Professor Andrew Turpin has been appointed as the inaugural Lions Curtin chair in ophthalmic big data, based in Western Australia.
The new chair, jointly appointed through the Lions Eye Institute (LEI) and Curtin University, aims to enhance WA’s international competitiveness in artificial intelligence, image analysis and computation involving large medical datasets.
Turpin is a global leader in data science and analytics and is currently director of the Melbourne Data Analytics Platform (MDAP) and senior academic convenor of the Petascale Campus Initiative at the University of Melbourne.
Turpin, who will commence in his new role in Perth in November this year, said he was looking forward to the opportunities that the combined resources of LEI, Curtin and Western Australia would bring to improve patient outcomes using data and computational techniques.
The Lions Curtin chair in ophthalmic big data has been established by the LEI and Curtin, with support from the Lions Save-Sight Foundation WA (LSSFWA), to enhance leadership and research in ophthalmic big data.
The chair will build on experience in computer science, image analysis and computation involving large datasets, including data interpretation assisted by artificial intelligence methods. The position is jointly funded by Curtin and LSSFWA.
Professor Bill Morgan, managing director of LEI, said the appointment would contribute to Western Australia’s burgeoning reputation as a centre for research excellence in ocular disease.
“Professor Turpin will bring deep expertise that will further develop the institute’s and Curtin’s work in artificial intelligence, image analysis, Indigenous, rural and remote eye health, and data linkage,” Morgan said.
“He will help to drive the research agenda and facilitate the translation of research knowledge into policy and practice.”
Turpin’s research interests include computational problems in human vision, in particular developing new techniques for diagnosing and monitoring glaucoma.
Through his new chair role, he will undertake internationally competitive research, build new capacity in analytics across optometry and ophthalmology, support research and eyecare systems development involving large and continuous related datasets.
Professor Archie Clements, pro vice-chancellor, Faculty of Health Sciences at Curtin, said he was delighted to welcome Turpin to Curtin University and Western Australia.
“Professor Turpin’s extensive academic leadership experience will be critical for lifting data science research in the state, with a focus on eye health, an area of significant need here in WA,” Clements said.
“Our partnership with the Lions Eye Institute has been incredibly exciting and we look forward to Professor Turpin building on the momentum we have created in eye health research.”
LEI and the University of Western Australia also recently announced the appointment of the Lions Eye Institute UWA chair in optometry research, Professor Allison McKendrick, while an international search is under way to fill the Ian Constable chair in discovery and translational ophthalmic science.
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