2024 Research Australia Health and Medical Research Awards

Nominations for the 2024 Awards are now OPEN.

General Criteria

To nominate you must identify a primary nominating organisation and a secondary nominating organisation.
The primary nominating organisation must be a current financial Research Australia member.
The secondary nominating organisation does not need to be a Research Australia member.
You can nominate across as many categories as you choose and submit multiple nominees under one/each category.
A nominee may also be nominated across more than one category
A person/individual can only be contact of the primary nominating organisation across a maximum of 2 award categories (more allowed only if internal protocol absolutely dictates they must be the key signatory/approver of the nomination) ie If you are submitting multiple nominations then please vary the primary nominator/contact where possible.

How to Nominate

You can download ALL the Criteria and Nomination information HERE. Once you are familiar with all the criteria and questions to answer, simply CLICK HERE to access the Nomination portal at the. You then fill in the form with all the details and submit your nomination.

Nominations will close 11.59pm AEST, 29th July 2024.

If you have any questions you can email awards@researchaustralia.org or call 02 9295 8545.

Please CLICK HERE to submit your nominations

Advocacy Award – Sponsored by Abbvie

This award recognises excellence within advocacy and recognises exceptional contributions made by advocates (either an individual, group, or an organisation) that help raise community awareness and understanding of the importance of advocacy in health and medical research.

The Awards Committee will be looking for examples and evidence of advocates who have shown outstanding practice in the past 12 months of helping and advocating for communities within Australia.

The application may outline the personal strength of the nominee that is through time, skills and resources, given to any region around Australia and made a difference or inspired others to contribute to their community.

Questions for the nominators to complete:

How has the nominee raised awareness in advocating for and promoting health and medical research?
How has the nominee championed or influenced change to positively benefit the health and medical research sector?
How has the nominee inspired and motivated others?
How has the nominee impacted medical, social or political change with their advocacy?
What is the longevity of their advocacy project(s)?

Please keep your submission to 700-800 words.

Great Australian Philanthropy Award

This award profiles philanthropy that is outstanding in its generosity, effectiveness, vision, high impact and transformative quality. The Award recognises and encourages personal or professional philanthropic donations over a period of time by an individual(s), partnership, family or business to Australian health and medical research.

The Awards Committee will consider nominees that can display evidence of:

Outline the philanthropic achievements of an individual, couple, family or organisation.
Describe the impact of the philanthropy on the specific area of health and medical research and the Australian community.
How has the nominee been an example of good practice for others in the philanthropy sector?
Scale of financial contribution made or generated; and
Recognition of philanthropic achievements in at least the last five years (since 2019).

Please keep your submission to 700-800 words.

Discovery Award – Sponsored by Griffith University

The HMR sector is committed to support and develop early career researchers.

This award recognises an early career researcher (anytime from qualification but no more than 5 years past PhD or research higher degree) whose paper/patent/discovery has already demonstrated its importance or impact.

Questions for the nominators to complete:

Outline the intended impact of the nominee’s project.
Provide details of the nominee’s paper, patent or discovery.
Describe the importance/impact of the nominee’s work in the research field.
What is the actual or potential for translation of this research, and the broader impact on health outcomes?
Provide evidence that you meet the criteria of an early career researcher anytime from qualification but not more than 5 years post PhD or Masters by research (not by course work).

Please provide your reasons for nomination and keep your submission to 700-800 words.

Health Services Research Award

Embedding research in Australia’s health system can ultimately deliver safer, more effective, evidence-based and efficient health care. Translating research findings efficiently and in a timely manner into changes in clinical practice is one of the keys to improving patient management; reducing adverse events and readmissions; and reducing wasted spending on unnecessary tests and treatments.

This Award is for an individual or team who has provided leadership and made an outstanding contribution to health services by driving research that has led to a significant improvement in healthcare; and/or has championed the development of the health services research field.

Questions for the nominators to address:

At what stage of their career is the nominee?
How has the nominee contributed to the development of the health services field?
Please detail how the nominee has provided leadership in health services research (including positions held etc).
Please provide information, including examples, of how and where the nominee’s research has been translated and the resulting improvement in health systems and/or healthcare delivery.

Please keep your submission to 700-800 words.

Frontiers Award – Sponsored by ANU

The Frontiers category showcases Australia’s potential to extend beyond existing knowledge and boundaries to transformative practical application. Australia is already a global leader in health and medical research excellence, the challenge is to leverage this advantage through bold leadership and game changing innovation.

This category recognises transformative research by an individual, team or corporate that could revolutionise health outcomes within Australia and potentially internationally.

A frontier outcome could be, but is not limited to, applying emerging capabilities in areas such as machine learning, artificial intelligence or robotics; understanding how humans’ function in extreme environments; reducing healthcare costs without compromising patient outcomes; or ground-breaking transformative medicine.

Questions for the nominators to complete:

What are the potential impacts (societal and economic) of this research?
What specifically makes this research ‘Frontiers’?
What makes it different from existing practice or application?
How could this be globally competitive?

Please keep your submission to 700-800 words.

Digital and Data Health Innovation Award – Sponsored by Digital Health CRC

Digital and Data Health innovations are driving unprecedented advances in healthcare. These platforms are intertwined and reliant on each other to drive unprecedented technological advancements in the way that we understand, treat, and manage current and new health conditions.

This Award seeks to recognise innovators who are at the forefront of the innovative use of data, data linkage or data matching, and or the innovative use of data and digital health technologies.

The Digital and Data Health Innovation Award is presented for to an individual, team or organisation for an emerging, innovative use of digital health technology and or data, data linkage or data matching, that advances the use of healthcare information, healthcare delivery and/or enables healthcare users and providers to improve health outcomes.

Eligible innovative use of data, data linkage and or technologies will have been supported through Australian health and medical research, they will have at least one Australian individual, institution, or organisation as a collaborating partner.

This award will go to the individual, team or organisation who has developed, trialled, or implemented the use of data, data linkage and or technology.

This year we are searching for an individual, team or organisation that can demonstrate the importance of their work through a tangible impact on Australian health and medical research.

The use of data, data linkage and or technology should be implementable and scalable within a 5-year horizon.

This use of data, data linkage and or technology should have the current or future ability to impact local, state, or national health outcomes or health policy.

Questions for the nominators to complete:

Describe how the nominee has demonstrated innovation in the data and or digital health technologies.
How will or has this innovation demonstrate a tangible impact on data and digital health innovation?
How did the nominee differentiate the innovation from existing practices being used in the HMR sector?
What is the actual or potential for impact on health and medical research policy, and the broader impact on health outcomes?

Please keep your submission to 700-800 words.

The Peter Wills Medal

The Peter Wills Medal was created in honour of a great leader whose work led to the inception of Research Australia. The Peter Wills Medal is the flagship award and recognises someone who has made an outstanding, long-term contribution to building Australia’s international reputation in areas of health and medical research and fostering collaboration for better health.

Nominations are welcome from any individuals who have made an outstanding contribution in the field and should not be regarded as being limited to researchers.

Questions for the nominators to complete:

Please tell us about the person you are nominating and why you believe their work should be recognised and rewarded.
Provide specific examples of the nominees’ work that highlights the reason why they deserve the award.
What are the major contributions to the health and medical research sector this work has achieved?
How has the nominee contributed to building Australia’s international reputation? Please keep your submission to 700-800 words.

Please CLICK HERE to submit your nominations