Shouldering a new responsibility

Geelong orthopaedic specialist, Professor Richard Page, has been appointed St John of God-Barwon Health Chair in Orthopaedic Surgery within the Deakin School of Medicine. 

The Chair has been funded by St John of God Healthcare for an initial term of five years and marks the first time that a three-way Professorial Chair has been appointed in the School.

Professor Page - who has been involved in Deakin’s Medical School since its inception - will be located at St John of God Hospital in Geelong and will continue to have a clinical role at Barwon Health, providing academic, clinical and research leadership in orthopaedic surgery in Geelong and throughout Western Victoria.

“I am honoured to have been appointed to this Chair,” said Professor Page. “I am looking forward to building on the high level of orthopaedic care available in our region and enhancing orthopaedic training.

“This position enables greater emphasis on musculoskeletal research within the Medical School by strengthening links with national researchers and growing international partnerships for excellence in orthopaedic surgery." 

Deakin’s Pro Vice-Chancellor in the Faculty of Health, Professor Brendan Crotty, said the Faculty was “very pleased to announce the appointment, as Professor Page has been very active in orthopaedic research over a sustained period of time.”

“Professor Page has a national and international reputation for his work in shoulder surgery and has been keynote speaker at a number of international conferences,” Professor Crotty said.

“He has been a strong supporter of the medical school. He was a member of the Musculoskeletal Curriculum Working Party, a member of the Medicine Advisory Board and he has delivered a wide range of lectures and tutorials to our medical students. He has also made a significant contribution to orthopaedics registrar training in the Barwon Region.”

Professor Page holds research grants in trauma and upper limb research, and has written over 50 scientific papers. He has described new pathologies and their arthroscopic management in the shoulder, as well as developing new techniques for treatment in the upper limb.

His research interests include outcomes of shoulder conditions and shoulder arthroplasty, as well as biomaterials assessment and epidemiology. He has received numerous prizes, including a Visiting Professorship award from the Association of Academic Surgeons of America in 2009, the Shoulder and Elbow Society European Travelling Fellowship in 2009 and the 2013 ASEAN Travelling Fellowship by the Australian Orthopaedic Association to foster professional orthopaedic relationships with ASEAN nations.