Professor Zsolt Balogh has been named HMRI Researcher of the Year for 2023

In an awards ceremony held at the Newcastle Exhibition and Conference Centre (NEX) on 8 December in front of an audience of donors, colleagues and community members, three researchers and a research team were honored with the Hunter’s top research prize.

The major gong for 2023, the HMRI Award for Research Excellence, went to Professor Zsolt Balogh from the Surgical and Perioperative Research Program. Professor Balogh won $20,000 to go towards his research into better post- surgical outcomes for patients.

Professor Balogh is Professor of Surgery at the University of Newcastle. He is also Director of HMRI’s Injury and Trauma Research program and Director of Trauma at Newcastle’s John Hunter Hospital, the largest volume and lowest mortality trauma centre in NSW.

Outside of his clinical role, which sees him perform around 1,000 surgical operations each year and review 80 outpatients each week, and his role as convenor of the Master of Traumatology postgraduate program at the University of Newcastle, Professor Balogh demonstrates dedication to the importance of medical research through personal investment of time to research activities.

As a result of this dedication, he has authored over 300 peer-reviewed articles, has been cited over 24,000 times and has convened a multi- disciplinary team of clinical researchers at HMRI dedicated to reducing the burden from injury, the 3rd leading cause of death.

To learn more about HMRI, visit hmri.org.au

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