The Morrison Government is investing more than $33 million for research into health care practices and interventions that will focus on people with, or at risk of developing chronic conditions.
The research will examine new and improved ways to help Australians adopt healthier lifestyles, and explore new models of coordinated care for those battling chronic conditions.
Many illnesses, disabilities and deaths experienced by Australians are caused by chronic conditions, including cardiovascular disease, some cancers, lung disease, diabetes and mental illness.
The funding will be provided through the Medical Research Future Fund’s (MRFF) Rapid Applied Research Translation (RART) initiative.
This round of RART grants was targeted to primary care research, with an emphasis on multidisciplinary care and public health interventions that address lifestyle factors that lead to chronic disease.
A number of specialist centres will receive RART funding for research that can be applied to clinical practice in the immediate future, by creating pathways between researchers and clinical health services. They are Advanced Health Research and Translation Centres (AHRTCs) and Centres for Innovation in Regional Health (CIRHs), accredited by the National Health and Medical Research Council.
Eight research translation centres will receive a total of $33,259,339 from this round of RART funding, with each receiving more than $4.1 million.
The eight centres are:
- Western Australian Health Translation Network
- NSW Regional Health Partners
- Health Translation SA
- Melbourne Academic Centre for Health
- Monash Partners Advanced Health Translation Centre
- Maridulu Budyari Gumal Sydney Partnership for Health Education Research and Enterprise (SPHERE)
- Brisbane Diamantina Health Partners
- Sydney Health Partners.
The Morrison Government is providing record levels of funding to health and medical research. In the 2019–20 Budget an additional $143 million was allocated for the RART initiative.
Our Government is able to provide unprecedented levels of support to health and medical research because of our strong economic management.
This funding is made available through our landmark Medical Research Future Fund – an endowment fund which will mature at $20 billion, providing a sustainable source of funding for vital medical research.
It is the single largest boost in health and medical research funding in Australia’s history.