Tria Williams is the Research Manager of the Vaccine and Immunisation Research Group (VIRGo). With over 25 years of experience as a paediatric nurse, she has worked at both the Royal Children's Hospital and the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute. Tria holds a Master of Clinical Research from the University of Melbourne.
The primary goal of VIRGo is to improve children's health in Victoria and across Australia by protecting them from vaccine-preventable diseases. Tria focuses on establishing a collaborative, coordinated, best-practice, paediatric-centred approach to vaccine clinical trials in Victoria. This is achieved by raising awareness of the importance of childhood immunisation and facilitating access to new vaccines through a specialised, coordinated approach to delivering vaccine clinical trials.
During the 2020/21 pandemic, Tria contributed to the Tropical Diseases and Vaccine Uptake groups, including the COVID Wellbeing and Schools project. She also led the Urban Pharyngitis Surveillance Study as part of the Australian Strep A Vaccine Initiative (ASAVI), a global effort to reduce the disease burden caused by Strep A infections through effective vaccination. In recognition of her dedication to patient care, Tria received the Royal Children’s Hospital Mary Patten Award in 2007.