Dr Kate Churruca is a Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Healthcare Resilience and Implementation Science (CHRIS) at the Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Macquarie University. Her research examines organisational culture and its impact on care delivery, and draws upon complexity science and implementation science to make improvements in care settings like hospitals, aged care, general practice. Dr Churruca is the recipient of a highly-prestigious National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Investigator Grant, awarded to fund her research on safety culture in residential aged care facilities. She has also worked as a member of the expert advisory group for the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care on safety culture measurement in Australian hospitals.

Dr Churruca’s other research projects include evaluating an intervention to reduce unprofessional behaviour in hospitals, the role of digital triage in Australia’s healthcare system, embedding a learning health system within general practice, and adaptive capacity among hospital-based teams. She has previously been involved in studies looking at the application of broken windows theory to hospitals, how mental health professionals collaborate during uncertainty, and men’s perceptions of risk in prostate cancer and its impact on their treatment decisions. Her PhD explored women’s experiences of the eating disorder bulimia.

Dr Churruca has successfully supervised Master of Research and PhD students on projects including prioritisation of care in residential aged care facilities, women’s experiences of gestational diabetes and their use of social media, the implementation of Lean management in operating theatres, and the intended and unintended organisational effects of hospital redevelopment. Her students have published multiple papers and won conference prizes and competitive travel grants.