Lay summary
I am a training orthopaedic registrar with a strong research background focussed on childhood musculoskeletal infection. I intend to pursue a career in academic surgery, specifically paediatric orthopaedics. Recently, I completed a research Masters through the University of Auckland on this topic which defined the epidemiology of osteomyelitis and septic arthritis locally, demonstrating that Māori and Pacific children experience the second highest rate of disease worldwide. Targeted public health measures to reduce incidence of disease are limited by our knowledge of disease pathogenesis and health economics. My proposed research aims to look more deeply at the inequitable disease burden experienced by Māori and Pacific children. It aims to answer the question: ‘why are some children more likely to experience invasive osteomyelitis or septic arthritis? and following from this, 'what can be done to reduce our unacceptable rates of disease?'