Research interests
Small rural emergency departments are not simply cut-down versions of large urban emergency departments. Although they treat a similar range of patients, they have different clinical and organisational challenges. Australia has over 400 small rural hospitals, that manage 16% of Australia’s emergency presentations, or almost 1.3 million attendances per year. Unfortunately, there is little research to guide evidence based care in these facilities.
Associate Professor Baker was appointed as the Inaugural Director of Deakin University’s Centre for Rural Emergency Medicine in 2008. Since then, the Centre has raised more than $3,300,000 in research, training, and workforce development grants. He has published articles on many of the key areas or rural emergency medicine, including;
- Developing rural hospital clinical and administrative databases
- The activity and performance of small rural emergency departments
- Interactions with ambulance services
- Health literacy of rural communities
- Supporting rural clinicians through telemedicine
Current projects include;
- Developing a region-wide database of small rural emergency department activity and performance for research and assessment of innovation
- Collaborative practice between rural nurses, paramedics, and doctors
- Using alcohol use screening of emergency department patients to guide public health interventions
Affiliations
Fellow of the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine
Teaching interests
Associate Professor Baker is interested in assisting rural emergency clinicians develop their knowledge and skills, whatever their stage of learning. He guided, as topic convenor, the five-week emergency medicine rotation for Deakin’s first final year medical students, and is active in student teaching and assessment. He is on the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine’s Non-Specialist Training Committee that has developed the Certificate and Diploma of Emergency Medicine courses for Rural Doctors. He has been a Director of Emergency Medicine Training for doctors undertaking Specialist Emergency Training. He has given lectures to emergency medicine specialists, nurses, physiotherapists, paramedics, and first aid volunteers.
Professional activities
Associate Professor Baker is a practising specialist emergency physician, and consulted for his expert opinion by government and non-government organisations. This maximises his ability to translate research into clinical and organisational practice.
- Member of Victorian Department of Health Rural and Regional Health Advisory Committee (2011-Present)
- Member of the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine’s Rural Regional and Remote Committee (2012-Present)
- Clinical lead and co-author of the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine’s Quality Standards for Emergency Departments and other Hospital-based Emergency Care Facilities (2015)
- Lead author of Models of Rural Emergency Care Manual for Victorian Department of Health (2015-2017)
- Member of Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care Expert Advisory Committee, which produced National Acute Coronary Syndrome Clinical Care Standards (2013-2014).
- Member of the Australian Heart Foundation’s Expert panel on the Capability Framework on Acute Coronary Syndrome to support evidence-based practice in all parts of Australia (2014).
- Chair of Victorian Department of Small Rural Emergency Facility Working Group (2013-2014)
Publications
K Holloway-Kew, T Baker, M Sajjad, T Yosef, M Kotowicz, J Adams, S Brumby, R Page, A Sutherland, B Kavanagh, S Brennan-Olsen, L Williams, J Pasco
(2024), Australian Journal of Rural Health, C1
S Gill, J Stella, M Chatterton, N Lowry, K Kloot, T Reade, T Baker, G Hayden, M Ryan, H Seward, R Page
(2023), Vol. 35, pp. 496-503, EMA - Emergency Medicine Australasia, London, Eng., C1
Stephen Gill, Lambros Anagnostelos, Julian Stella, Nicole Lowry, Kate Kloot, Tom Reade, Tim Baker, Georgina Hayden, Matthew Ryan, Hugh Seward, Richard Page
(2023), Vol. 35, pp. 589-594, EMA - Emergency Medicine Australasia, London, Eng., C1
B Kavanagh, K Holloway-Kew, T Baker, M Mohebbi, J Pasco, K Corney, M Kotowicz, S Quirk, L Williams
(2023), Vol. 35, pp. 777-785, EMA - Emergency Medicine Australasia, C1
Using the Cardiff model to reduce late-night alcohol-related presentations in regional Australia
T Baker, N Taylor, K Kloot, P Miller, D Egerton-Warburton, J Shepherd
(2023), Vol. 31, pp. 532-539, Australian Journal of Rural Health, London, Eng., C1
B Wright, T Baker, A Lennox, B Waxman, P Bragge
(2023), pp. 1-12, Australian Journal of Rural Health, London, Eng., C1
T Baker, K Moore, J Lim, C Papanastasiou, S McCarthy, F Schreve, M Lawson, V Versace
(2022), Vol. 30, pp. 393-401, Australian Journal of Rural Health, London, Eng., C1
High-Heat Days and Presentations to Emergency Departments in Regional Victoria, Australia
J Adams, S Brumby, K Kloot, T Baker, M Mohebbi
(2022), Vol. 19, pp. 1-17, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Basel, Switzerland, C1
P Miller, T Vakidis, N Taylor, T Baker, J Stella, D Egerton-Warburton, S Hyder, P Staiger, S Bowe, J Shepherd, R Zordan, A Walby, M Jones, D Caldicott, D Barker, M Hall, C Doran, N Ezard, P Preisz, A Havard, A Shakeshaft, H Akhlaghi, K Kloot, N Lowry, S Bumpstead
(2022), Vol. 46, pp. 903-909, Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, United States, C1
S Gill, J Stella, N Lowry, K Kloot, T Reade, T Baker, G Hayden, M Ryan, H Seward, R Page
(2021), Vol. 24, pp. 670-676, Journal of science and medicine in sport, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
The epidemiology of emergency presentations for falls from height across Western Victoria, Australia
K Holloway-Kew, T Baker, M Sajjad, M Kotowicz, P Livingston, M Khasraw, S Hakkennes, T Dunning, S Brumby, R Page, A Sutherland, S Brennan-Olsen, L Williams, J Pasco
(2020), Vol. 23, pp. 119-125, Australasian Emergency Care, Australia, C1
Bernice Redley, Tim Baker
(2019), Vol. 28, pp. 560-574, Journal of clinical nursing, Chichester, Eng., C1
Building a research-ready database of rural emergency presentations: the RAHDaR pilot study
Kate Kloot, Timothy Baker
(2019), Vol. 31, pp. 126-128, Emergency medicine Australasia, Chichester, Eng., C1
P Miller, N Droste, D Egerton-Warburton, D Caldicott, G Fulde, N Ezard, P Preisz, A Walby, M Lloyd-Jones, J Stella, M Sheridan, T Baker, M Hall, A Shakeshaft, A Havard, S Bowe, P Staiger, C D'Este, C Doran, K Coomber, S Hyder, D Barker, J Shepherd
(2019), Vol. 31, pp. 942-947, EMA - Emergency Medicine Australasia, Australia, C1
Learning on the fly: How rural junior doctors learn during consultations with retrieval physicians
T Baker, K Kumar, M Kennedy
(2017), Vol. 29, pp. 342-347, EMA - Emergency Medicine Australasia, Australia, C1
Initial destination hospital of paediatric prehospital patients in rural Victoria
K Kloot, S Salzman, S Kilpatrick, T Baker, S Brumby
(2016), Vol. 28, pp. 205-210, EMA - Emergency Medicine Australasia, Australia, C1
T Kelson, R Davidson, T Baker
(2016), Vol. 63, pp. 9-16, Journal of Medical Radiation Sciences, United States, C1
S Dawson, T Baker, S Salzman
(2015), Vol. 23, pp. 107-111, Australian journal of rural health., London, Eng., C1
P Miller, N Droste, T Baker, C Gervis
(2015), Vol. 27, pp. 225-231, Emergency medicine Australasia, Richmond, Vic., C1
Small rural emergency services still manage acutely unwell patients: a cross-sectional study
T Baker, S Dawson
(2014), Vol. 26, pp. 131-138, Emergency medicine Australasia, Melbourne, Vic., C1
N Droste, P Miller, T Baker
(2014), Vol. 26, pp. 326-335, Emergency medicine Australasia, London, Eng., C1
What small rural emergency departments do : a systematic review of observational studies
T Baker, S Dawson
(2013), Vol. 21, pp. 254-261, Australian journal of rural health, Melbourne, Vic., C1
Chest pain in rural communities ; balancing decisions and distance
T Baker, S McCoombe, C Mercer-Grant, S Brumby
(2011), Vol. 23, pp. 337-345, Emergency medicine Australasia, Melbourne, Vic., C1-1
Small rural emergency departments are not simply cut-down large urban emergency departments
T Baker
(2009), Vol. 17, pp. 291-291, Australian journal of rural health, Armidale, N.S.W., C1
J Tibballs, S Kuruppu, W Hodgson, T Carroll, G Hawdon, M Sourial, T Baker, K Winkel
(2003), Vol. 42, pp. 647-655, Toxicon, Kidlington, Eng., C1-1
Funded Projects at Deakin
Australian Competitive Grants
Using Emergency Department Data To Reduce Alcohol Harm In The Community
Prof Peter Miller, Dr Diana Egerton-Warburton, Prof Anthony Shakeshaft, A/Prof Petra Staiger, A/Prof David Caldicott, Dr Alys Havard, Prof Christopher Doran, A/Prof Tim Baker, A/Prof Nadine Ezard, A/Prof Steve Bowe
NHMRC - Partnership Project
- 2021: $398,833
- 2019: $232,681
- 2018: $148,176
- 2017: $210,330
- 2016: $35,821
Industry and Other Funding
Using Emergency Department Data To Reduce Alcohol Harm In The Community
Prof Peter Miller, Dr Diana Egerton-Warburton, Prof Anthony Shakeshaft, A/Prof Petra Staiger, A/Prof David Caldicott, Dr Alys Havard, Prof Christopher Doran, A/Prof Tim Baker, A/Prof Nadine Ezard, A/Prof Steve Bowe
St Vincent's Health Australia Ltd
- 2016: $84,000
Rural Acute Hospital Data Register (RAHDaR)
A/Prof Tim Baker, Dr Kate Kloot
Western Alliance
- 2017: $34,987
Western Victoria PHN After Hours Telehealth Pilot Evaluation.
A/Prof Martin Hensher, Prof Marj Moodie, A/Prof Tim Baker, Prof Alison Hutchinson
Western Victoria Primary Health Network Limited
- 2021: $8,000
- 2020: $32,000
- 2019: $43,500
Covid-19-Geographical equity in a pandemic.
Dr Kate Kloot, A/Prof Tim Baker, Dr Anna Wong Shee, Prof Vincent Versace
Western Alliance
- 2020: $42,231
Supervisions
Kathryn Louise Kloot
Thesis entitled: Rural paramedic choice of destination hospital for paediatric patients
Doctor of Philosophy (Medicine), School of Medicine
Benjamin Fisk
Thesis entitled: Rural-Urban TBI Outcomes: System Design, Experience and Paramedic Intervention
Doctor of Philosophy (Medicine), School of Medicine