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The Kids Research Institute Australia

At The Kids, our vision is simple - happy healthy kids. Our goal is to make a real difference in our community to benefit children and families everywhere. Our values underpin the way we work and make decisions: collaboration, courage, evidence, respect.

The decades old program helping families and kids to thrive

It’s a brave move to upend your entire family to seek a fresh start – or safety – in a new country: even braver when the country you’re moving to has a completely different language, structure and cultural outlook.

Community and action at the heart of Journey Together project

A unique initiative is combining research, action and advocacy to deliver evidence- based improvements to the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal families in Perth and Western Australia’s north west.

Unravelling medical mysteries for kids with undiagnosed diseases

Three hundred and fifty million people live with an undiagnosed disease worldwide and three quarters of them are children.

“You can't heal yourself in that setting and you wouldn't expect other people in this country to”: Yarning about housing and environmental health in remote Aboriginal communities

Remote Aboriginal communities in Australia are located on traditional lands holding deep cultural significance and meaning for residents. However, systemic inequity rooted in colonisation has driven persistent housing and health disparities, with inadequate environmental health conditions within homes and communities a prominent example. 

Evaluating the scale-up of the Play Active programme for children’s physical activity in early childhood education and care services: a national type III hybrid effectiveness-implementation

Physical activity is crucial for young children's health and development. Many young children do not meet the recommended 3 hours of daily physical activity, including 60 min of energetic play. Early childhood education and care (ECEC/childcare) is a key setting to intervene to improve children's physical activity. The Play Active programme is a scalable evidence-informed ECEC-specific physical activity policy intervention with implementation support strategies to improve educators' physical activity-related practices.

Outcomes following a behaviour change intervention within hospitals to improve birth registrations and hospital utilisation for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander infants

The primary objective was to determine whether a behaviour change intervention delivered to hospital staff would (1) improve the proportion of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander (Aboriginal) babies being registered and (2) reduce hospital admissions and emergency presentations for babies <6 months old. The secondary objective was an observational analysis to determine factors that might influence the proportion of registered Aboriginal births in Western Australia. 

Prevention of rheumatic heart disease in New Zealand: High-dose subcutaneous benzathine penicillin is cost-saving compared with traditional intramuscular injections

Acute rheumatic fever is a preventable condition that can lead to chronic illness and early death. Standard prevention with 4-weekly intramuscular (IM) benzathine penicillin G (BPG) injections for ≥10 years may be associated with poor adherence. High-dose 10-weekly subcutaneous penicillin injections (SCIP) may improve adherence by reducing injection frequency.

Medication Use in Type 1 Diabetes and the Association with Socioeconomic Disadvantage: Analysis of a National Linked Dataset

To explore trends in the receipt of commonly prescribed medications (beyond insulin) in people with type 1 diabetes in Australia, including polypharmacy, and to investigate socioeconomic disparities across these trends.

Empowering Social Competence: A Scoping Review of Digital Social Skills Training Interventions

Effective social skills are essential for functional social support, help-seeking, and resource access. Digital social skills training plays a key role in empowering individuals to develop social competence, improve access to various support and resources, and enhance locus of control through dynamic media.