About the Diabetes and Population Health laboratory
Our vision is ambitious: to build the world's first Big Diabetes Surveillance Data Centre that understands the evolving nature of trends in diabetes and its complications, identifying where we need to focus intervention efforts nationally and internationally.
This framework aims to determine which traditional and emerging complications of type 1 and type 2 diabetes — especially in people with young-onset diabetes — will have the greatest impact on the health system. By understanding these patterns, we can guide healthcare planning and resource allocation to where they're needed most.
Research focus
Understanding population-level trends
Taking a whole-of-population data approach to understand changes over time and geographic variations in diabetes-related complications, and to assess the population-level impact of diabetes medications in preventing complications across Australia.
Global diabetes surveillance (GLOBODIAB)
Investigating country-specific rates and trends in the incidence of diagnosed type 2 diabetes and mortality among people with diabetes through our international GLOBODIAB collaboration.
Young-onset type 2 diabetes
Identifying new biomarkers and behavioural and psychological markers of diabetes complications in young-onset type 2 diabetes, and tracking the natural history of complications among people diagnosed at a younger age.
Distinguishing diabetes types
Developing the best approach to distinguish people with type 1 diabetes from type 2 diabetes among younger people diagnosed between ages 15–40 using administrative healthcare data — crucial for ensuring appropriate treatment.
Our approach: data linkage for impact
We have a strong focus on using data linkage to answer significant research questions about the causes and consequences of diabetes.
Community engagement
We work closely with the Baker Institute's Community Engagement Group to embed meaningful consumer and community voices into our research. This engagement has helped shape how we use population data responsibly, refine our communication about diabetes trends and complications, and support more relevant, accessible and impactful outcomes for people living with diabetes across Australia.
Australia's diabetes data ecosystem
We've linked the National Diabetes Services Scheme (NDSS) — which essentially serves as Australia's diabetes registry — to a variety of administrative databases to understand the consequences of diabetes and its interactions with other chronic diseases. The NDSS has been linked to the Australian National Death Index, the Australian and New Zealand Dialysis and Transplant Registry (ANZDATA), the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and hospital admission data.
Using this data-linkage model, we take a whole-of-population approach to study a range of important diabetes-related questions. This assembly of Australian contemporary data helps us determine whether new therapies are reducing the population-level burden of diabetes complications, and whether benefits are being delivered equitably across Australia. The insights from this work show us where diabetes care quality needs addressing and help identify whether emerging complications are becoming important contributors to disease burden.
Global diabetes trends (GLOBODIAB)
We've established an international collaboration that represents the first global systematic approach to determine whether the incidence and mortality of type 2 diabetes is falling, stabilising or increasing worldwide.
This project assesses country-specific rates and trends from 1995 onwards in the incidence and mortality of diagnosed type 2 diabetes across the whole age range in both high-income and middle-income countries. We're quantifying the relative contribution of changes in mortality and incidence on observed prevalence patterns. This work involves obtaining data from as many whole of population data sources across the globe.
With this cohort of global data, we have also examined patterns of young-onset type 2 diabetes (diagnosed between ages 15–39) and analysed patterns of cause-specific mortality across 12 different categories over time.
Tracking complications in young-onset diabetes
To map developing complications among people with young-onset diabetes, we're establishing a cohort of young-onset type 2 diabetes and comparing it with an age-matched cohort of type 1 diabetes. We'll track biomedical and psychosocial complications in both groups over time, identifying factors that predict different trajectories and optimal intervention points.