Refresh of the National Strategic Framework for Chronic Conditions: Submission to the Department of Health and Aged Care

This submission to the Department of Health and Aged Care responds, through a character-limited online questionnaire, to the refresh of the National Strategic Framework for Chronic Conditions, first published in 2017 for the period to 2025. Research Australia maintains that the Framework’s ‘health research’ enabler is too narrow: research should include the social sciences and health systems research, and has roles in identifying barriers to implementation, designing and evaluating programs, implementation research and health economics, not only in building the evidence base for clinical decisions. It agrees that common issues across chronic conditions, such as multimorbidity, transitions of care and self-management, are relevant, and maintains that these and digitisation are best addressed through non-disease-specific research and platforms at the Framework level, consistent with the National Digital Health Strategy. On data, it asks that the refresh recognise developments since 2017, including COVID-19 data-sharing agreements between governments, the Data Availability and Transparency Act and the Office of the National Data Commissioner, the review of the Privacy Act 1988, and the data role of the proposed Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC). It notes that the Framework’s purpose remains unclear and recommends that it define the CDC’s role and reference the National Health and Medical Research Strategy under development.