ELIZABETH Verghese has been fascinated by the human body from a young age.
“I have always loved science and researching how the body works and trying to work out what can go wrong with the body and how we are able to fix it,” Dr Verghese says.
Earlier this month, the curiosity of the Sunshine Hospital researcher and Victoria University lecturer was recognised with the science and technology prize at the Victorian Young Achiever awards.
The $2000 prize recognised Dr Verghese’s efforts in advancing research of chronic kidney diseases, degenerative muscle disorders and kidney cancers.
Dr Verghese leads a federally funded collaborative research project into the benefits of exercise for chronic kidney disease patients. She’s also head of a project developing a kidney cancer vaccine.
But she says the most rewarding aspect of her career is passing knowledge on to budding nurses, paramedics and medical students.
“I really find research fascinating because you are adding that to a body of knowledge that will one day help real people. But it’s the people I work with, including my colleagues and the students who may one day treat my family and friends, that really motivates me to work hard and succeed,” she said.
“The biggest highlight is being able to teach students who will one day put the research into practice.”
Dr Verghese says her desire to succeed comes from her father Verghese George, a lecturer at Swinburne University.
“My dad and I are very alike. When I was younger I looked up to him because he loved his job so much and it gave him so much joy to pass his knowledge on to students.
“I wanted to be somebody who loved their job, too.”
Dr Verghese, who is due to give birth to her first child in August, says she hopes to continue her research into kidney disease and muscular dystrophy.
“Research into kidney disease is very important to me because you are benefiting more than 1.7 million people who are waiting for a transplant or relying on dialysis to survive.”
