A big thank you to everyone who made the Passe & Williams Foundation Board and Staff feel so welcome in Newcastle, as we arrived for the much-anticipated OMOZ (Otitis Media in Australia) conference. It did not disappoint!
Held on the traditional lands of the Awabakal and Worimi people (New South Wales, Australia), OMOZ is a forum for clinical practitioners and health workers of ear disease, with a focus on Indigenous Health. We were delighted to see so many familiar faces in attendance, including:
The Foundation was proud to sponsor the attendance of Otolaryngology Registrar Nayellin Reyes-Chicuella at the conference. Flying across from Whadjuk Noongar country (Perth metropolitan region, Western Australia) for the event. Nayellin has a particular interest in Aboriginal Health, having worked all across Australia.
Before OMOZ, the Board also took the opportunity to visit Foundation Alumni A/Prof. Rebecca Lim and Prof. Alan Brichta at the University of Newcastle, who along with Hannah Drury and Simone Stanger, took them through the Surgical Training Unit in the Medical Sciences Building. The state-of-the-art unit allows surgical students across a range of disciplines to combine technology with hands-on experience, for a comprehensive training experience. The space also serves the region at large, with critical care organisations such as the Hunter Retrieval Service practicing their skills at the unit. This is an incredible asset to regional New South Wales, and the state as a whole.
We also touched base with A/Prof. Payal Mukherjee and Prof. Gordon Wallace via Zoom. The collaborative outputs of these two has been recognised with the 2024 India Australia Business and Community Alliance Awards. Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to chat with us.
There was much to take from OMOZ, with the range of presentations showing a complete picture and holistic, community approach to solving the challenges faced by Indigenous communities with regards to their ENT health.
The Foundation again wishes to pay their respects to the traditional custodians of the land, past, present and emerging. In particular, a thank you and congratulations to conference chair Prof. Kelvin Kong for his generosity in hosting such a powerful event.