The inaugural Kitchen Fellowship in Neonatal Research has been awarded to Dr Trisha Prentice, neonatologist and recent clinical fellow at the Women’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
The Fellowship is named in honour of Dr W.H ‘Bill’ Kitchen, a legendary figure in care of the newborn in Australia, and Director of Neonatal Practice at the Royal Women’s Hospital from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s.
Dr Prentice trained in neonatology at the Women’s and is now also working at the Royal Children’s Hospital. She undertook a Master’s Degree in Bioethics, and this interest is reflected in her doctoral thesis, titled ‘The impact of the life trajectory of extremely low gestational age neonates on moral distress of health care professionals within neonatal intensive care units.’
Dr Prentice said she was very honoured to be the Inaugural Kitchen Fellow.
“The Fellowship offers an exciting opportunity to focus on and promote research in a novel field. The moral stress involved in making decisions about the care of very pre-term babies can impact professional well-being, leading to burnout. Understanding and addressing this stress will assist in our provision of care to babies and their families”, Dr Prentice said.
“The Women’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is very well recognised at an international level for its research, and for its excellence as a training institution, and I am proud to be part of that”, she said.
Her research, the first study of its kind internationally, will follow healthcare professionals’ perspectives throughout the preterm baby’s stay at RWH.
Professor Peter Davis, Director of Neonatal Research at the Women’s said Dr Prentice’s work was of international significance.
“Trisha’s research will lead to better understanding of the stress many professionals experience in this field, and the supports we all need,” he said.
Professor Lex Doyle, Associate Director of Research, said Dr Bill Kitchen pioneered new approaches to neonatal care.
“He was the founding father of modern newborn baby care in Victoria, and had a tremendous impact of the health and wellbeing of thousands of pre-term babies. This Fellowship aptly recognises his great contribution.”