A grandmother's illness was the inspiration for the winning research, by Dr Tony Milne, a General Surgery Trainee from Auckland.
Dr Milne was up against five other Trainees or surgeons within the first five years of their surgical careers to take out the $2500 prize awarded annually by the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) in Aotearoa New Zealand.
His research looked at whether the drug prucalopride could improve the postoperative return of gut function after elective colorectal surgery. Dr Milne said it was a topic that was close to his heart and had been a defining part of his life for the last five years as his grandmother struggled with ileus - intolerance of oral intake - post-surgery.
The remaining finalists - Dr Alex Boyle, Dr Henry Witcombe Cahill, Dr Brodie Elliott, Dr Jonathan Stevenson and Dr Tim Wang - shared their surgical academic research spanning topics including bariatric surgery, colorectal surgery, paediatric acute mastoiditis and more.
The 50 attendees of the online prize event also had the opportunity to hear from keynote speaker Professor Angus Watson, Consultant Colorectal Surgeon at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness, Clinical Professor of Surgery at Aberdeen University and Councillor of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Professor Watson spoke about his volunteer work with UK-MED to help communities in conflict zones including Gaza and Ukraine.
Having been to Ukraine twice as part of UK-MED, Professor Watson built and operated in a field hospital only 30 km from the Russian border. In Gaza, he learned to operate and live in "spartan conditions". Professor Watson's talk underscored the important role medical professionals perform in conflict zones around the world.
The Louis Barnett Prize commemorates Sir Louis Barnett CMG, a pioneering surgical researcher, founder of RACS and the first surgeon from Aotearoa New Zealand to become president of the College.
Professor Angus Watson in Ukraine with UK-Med
