6 long time, the best job I could possibly imagine. My area of specialty was nerve and muscle disorders of childhood, conditions which are generally uncommon and severe, the diagnosis of which is complex and treatment of which was, until recently, rarely curative. I was fortunate to finish my training at a time when new therapies for these disorders were just coming into clinical trials and to make a research career from studies into the causes and treatments of those conditions. During that career I led more than 30 clinical trials in Sydney and in Melbourne and at the end of last year my team gave the first dose of gene therapy ever given in Victoria for a previously fatal neurological condition of infancy: spinal muscular atrophy. That treatment was developed in international clinical trials. The children’s hospitals in Melbourne and Sydney played an important role in that research. We helped transform the lives of those children and their families, and the lives of those who are to come. We have in this country a wonderful health system. Our medical professionals are as good as any in the world. The NDIS has the potential to be a world-leading program for disability support. Our medical research is similarly competitive at a global level, but it has been underfunded and ill supported in recent years. The last few years have been terribly difficult for our doctors, nurses, allied health and other healthcare professionals. We have to ensure that health care in this country remains fit for purpose, accessible and resilient. There are many challenges to that, including not just an ongoing pandemic and an exhausted workforce but
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