The partnership will see the two organisations co-fund a five-year professorship on the Central Coast to develop interventions that could be rolled out in hospitals around the world.

Laureate Professor John Aitken, Pro Vice-Chancellor of the University of Newcastle's Faculty of Health and Medicine, said the need for solutions to prevent infections had "never been greater" given there was an estimated 165,000 healthcare associated infections in Australian hospitals each year. Professor Brett Mitchell will take up a position in the University of Newcastle's School of Nursing and Midwifery, initially based at its Ourimbah Campus.

"Infection prevention and control and antibiotic resistance in our hospitals and care settings are such important areas of research, particularly given challenges such as bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics," Professor Aitken said.

"This partnership is a great example of industry and education identifying a common area of interest where it can work together to establish expertise by combining intellectual leadership and research with innovative manufacturing to prevent the spread of infectious diseases."

GAMA Healthcare Ltd is a UK-headquartered company, with offices in China and Australia, specialising in manufacturing and distributing infection prevention products to the healthcare industry.

"As we look to further grow our clinical teams in Australia with a new office opening in Melbourne in July, partnering with the University of Newcastle will enable us to continue to invest in Australian research to help reduce healthcare-associated infections," Suzanne Hammouche, chief executive of GAMA Healthcare, said.