Category: Submissions

Health and Medical Research and Innovation Must Be Central to Australia’s Productivity Reform Agenda

Research Australia, the national peak body for health and medical research and innovation is calling on the Federal Government to formally recognise health and medical research, development and innovation as a cornerstone of Australia’s productivity and economic growth strategy. In its submission to the Treasury’s Economic Reform Roundtable, Research Australia has highlighted the sector as a nationally significant driver of productivity, economic diversification and resilience.

It is well established, every dollar invested in Australian health and medical research yields close to $4 to the Australian economy, however, it is likely to be much more. Beyond immediate health benefits, the sector drives job creation, supports high-value industries, and improves workforce participation by reducing the burden of disease. National prioritisation of health and medical research, development and innovation will position Australia as a leader in global innovation, enhance economic diversification, and respond to demographic and healthcare system pressures with evidence-driven solutions.

Australia’s health and medical research, development and innovation sector is a nationally significant driver of productivity, economic diversification and resilience, growth and budget sustainability. Australia’s health, medical research, development and innovation sector can fulfil its potential as a cornerstone of a more productive, diverse and prosperous Australian economy, but we must have the vision, system-wide policies and enablers, smarter investment, industrial capacity, the manufacturing sector, and the workforce skills to make this happen.

Read our full submission here.

Research Australia’s Submission: Strategic Examination of R&D

Research Australia, as the national alliance and peak of health and medical research, and innovation, is pleased to have the opportunity to make this submission as part of the Strategic Examination Research & Development (SERD).  This coming year offers a real opportunity to address the challenges identified in the Discussion Paper, through both the SERD and the Australian Government’s development of the National Health and Medical Research Strategy, which Research Australia has advocated for since 2021. We have the unique opportunity to reform and reimagine a whole of R&D system that sets up a future Australia. One that is responsive, affordable, and sustainable. Given more than a quarter (26%) of Australia R&D is spent on health and medical research, there needs to be a dedicated focus in the Strategic Examination of R&D on health and medical research, development and innovation.

Read our Summary of Key Recommendations here.

Read our full Submission here.

Research Australia’s Submission in Response to the National Health and Medical Research Strategy

Research Australia were please to submit a response to the National Health and Medical Research Strategy Survey. The National Health and Medical Research Strategy offers a timely, much needed, and unique opportunity to reform and reimagine a whole of system that sets up a future Australia. One that is responsive, affordable, and sustainable. Research Australia has advocated for the Strategy since 2021, and we are committed to its success.

According to Research Australia, the National Health and Medical Research Strategy must

  • Be developed by the sector for the sector;
  • Be led by a long-term vision and a theory of change;
  • Facilitate coordinated, sustainable investment in research;
  • Strengthen the connection between research and healthcare;
  • Support emerging innovative health industries;
  • Embed collaboration across the sector through leadership, governance and systems; and
  • Ensure accountability through embedding monitoring and evaluation of measures of success

Research Australia recommends and welcomes the opportunity to contribute to:

  • The development of a long-term vision supported by a Theory of Change for the sector, across the whole pipeline;
  • Identification of interconnected Priority Reforms with key action areas to enable systemic reform;
  • Identification of leadership and governance structures in partnership with the sector to ensure accountability during the implementation of the Strategy;
  • Identification of accountable and transparent processes to identify research priorities;
  • Development of a Strategy Monitoring and Evaluation Framework with outcome measures defined jointly by the sector and government; and
  • Alignment with other relevant reforms, frameworks and policy agendas at a Commonwealth and jurisdictional level

Read our submission here.

SMARTER INVESTMENT NEEDED IN FEDERAL BUDGET TO ENABLE BOLD AND AMBITIOUS REFORMS FOR AUSTRALIA’S HEALTH AND MEDICAL RESEARCH AND INNOVATION SECTOR

Research Australia, your national alliance and peak body, has submitted its Pre-Budget Submission on behalf of the health and medical research innovation sector.

Key asks include:

  • Smarter Investment: establishing a measurable path to R&D investment of 3%; developing a definitive pathway to funding the full costs of research; and utilising the Government’s procurement powers to better support Australian businesses and activate innovation through establishing an Australian-designed BARDA system.
  • A Diverse and Supported Health and Medical Research Workforce Plan that defines and invests in the workforce the country needs and wants for research, innovation and commercialisation, including a dedicated focus on early-mid career researchers.
  • A whole of system, pipeline and government approach, across portfolios and jurisdictions by putting health and medical research, development and innovation, including prioritising prevention, at the heart of all government policy.

Read Research Australia’s 2025-26 Pre-Budget Submission here

Research Australia responds to MRFF priorities and Act Review

Research Australia participated in consultations for the MRFF Australian Medical Research and Innovation Priorities and the MRFF Act Review. We were invited to a round table hosted by AMRAB, and provided a written submission. We recognised many positive enhancements have been suggested in the draft priorities for 2022-24. Our main concern was the lack of cohesion that links all the priorities to drive transformation across the entire health and medical research and innovation ecosystem.

Click here to access our submission.

Improving Research Culture a collective responsibility

In May, the NHMRC released a draft Good Institutional Practice Guide which seeks to provide guidance to NHMRC-funded institutions and researchers about good institutional practice ‘to promote open, honest, supportive and respectful institutional cultures conducive to the conduct of high-quality research’. Its development has been overseen by NHMRC’s Research Quality Steering Committee.

Research Australia made a submission in response to the draft. While welcoming the Guide Research Australia indicated that awareness of practices and initiatives that can improve research culture is not the primary barrier to improving research culture; significant work has already been done to identify the issues and raise awareness. The key problem is implementing the measures needed to improve the culture.

Research Australia suggested the finalisation and publication of the Good Institutional Practice Guide will provide impetus for improvement that the sector can build on if we act collectively. Research Australia suggested leadership and involvement from the NHMRC will be essential, and would demonstrate the NHMRC’s ongoing commitment to improving research culture and practice. We offered to work with the NHMRC, the Research Quality Steering Committee, other peak bodies and research institutions that want to participate in a coalition to improve research practice and culture.

Research Australia’s submission is available here.

Building research into the Allied Health Workforce Strategy

In May 2024 the Department of Health and Aged Care released a consultation paper on a draft outline of the National Allied Health Workforce Strategy, intended to to ensure there are enough highly trained allied health professionals distributed across the country.

Research Australia’s responses to the consultation paper focus on the need for the strategy to recognise the role of allied health professionals as clinician researchers in creating a self improving allied health sector and supporting retention of allied health professionals. To achieve this the Strategy needs to better support clinician researchers and the submission highlights ways to do this.

Read our submission here.

A National Immunisation Strategy to 2030

In May 2024 The Department of Health and Aged Care released a consultation paper to support the development of the Next National Immunisation Strategy for 2025-2030. The consultation paper proposed a vision, mission, priority areas, and opportunities for action for the next Strategy.

Research Australia’s submission has welcomed the overall direction of the Strategy but proposed some amendments to the Vision and Mission. We have also highlighted areas where the Strategy could better engage and make use of researchers, including the secure sharing of more data, and learning the lessons of the COVID pandemic. We have also proposed an expert panel from research organisations and industry to periodically advise on the latest developments and trends in vaccine development and delivery technologies.

Research Australia’s submission is available here.

Effective and meaningful consumer involvement in HMR

In March 2024, the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and the Consumers Health Forum of Australia Ltd (CHF) commenced a review of the 2016 Statement on Consumer and Community Involvement in Health and Medical Research (the Statement).

The Statement aims to support consumer and community involvement across all types and levels of health and medical research.

Research Australia’s submission has supported the expanded involvement of consumer and community representatives in HMR while emphasising the need for research organisations and funding bodies to appropriately train and resource researchers to ensure the involvement of consumers and community representatives is effective and meaningful.

Research Australia’s submission is available here.

The Chronic Disease Framework and the role of research

In March 2024 the Department of Health and Aged Care commenced a refresh of the National Strategic Framework for Chronic Conditions.

‘The Framework was published in 2017 with a timeframe of eight years, from 2017 to 2025. The Department of Health and Aged Care (Department) is leading a review and refresh of the Framework to ensure it remains current, accurate and relevant.

The refresh of the Framework will consider how chronic conditions can best be prevented and managed for all Australians, including priority population groups.’ (Consultation paper, page 7)

Research Australia made a submission in response to the consultation on the initial Strategic Framework, and has now followed this up with a response to the new consultation, emphasising the need to identify a broader role for research.

Research Australia’s submission is available here.