Lyfe Languages steps up to the challenge

The King Edward Memorial Hospital-based Lyfe Languages was recently announced as a finalist in the $5 million Pilbara Health Challenge for leading the way in medical innovation.

Lyfe Languages is a project designed to bridge the language divide experienced by many Aboriginal and other indigenous communities by translating complex medical terminology into traditional languages.

Lyfe Languages is based at King Edward Memorial Hospital and is an initiative of the Western Australian Register of Developmental Anomalies (WARDA) and Women and Infants Research Foundation.

Lyfe Languages Manager and Precision Public Health Fellow, Yarlalu Thomas (left) and Lyfe Languages Founder and WARDA Head, Dr Gareth Baynam (right), both based at King Edward Memorial Hospital, are driving the project to exciting new levels.

In October last year, the Western Australian Government issued a $5 million global challenge to researchers, calling for world-leading medical research and innovation solutions to improve health service delivery in the Pilbara.

With submissions from researchers and institutions across the world, 10 finalists were selected following two stages of judging.

As one of the 10 finalists, Lyfe Languages have been awarded $200,000 from the Future Health Research and Innovation Fund to implement their concept in the Pilbara and prove it works. The winning solution will be awarded $5 million and announced in October 2024.

Further information about Lyfe Languages and the Challenge can be found on the Challenge website (external site).