Dr Jocasta Ball
Senior Research Officer
Preclinical Disease and Prevention
Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute
Australia
Biography
Dr Jocasta Ball is a NHMRC/NHFA Early Career Research Fellow and Senior Research Officer within the Preclinical Disease and Prevention Unit where her research focuses on examining the epidemiology, burden, prevention and management of atrial fibrillation (AF). She has extensive experience and training in clinical research, particularly in conducting randomised controlled trials. The focus of Dr Ball’s PhD research was optimising the management of AF patients with an emphasis on identifying methods of risk delineation. Dr Ball was also Project Manager of the Standard versus Atrial Fibrillation spEcific managemenT studY (SAFETY) multicentre randomised controlled trial, the results of which were published in The Lancet. Dr Ball was awarded the Monash University School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine PhD Thesis Excellence Award 2014 for “an outstanding PhD thesis and its contribution to research”. She was also a finalist in the Bupa Health Foundation 2015 Emerging Health Researcher Award. Dr Ball’s research interests also include investigating the influence of risk factors on AF incidence and prognosis of AF patients, the prevalence and influence of mild cognitive impairment on patient outcomes and optimising screening for unknown asymptomatic AF. Dr Ball is also a Visiting Academic at UiT-The Arctic University of Norway (Tromsø).
Research Interest
Preclinical Disease and Prevention
Publications
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Jocasta Ball,Estimating the current and future prevalence of atrial fibrillation in the Australian adult population Med J Aust 2015; 202:32–5
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Jocasta Ball,Standard versus atrial fibrillation-specific management strategy (SAFETY) to reduce recurrent admission and prolong survival: pragmatic, multicenter, randomised controlled trial Lancet 2015; 385:775–84.
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Jocasta Ball,Optimal duration of dual antiplatelet therapy after stent implantation in patients with diabetes and without. Shorter may be better The BMJ 2016; 355:i5730.
