Meet the woman changing the face of Gold Coast healthcare

Our ‘Champions of Education’ winner has always had a vital role – but it’s more important now than ever.

Champions of Education winner Dr Julia Crilly. Photo: Kit Wise.

A PROFESSOR in emergency care at the Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service and Griffith University, Champions of Education winner Dr Julia Crilly leads and supports research in the emergency department.

At a time the tireless efforts of our healthcare workers are in the spotlight, she’s focused on understanding care delivery for vulnerable patient groups and improving the working environment for staff.

“This is the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife and we’re seeing that at the front of people’s minds,” Julia says.

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“Nurses have an inherent interest in wanting to help others – at times like this it’s what we do – so it’s so nice to see the community appreciate that.

Dr Julia Crilly says an important part of her role is to encourage and support others. Photo: Kit Wise.

“An important part of my role is to encourage and support others, to mentor them to think critically and seek out the best evidence that’s out there and apply it to their clinical practice so we’re delivering the best care to our patients.

“The other main area is around staff and their perceptions of their working environment – stress and coping, for example.

“It’s not an easy environment to work in … there’s a pandemic, how do you cope with that? It’s so important our staff are well.”

Julia has been involved in gaining more than $6 million in grants to fund research projects that enable clinicians and students to be mentored.

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She progressed from studying for a Bachelor of Nursing at Griffith University and then working as a nurse at the Gold Coast Hospital to becoming a professor across both institutions.

“There’s so many opportunities in nursing to progress other than clinical work and I’ve always been interested in education and learning,” Julia says.

“I’d go in on my days off because I found the emergency department so interesting.

“The hospital wants to be a world-leading organisation and I want to contribute to that.

“The School of Nursing is No 1 in Queensland and fourth in the world for research, so we’re very lucky.

“Now the hospital is over the road from the university it’s such a good opportunity to bring the experts together and become a source others look to for best practice.”