4 July 2025
It began quietly, without fanfare in 2006 in the early morning light. Just Sue Green, a mobile phlebotomist* with the Raine Study, knocking on a participant’s door. Generation 2# participants were all between 14 and 17 years old, and Sue was there to collect fasting blood samples for their 16-year follow-up. Her warm and personal touch meant that a reluctant teenager, perhaps feeling ill at ease about needles, might be persuaded to ‘give it a go’.
The relationships Sue forged during these early days with the Generation 2 teenagers have endured. As one appreciative Generation 2 participant, Jackson Harding, recently reflected, ”I’ll always remember Sue in the little Raine Study car for the early morning blood samples! Not a fun experience getting blood taken when you first wake up, and I wasn’t the best patient, but Sue did a great job; reassuring, calm and professional.”
In these early days, efficiency mattered. Sue would co-ordinate all her mobile assessments, sometimes managing up to four morning appointments before the school bell rang, and high tailing it to Royal Perth Hospital to deliver the blood samples for analysis.
That was just the beginning.
Sue was instrumental in collecting outstanding bio-samples in 2007 from 18-year-old participants. The job involved Sue and another laboratory assistant travelling to Bunbury, Albany, and Margaret River. It was a chilly operation, managing the samples carefully, de-identifying the vials and packing them in dry ice until they could be returned to the lab for storage, ready for an astute researcher requesting them for their next groundbreaking discovery.
In 2012, the Raine Study had ceased home visits, an era Sue helped define. Sue’s master phlebotomist skills impressed Mieke Sharp (Generation 2 participant) testifying that Sue “gave me much needed calm getting through needles when I have a phobia of them”.
A familiar face across generations
What followed was a remarkable, two-decade journey with the Raine Study. Sue wasn’t just part of the team – she was the person responsible for many participants feeling that every visit felt easy, welcoming and worthwhile. Her caring presence was evident as Generation 2 parents started bringing their own babies with them during appointments. Sue would rock the babies to sleep, stroll them in their pram or play peekaboo to keep them calm whilst the parents were finishing their assessments. “I will miss you, Sue. You were always amazing from childhood to adulthood,” said Teagen Buss.
Many of those babies, now in middle childhood or teenagers have returned, undertaking their own assessments as the Raine Study’s Generation 3> cohort.
Sue would instinctively know how to make participants feel valued and welcome. Diane Wood, Sue’s colleague and Follow-up Manager, has worked at the Raine Study for 20 years herself. She reports, “Sue actively listened to participants of all ages, showing genuine interest in their unique perspectives and experiences. She could read them and respond in ways that made individuals feel truly seen, heard, and supported. Her warm and encouraging approach inspired participants to engage with confidence and contribute meaningfully to the Raine Study.”
From bloods to breakfasts, bookings and keeping it real
Her role and skills evolved with the Raine Study’s needs. By 2010 Sue was also assisting with data collection at the 20 Year follow-up and helping sleep technicians attach leads to participants during the 2012 – 2017 Sleep Studies. Sue was busy scanning results into the database and delivering results to participants. She spent many hours recruiting, booking, and reminding participants for appointments and external assessments such as MRIs and ultrasounds.
Sue was often the go-to person for finding novel ways to retrieve outstanding equipment, like the historical Actigraph watches that track activity and the current Withings sleep mats. Sue recalls, “If the equipment wasn’t returned, I’d jokingly ask them to check under their bed. Often, that was the solution, and I’d jump in the car and retrieve it from their house.”
Sue was known for organising meals and famously starting work at 5 am during the sleep study to ensure participants had their blood taken fasted and then a hearty breakfast after their unusual night-time experience.
Sue happily reflects with satisfaction on how much she enjoyed understanding the unique needs of each participant and, as a consequence, it also helped to achieve a good outcome for the Raine Study.
- “To encourage participants who may feel hesitant to attend a study or follow-up, I’d try to understand their current circumstances. I’d appreciate that if someone hadn’t attended for a while, they’d have to reconnect, emotionally and physically. So, I’d explain briefly what we’d do, that they’d receive their results, that we’re flexible and could do the assessment at 6 am if they wanted. Or split the assessment into two parts to make it shorter and easier to fit around work or home commitments.
- “I’d reinforce the benefits of the study to Generation 1 dads. They sometimes felt left out in the early days, but I’d explain that they were just as important, and that the Study needed their information to link to their Generation 2 child’s information”.
- “When recruiting for a study, I’d see that someone might be a teacher, so they’re not going to take a call during the day, so I’d ring after hours, so they didn’t miss out on contributing to a follow-up if they wanted to”.
- “I’d try my best to get participants to complete their questionnaires, because their biological samples are not as valuable without their lifestyle information.”
Sue’s legacy – the spirit of family
Sue’s defining legacy is her embodiment of the cultural ethos that runs through this extraordinarily successful longitudinal study – the culture of ‘family’.
Alex D’Vauz, the Raine Study’s Data Manager, has worked with Sue since 2006, shared her thoughts. “Some people have work wives or besties, but Sue was my work MUM. We shared an office when I returned from having my first baby in 2007. She was right there with feeding tips, sleep advice and unwavering support for me and my entire family. It’s heart-warming to see how fondly participants – who have grown up with Sue – greet her, and how naturally she treats them like family. The Raine Study has been truly blessed by Sue’s care, wisdom and can-do approach.”
Sue is the person most talked about when we ask people about their time with the Raine Study. “I feel like I’ve known Sue my whole life, and Di, since I was 10. They are always so welcoming, like extended family,” said one participant.
It’s clear that Sue will be dearly missed. Sarah (Louise) Brown, a Generation 2 participant, sums it up.
“Sue! You’re a legend – enjoy your retirement and thanks for being so awesome.”
Glossary
+ Generation 1 participants are the pregnant mothers recruited into the study between 1989 and 1991.
# Generation 2 participants are the children born into the study between 1989 and 1992.
> Generation 3 participants are the grandchildren of the pregnant mothers recruited into the study between 1989 and 1991, and the children of Generation 2.
*Nursing professional skilled at taking blood samples from a person’s vein.
^Duel-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry scans measure bone density, which shows bone strength and risk of bone fractures