Peninsula Health is proud to support GenV, a research project led from the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute that aims to help improve long-term health and wellbeing for children and parents.
What is GenV?
GenV is a sophisticated research project with a simple goal: a better approach to child and adult health and wellbeing in Victoria.
GenV will launch at Peninsula Health from mid-2021 and over two years, every family having a baby at Frankston Hospital – and at birthing hospitals across the state – will be offered the chance to participate, no matter their background or location.
GenV is asking parents of newborns across the whole of Victoria to be a part of GenV by safely and securely sharing information about themselves and the health and development of their newborn.
For the first time ever, this will give us a complete picture of the health and wellbeing of a whole generation, allowing us to unlock discoveries that improve the lives of all families.
GenV is one of the world’s largest-ever birth and parent cohort studies. It will follow babies and their parents to help solve problems like asthma, food allergies, obesity and mental illness. By 2035, GenV’s vision is to have helped create a happier and healthier future for many children and parents. Find out more about GenV.
Who is conducting GenV?
GenV is led by the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, is supported by The Royal Children’s Hospital, the University of Melbourne and is funded by the Paul Ramsay Foundation (PRF), the Victorian Government and The Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation.
It is supported by:
- Your birthing and local children’s hospitals, including Peninsula Health
- Victorian universities and research institutes
- Leading experts in Victoria, Australia and around the world
- Local families and communities, who have helped to design GenV
How GenV could make a difference: an example
Sarah gives birth to her daughter, Kate, at a local hospital. A couple of days later she and her partner are approached by a GenV team member and agree to take part. At age four, Kate becomes ill. She is often tired, and not eating or sleeping properly. Her parents take Kate to many different specialists. After months of searching for an answer, Kate was diagnosed with a complex food allergy that needs a special diet.
Researchers using GenV data had been looking at links between food allergies and a broad range of health data. With the complete picture of child health provided by GenV, they find a number of children have a pattern of symptoms like Kate’s.
The researchers shared this knowledge with doctors and other scientists. GenV’s data and samples helped in the discovery of a more precise test for this allergy. With the new test, other families were saved the experience of having a sick child with no diagnosis quickly available.