Bass Coast Health (BCH) emergency doctor Dr Jonathan Henry has been named Australasian Humanitarian of the Year by the Australasian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine for his work in enhancing medical care in Vanuatu and throughout the Pacific.

Dr Henry visited Vanuatu in 2022 to deliver a course, teaching doctors how to use an ultrasound for specialist medical matters, including for pregnancy.

The course was named PEARLS (POCUS for Emergency & Acute care in Resource-Limited Settings), with POCUS standing for Point-of-Care Ultrasound.

After the course, doctors in Vanuatu continue to scan and upload images to a secure online cloud, so doctors in the broader PEARLS medical network, including our own Dr Darsim Haji, can provide review and feedback.

The course has now been run at multiple sites throughout the Pacific, and the PEARLS program looks to be expanding into 2024 and beyond.

Dr Henry was thrilled to accept the award on behalf of the entire PEARLS medical community, who are using ultrasound to save lives every day.

"It's a great honour but I dedicate it to the inspiring local clinicians who I ve worked with throughout the Pacific in resource-limited settings, who love their work and have a deep dedication to their patients," he said.

Dr Henry previously spent six months in Vanuatu, working in emergency medicine.

"It's a privilege to learn from international colleagues working in resource-limited settings who have taught me so much and I've been able to bring that to Bass Coast Health," he said.

Dr Henry is also a Fellow of the Australasian College of Emergency Medicine (FACEM) and a Fellow of the American Society of Echocardiography (FASE).