Lay summary
I have been a senior specialist pharmacist at Auckland City Hospital since May 2016, working in the specialities of liver transplant and general surgery. I was registered in 2013 and have experience working in three New Zealand (NZ) hospitals. My career aspirations are to become a clinical researcher, with expertise in pharmacoepidemiology. This fellowship will be key to supporting my career and research objectives as part of a PhD. My PhD explores persistent opioid use and opioid-related harm after hospital admissions for surgery or trauma in NZ. I will use national databases and data linkage, to examine the prevalence of persistent opioid use and secondary outcomes including opioid dependence, opioid misuse and mortality post-surgery or trauma, and other risk factors for persistent opioid use and opioid-related harm. Findings will inform future interventions in reducing opioid-related harm and opioid use in New Zealand.