Western Sydney Local Health District’ Professor Clara Chow has been recognised as one of Australia’s most innovative cardiovascular and stroke researchers at the Australian Cardiovascular Alliance (ACvA) Excellence in Cardiovascular Research Awards.
The 2025 ACvA Translation Award was presented to Professor Clara Chow and the Westmead Applied Research Centre (WARC) Digital Health Team, recognising how research-driven innovation can transform healthcare delivery at scale.
“It’s a national award that recognises translation and is meaningful because it’s about creating impact,”
Clara said.
The scale of cardiovascular disease is immense; it accounts for one in every five deaths nationwide.
Professor Chow and her team have turned a decade of research into reality, “Our Digital Health journey started in about 2010 with $125,000 from Heart Foundation, and since has got funding from many sources,” Professor Clara Chow .
Over 10,000 cardiovascular patients in Western Sydney have already been supported by the innovative digital approach.
Through text messages, apps, wearables, and AI, patients receive personalised post-discharge support that reduce readmissions by 10-20%.
The post discharge support service has recently extended into Blacktown and Mount Druitt Hospitals, which has an estimated 600 people enrolled to date.
The translational journey from co-design to clinical trials to health system integration shows the real-world impact of research, with potential for system-wide adoption across Australia.
Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death globally, and the Awards shine a spotlight on the breadth, impact and diversity of cardiovascular and stroke research across Australia, from discovery science through to translation and clinical impact.