Fellow's top science award

09 October 2024

ANZCA's Research Committee chair, Professor Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg, has received the 2024 Frank Fenner Prize for Life Scientist of the Year. 

The paediatric anaesthetist was presented with her award at the annual Prime Minister's Prizes for Science 2024 awards on 8 October. You can watch a video of her speaking about her work here.

The professor is a consultant anaesthetist at the Perth Children’s Hospital and Chair of Paediatric Anaesthesia at The University of Western Australia.

The prize recognises her life-changing research into reducing risks associated with anaesthesia for children, to make surgery and recovery safer.

One-quarter of a million children have surgery involving anaesthesia each year in Australia, and one in seven  experience breathing problems during surgery. Prof Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg’s research uncovered how to identify children at high-risk of breathing problems. This helped ensure vital operations were as safe and pain-free as possible.