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5 August 2024—Three ADEA consumer representatives will attend the Australasian Diabetes Congress 2024, thanks to a generous grant from Bellberry, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to enhancing the welfare of research participants and improving the quality and effectiveness of research.
ADEA successfully secured a $12,000 grant through the Bellberry Participant Engagement at Scientific Meeting Grant Program to cover travel expenses for Meaghan Read, Tim Benson, and David Burren, helping them bring their invaluable perspectives to the congress.
This program aims to enhance participant-centric conferences, ensuring participant voices are represented and heard, ultimately improving research through participant perspectives.
Meaghan Read, living with type 1 diabetes since 1986, has witnessed significant advancements in insulin, technology, and diabetes awareness.
A passionate advocate, she focuses on technology access, quality healthcare, type 1 diabetes prevention, elevating lived experiences in research, eliminating stigma, and fostering peer support.
“People living with diabetes are the true experts,” she said.
“Their expertise should be harnessed to ensure all products and services meet our community’s needs.”
Meaghan Read
For the past three years, Ms Read has combined her health research qualifications with her passion for community engagement as the community engagement lead at Diabetes Victoria.
She also works with the Australian Centre for Accelerating Diabetes Innovations and chairs the community engagement panel for the Australasian Type 1 Diabetes Immunotherapy Collective.
“These roles allow me to elevate the voice of lived experience, which brings me great joy,” she said.
Tim Benson has been a health consumer representative and advocate for more than 27 years.
He has advised two federal health ministers and held leadership roles at the WA Health Diabetes and Endocrinology Clinical Network, Diabetes WA, and the Diabetes Guidelines Expert Advisory Group at Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute.
Currently, he is a Patients for Patient Safety Champion for the World Health Organization, a member of the Diabetes Standard Set Project Group for the International Consortium of Health Outcomes Measurement, and the Australian representative on the Six Degrees Medical Type 2 Diabetes DEEP Virtual Advisory Board.
Tim Benson
Earlier this year, he co-authored an article in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology titled Living between two worlds — what researchers, clinicians and community organisations can learn from diabetes lived experience.
He has presented at numerous conferences worldwide and said “the insights from those living with diabetes are invaluable”.
“Our experiences offer critical perspectives that should inform diabetes care and research globally,” he said.
David Burren has lived with type 1 diabetes for more than four decades, gaining extensive personal experience from using syringe injections, insulin pens, manual pumps, and now the latest advanced Automated Insulin Delivery (AID) systems.
He also helps coordinate several online peer support groups for people living with all types of diabetes, the largest of which has more than 16,000 members.
In addition to running the Bionic Wookie website, Mr Burren works in AID development with Nascence BioMed.
He has participated in various clinical trials and now contributes to the field by helping conduct randomised controlled trials.
He also serves as a lived-experience representative for several other studies.
David Burren
A Bellberry spokesperson emphasised the importance of participant voices in medical research: “The voice of the participant should always be at the centre of all considerations”.
“Our participant engagement grants help organisations ensure this happens,” the spokesperson said.
ADEA congratulates the recipients and thanks Bellberry for their support through the Bellberry Participant Engagement at Scientific Meeting Grant Program.
Bellberry is a national, not-for-profit organisation providing streamlined scientific and ethical review of human research projects. Bellberry aims to promote and improve the welfare of research participants and the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of research. Read more about Bellberry’s grants here.
The Australasian Diabetes Congress (ADC), organised by ADEA and the Australian Diabetes Society (ADS), is a major event for healthcare professionals, researchers, and educators in diabetes. It features keynote presentations, workshops, and poster sessions on diabetes care, management, and education. The congress promotes collaboration, innovation, and professional development, ultimately improving outcomes for individuals living with diabetes.
To register and for more information, please visit the official website.
5 August 2024—Three ADEA consumer representatives will attend the Australasian Diabetes Congress 2024, thanks to a generous grant from Bellberry, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to enhancing the welfare of research participants and improving the quality and effectiveness of research.
ADEA successfully secured a $12,000 grant through the Bellberry Participant Engagement at Scientific Meeting Grant Program to cover travel expenses for Meaghan Read, Tim Benson, and David Burren, helping them bring their invaluable perspectives to the congress.
This program aims to enhance participant-centric conferences, ensuring participant voices are represented and heard, ultimately improving research through participant perspectives.
Meaghan Read, living with type 1 diabetes since 1986, has witnessed significant advancements in insulin, technology, and diabetes awareness.
A passionate advocate, she focuses on technology access, quality healthcare, type 1 diabetes prevention, elevating lived experiences in research, eliminating stigma, and fostering peer support.
“People living with diabetes are the true experts,” she said.
“Their expertise should be harnessed to ensure all products and services meet our community’s needs.”
Meaghan Read
For the past three years, Ms Read has combined her health research qualifications with her passion for community engagement as the community engagement lead at Diabetes Victoria.
She also works with the Australian Centre for Accelerating Diabetes Innovations and chairs the community engagement panel for the Australasian Type 1 Diabetes Immunotherapy Collective.
“These roles allow me to elevate the voice of lived experience, which brings me great joy,” she said.
Tim Benson has been a health consumer representative and advocate for more than 27 years.
He has advised two federal health ministers and held leadership roles at the WA Health Diabetes and Endocrinology Clinical Network, Diabetes WA, and the Diabetes Guidelines Expert Advisory Group at Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute.
Currently, he is a Patients for Patient Safety Champion for the World Health Organization, a member of the Diabetes Standard Set Project Group for the International Consortium of Health Outcomes Measurement, and the Australian representative on the Six Degrees Medical Type 2 Diabetes DEEP Virtual Advisory Board.
Tim Benson
Earlier this year, he co-authored an article in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology titled Living between two worlds — what researchers, clinicians and community organisations can learn from diabetes lived experience.
He has presented at numerous conferences worldwide and said “the insights from those living with diabetes are invaluable”.
“Our experiences offer critical perspectives that should inform diabetes care and research globally,” he said.
David Burren has lived with type 1 diabetes for more than four decades, gaining extensive personal experience from using syringe injections, insulin pens, manual pumps, and now the latest advanced Automated Insulin Delivery (AID) systems.
He also helps coordinate several online peer support groups for people living with all types of diabetes, the largest of which has more than 16,000 members.
In addition to running the Bionic Wookie website, Mr Burren works in AID development with Nascence BioMed.
He has participated in various clinical trials and now contributes to the field by helping conduct randomised controlled trials.
He also serves as a lived-experience representative for several other studies.
David Burren
A Bellberry spokesperson emphasised the importance of participant voices in medical research: “The voice of the participant should always be at the centre of all considerations”.
“Our participant engagement grants help organisations ensure this happens,” the spokesperson said.
ADEA congratulates the recipients and thanks Bellberry for their support through the Bellberry Participant Engagement at Scientific Meeting Grant Program.
Bellberry is a national, not-for-profit organisation providing streamlined scientific and ethical review of human research projects. Bellberry aims to promote and improve the welfare of research participants and the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of research. Read more about Bellberry’s grants here.
The Australasian Diabetes Congress (ADC), organised by ADEA and the Australian Diabetes Society (ADS), is a major event for healthcare professionals, researchers, and educators in diabetes. It features keynote presentations, workshops, and poster sessions on diabetes care, management, and education. The congress promotes collaboration, innovation, and professional development, ultimately improving outcomes for individuals living with diabetes.
To register and for more information, please visit the official website.
