biomedical engineering research centre has been given the green light for construction by the Victorian Government.
Minister for Innovation, Medical Research and the Digital Economy Jaala Pulford, announced planning has been approved for the $206 million Aikenhead Centre for Medical Discovery (ACMD) to be built at St Vincent’s Hospital.
“We’re bringing together the worlds brightest minds to take on tough healthcare challenges, all the while creating jobs and supporting new scientific breakthroughs,” the Minister said.
The new facility is expected to support more than 300 jobs across the medical research sector and house specialised laboratories enhancing the capabilities of the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct in Parkville.
Nine partner organisations will come together under the one roof – St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, St Vincent’s Institute, the Bionics Institute, Centre for Eye Research, University of Melbourne, RMIT, Swinburne University of Technology, Australian Catholic University and the University of Wollongong Australia.
“We are excited to be entering this next important chapter for ACMD and are grateful for the incredible support our partners and the State and Federal governments have provided that has enabled this project to become a reality,” said St Vincent’s Hospital CEO, Angela Nolan.
The facility is currently operating on a smallscale at St Vincent’s Fitzroy campus and when the ACMD opens in 2024, the research institute will be able to upscale device innovation and chronic disease research.
The ACMD will include 3D printing laboratories, a kinetics lab and rooms for sensitive hearing and vision technologies. It will also be home to engineering workshops to produce medical device prototypes and robotics for fast-tracked clinical trials.
“ACMD’s new and unique setting will break down barriers to bring the best and brightest minds, and a wide variety of skill sets, together, in a dedicated building, that is right in the heart of St Vincent’s Hospital, to solve some of the world’s toughest healthcare challenges – something that has never been done before,” said ACMD CEO, Dr Erol Harvey.
