The RCH’s Emergency Department is Australia’s largest paediatric Emergency Department. Not only does it help sick and injured children, but it also supports world-leading research.

The research will improve emergency care for all children and young people, both at the RCH and beyond. Funding from the Good Friday Appeal will allow the RCH to expand its research into areas including concussion, neck injury, bronchiolitis, acute mental health, bell’s palsy and sepsis.  

Based at the RCH, Franz’s role is to initiate and oversee research to improve emergency care for children and young people at the RCH and beyond. Franz will often work in collaboration with other clinical and research teams onsite at the Melbourne Children’s Campus. The role has helped position the Melbourne Children’s Campus as a global leader in paediatric emergency medicine research.

“My role as Professor of Paediatric Emergency Medicine has given me an amazing privilege to have a positive impact on the frontline care of many children across many hospitals, rather than looking after just one injured or sick child at a time.”

“I am grateful for the opportunity to continue this important work in the coming years thanks to the support of the Victorian community through the Good Friday Appeal.”

Professor Franz Babl, Professor of Paediatric Emergency Medicine

With Franz’s support, the department has generated new knowledge, contributing to more than 200 publications over the past five years. These include top-tier journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine, The Journal of the American Medical Association and The Lancet. Much of this new knowledge has led to changes in clinical practice.

Impact Milestones

2026 Program update:

Over the past year, this role has made a significant impact and further advanced medical excellence in a number of ways.

• Over the past year, Professor Franz Babl authored or co-authored 40 peer-reviewed publications in high-impact journals, covering topics such as sepsis, concussion, bronchiolitis, asthma, pain, head injuries, stroke, and mental health crises.
• Professor Babl and the research team secured more than $15 million in new grant funding as of 2025, supporting a range of different trials and national research initiatives.
• This research team is conducting multiple high-impact trials, including international and national studies in paediatric sepsis, behavioural crises, and emergency trauma care.
• Families were also directly involved in shaping research, helping drive meaningful impact. The team has been working with parents to develop educational resources, identify research priorities, and guide studies on key paediatric health challenges such as head injuries, bronchiolitis, and mental health crises.
• In addition, evidence from studies has been translated into the RCH clinical practice guidelines and national and international guidelines for prolonged seizures, bronchiolitis, head injuries, Bell’s palsy, acute behavioural disturbance, and asthma.
• As of 2025, Professor Babl supervised six PhD students, three postdoctoral fellows, and multiple trainee projects, building the next generation of acute care researchers and fostering research capacity across Victoria and nationally.
• The grant strengthens collaboration across RCH departments, including infectious diseases, neurology, ICU, surgery, anaesthesia, and hospital-in-the-home, enabling a cohesive, evidence-based paediatric emergency care system.

2022/2023

• Professor Franz Babl sourced grant funding totalling $8.3 million to support additional world leading research.  
• Professor Franz Babl won the 2022 Elizabeth Molyneux Prize in recognition of outstanding work in the field of paediatric medicine for his paper titled, “Efficacy of Prednisolone for Bell Palsy in Children: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Multicenter Trial”. 
• Research projects undertaken by Professor Franz Babl and his team in 2022/2023 looked at a range of topics including: Concussion, Neck injury, Bronchiolitis, Bell’s Palsy, Acute mental health, Sepsis.