PROFILE
Professor Leon Flicker
Started at UWA: 1998
Leading expert in geriatric medicine
Professor Leon Flicker’s research within UWA’s Medical School focuses on the major health issues of older people, exploring falls, depression and cognitive impairment as well as healthy ageing.
Professor Flicker is a key opinion leader in health and ageing and has published more than 470 peer-reviewed articles; he is highly cited with over 28,000 citations. He has received continuous funding support from the NHMRC through multiple research grants since 1996.
He has conducted numerous studies about frailty and successful ageing and researched the health needs of older Indigenous Australians. This latter research led to the validation of the Kimberley Indigenous Cognitive Assessment (KICA) tool, which is used throughout Western Australia, the Northern Territory and far North Queensland and has been adapted for Indigenous populations internationally.
Through use of the KICA tool, researchers have identified a five-fold higher rate of dementia in Indigenous compared to non-Indigenous Australians. This vulnerable population with high needs as they age continues to be involved in research efforts to help determine the modifiable risk factors to help prevent cognitive impairment and frailty in older Indigenous people. The research also helped develop and test a new service model for older Aboriginal people.
Professor Flicker’s work on a model of community services in the Kimberley was judged to be one of the 10 best National Health and Medical Research Council research projects in 2012. The impact of this research is continuing to be felt in these regional areas.
Professor Flicker regularly shares information about conditions of ageing and successful ageing to health professionals and the community groups. As well as research dissemination through publications and conference presentations, he regularly advocates on behalf of older people. He also provides advice to government through expert reference groups and contributes to professional associations. He is frequently interviewed by the media.
In 2017 Professor Flicker was honoured with an Officer of an Order of Australia for his contributions to geriatric medicine and dementia prevention and care.
We are never too old to improve our health.Professor Leon Flicker
Making a difference in the community
Funding
2019 – 2023
National Health and Medical Research Council
- MRFF - Maximising health for older Australians
- Flicker, L.
2018 – 2020
National Health and Medical Research Council
- BAN-Dep: A trial to decrease the prevalence of depression in Australian Nursing Homes
- Almeida, O., Etherton-Beer, C., Flicker, L. & Ford, A.
2018
WA Department of Health
- MHRIF Round 21
- Flicker, L.
Equity Trustees Charitable Foundation - The Ron & Peggy Bell Family Legacy
- Correction of hearing loss and cognitive function: a randomised controlled trial
- Almeida, O., Flicker, L., Ford, A. & Jayakody, D.
2017 – 2021
National Health and Medical Research Council
- Reaching the tenth decade of life in Australia – A 20-year longitudinal study of older men
- Flicker, L., Almeida, O., Etherton-Beer, C., McCaul, K. & Yeap, B.
2017 – 2020
University of Melbourne
- Improving Detection and management of dementia in older Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders attending Primary Care (IDEA-PC)
- Flicker, L., Atkinson, D., Bessarab, D., Smith, K. & Thompson, S.
2017 – 2018
National Health and Medical Research Council
- Do sex hormones slow biological ageing to improve health outcomes in men?
- Yeap, B., Beilby, J., Flicker, L. & Knuiman, M.
2014 – 2018
National Health and Medical Research Council
- An Australasian, multi-centre, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of the efficacy of fluoxetine in improving functional recovery after acute stroke / Assessment of FluoxetINe In sTroke recoverY (AFFINITY)
- Hankey, G., Almeida, O., Etherton-Beer, C., Flicker, L. & Ford, A.
News
$6 million federal funding boost for medical research
Researchers at The University of Western Australia have received $6 million in Federal Government funding, with Professor Leon Flicker awarded a Practitioner Fellowships of $585,270.
Read moreWest Australians from diverse backgrounds recognised
UWA’s Leon Flicker is a leading expert in geriatric medicine has been made an Officer of the Order of Australia for his work with dementia sufferers. The University of Western Australia professor said he found his work incredibly rewarding and was honoured to be recognised.
Read moreValue of BMI as health measure queried
Being a bit tubby, at least if you're at retirement age, might actually be a good thing. It's a conclusion that goes against common wisdom but doesn't surprise other researchers in the field including Professor Leon Flicker. "If you are in your 60s, there's no point in trying to lose weight because you've already got there, and the evidence is that you would be better off staying where you are – overweight – than losing weight," Dr Leon Flicker, professor of geriatric medicine at The University of WA, said.
Read moreTailoring the tools for Indigenous assessment
Thanks to almost a decade’s research and collaboration, clinicians and service providers now have an appropriate and effective cognitive assessment tool for use with Indigenous Australians, meaning better targeted care and more accurate healthcare data.
Read more