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Accelerating the translation of Research findings into Action to ensure scientific evidence can positively Impact the health of South Australians.
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What an interesting time to be working in the research translation space with new State and Federal governments in place. “Ramping” is top of the agenda of governments around the country and HTSA is very keen to add value in that space. We are also committed to advocating for the broader agenda of embedding research in health systems and driving research impact across the whole health care continuum. To that end our 11 HTSA Partners, that sit on the HTSA Board, continue to have a unified voice in driving progress across the Health and Medical Research environment. Participation in our June 15 Board meeting last week, validated that commitment.
June has kicked off with our latest HTSA Research Translation Spotlight Series on the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) where we are sharing webinars and resources on what it takes to be successful within this scheme. Details on how to get involved, and view past webinars, are highlighted in the ‘Events & Training’ section below. Don’t miss the final two opportunities to hear insights from national and local experts on Thursday June 23 and 30.
To coincide with the Spotlight Series, we are also featuring stories about two translational research projects within our partner organisations (The University of Adelaide and University of South Australia) that have been awarded MRFF funding. The key to both projects has been the willingness of the research teams to collaborate with a range of stakeholders, most importantly consumers, to ensure the research outcomes can be translated into the ‘real world’ beyond the life of the projects. We will aim to share several more MRFF related stories next month, so keep an eye out for those!
Another event coming up in the HTSA’s calendar is our Stakeholder Forum on the 10 August which provides us with an opportunity to engage with our broader stakeholder group and look for opportunities to partner together to improve health outcomes for South Australia. The program for this event will be released in the next Newsletter and I hope to see many of you there to engage in these conversations.
Finally, I have recently returned from some leave and I would like to thank Ecushla Linedale, who acted in my role, and the broader HTSA team for all their efforts during this time. I would also like to thank Annelise Morris who finished up with HTSA last week. She has been on a development secondment from SA Health for 12 months and did a great job focusing on driving our consumer engagement and capacity building initiatives. We invite anyone who is currently employed by a HTSA partner organisations who might be interested in a development position with HTSA to get in touch.
Wendy Keech
Health Translation SA CEO
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Mapping the path from traumatic brain injury to Parkinson' disease
Bringing together global experts including interdisciplinary teams of 19 co-investigators, key stakeholders, Parkinson’s SA, and individuals who have suffered a traumatic brain injury, an Adelaide University research team is analysing the complex factors that may contribute to the development of long-term complications and Parkinson’s disease after traumatic brain injury (TBI).
Led by Associate Professor Lyndsey Collins-Praino, the complex research will focus on two key areas of the brain and seek not only to define the predictors for the onset of the disease following a TBI, but also to understand more about what might minimise the risks.
Funded by the MRFF and supported by HTSA's MRFF Working Group, the Forecasting Impairment and Neurodegenerative Disease risk following Traumatic Brain Injury (FIND-TBI) researchers will develop a comprehensive database of cognitive and motor performance data, MRI scans, neuroinflammatory PET imaging, and blood/saliva biomarkers of neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration, following different severities of TBI and at different times post the injury.
They can then apply machine learning to this rich dataset to generate an algorithm that may predict the risk of long-term functional impairment and Parkinson’s disease in people who have suffered a TBI.
Read the full story here.
Photo: Associate Professor Lyndsey Collins-Praino and research team members.
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Community collaboration opens the door to Healthy Choices for people with chronic conditions
An innovative and inclusive community-based health and well-being collaborative research study titled Healthy Choices is looking to create a health management model to people with chronic and complex health conditions living in the north and west of Adelaide.
Supported by HTSA and stakeholders University of South Australia (UniSA), The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Charles Sturt Council, the North-West Adelaide Health Study and funded through the MRFF, the Healthy Choices program is also a research project, an education and training opportunity, and a perfect example of research translation in action.
Research lead, UniSA Professor Susan Hillier says a key project goal is to promote and support positive behaviour changes for people living with chronic health conditions such as diabetes and heart and lung disease.
The program will see UniSA health students, partner with community participants to choose and develop individual and group health and wellbeing programs to address areas such as diet and exercise, sleep, quitting smoking and managing cholesterol. Students and participants will work together to identify and access relevant services and opportunities using a ‘care navigation’ model.
Read the full story here.
Photo: Professor Susan Hillier
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HTSA set to launch a new Implementation Science Network!
You're invited to be part of the co-design process to develop our new Implementation Science Network structure that will support the needs of Implementation Science practitioners across South Australia.
The Network aims to:
- Connect you with implementation science specialists
- Provide you with insights of how to work with implementation science methods; and
- Help you gain skills in implementation science
As well as current Implementation Science experts, we will be welcoming researchers, clinical academics, and clinicians from all stages of their careers to work towards ways to improve the methods we use to apply research evidence into the health system in South Australia.
Please see additional information about the Network in the flyer below. If you have any other questions, please contact Dr Agustina Gancia via email: Agustina.Gancia@healthtranslationsa.org.au.
Photo by Omar Flores on Unsplash
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SAVE THE DATE
Our first meeting with be held on Thursday, 28 July 2022. Further details will be sent to those who register their interest.
To confirm your interest in the Network, please complete this brief introductory survey by COB Wednesday, 23 June 2022.
Feel free to share this invitation to your relevant contacts.
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Have you heard about the Community Interest Register?
The HTSA/SAHMRI Community Interest Register (CIR) is one of the key mechanisms utilised by HTSA to connect researchers with consumers and community members who want to engage with research. The Register was launched in June 2019 and currently has a database of 124 consumer/community members who are interested in partnering on, or providing input into, health and medical research.
Researchers from all partner organisations of HTSA can engage consumers and community members from the Register.
We have recently added some new resources to our Consumer and Community Engagement Toolkit explaining more about the CIR, including:
- About the CIR: Which explains why to involve consumers in your research and who can connect with consumers through this tool.
- Using the CIR: Which provides a step by step explanation of the process of connecting with consumers through the CIR.
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Research Australia Awards Nominations Now Open - Vote for your hero today!
These prestigious Awards, now in their 19th year, recognise and celebrate leaders who have made significant contributions to health and medical research in Australia. Awards are presented across the categories of discovery, advocacy, philanthropy, health services and lifetime achievement.
Nominations must be received by COB on Friday, 15 July 2022.
Download the Nomination Form here. This document includes details about each Award, the nomination process and how to nominate.
Further information is available on the Research Australia website.
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National One Stop Shop consultation update
The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission) is conducting consultations on the National One Stop Shop for health-related human research approvals.
The Commission is undertaking a two-phased consultation on the National One Stop Shop - a national platform for health-related human research.
The second phase of consultations is planned to commence this month and will provide an update to the research community on the work undertaken to date and refine user requirements for the national platform.
As part of the second phase of consultations, the Commission has developed a demonstration tool (Proof of Concept). The Proof of Concept is a high-level interactive prototype with a subset of core functions, which will be demonstrated and further tested through the second phase of consultations.
Focussed meetings with jurisdictional representatives and subject matter experts will be followed by open forums with the sector.
The Commission is hosting three public forums:
- Friday 17 June 2022 from 10am to 12pm
- Friday 24 June 2022 from 10am to 12pm
- Wednesday 29 June 2022 from 10am to 12pm
Register here to attend the public consultations forums.
Find out more on the Commission web page, or contact our Health and Medical Research team at HMR@safetyandquality.gov.au if you have questions.
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Have your say to help shape the Thematic Research Data Commons
The Australian Research Data Commons is developing a suite of Thematic Research Data Commons (RDCs) that scale up digital research infrastructure to meet Australia’s future research needs.The People RDC focusing on health and biomedical research will be piloted in the 2022-23 financial year.
Roundtable discussions focused on examining the data challenges in health research were held in June 2022.
Further feedback on data infrastructure, data challenges and ‘must-haves’ for this national data asset is now being sought from the research community. Have your say via this survey by Tuesday, 14 June 2022.
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Flinders PhD Enterprise Scholarships available, co-funded by the Commission on Excellence and Innovation in Health
Improve the Australian health system with impactful health economics/health systems PhD research, co-funded by the Commission on Excellence and Innovation in Health (CEIH) and Flinders University.
Two PhD Enterprise Scholarships are available:
- Undertake research to develop framework or guidance on how economic evidence should be generated during the evaluation of innovative health technologies for precision medicine. This PhD will be co-supervised by Associate Professor of Health Economics, Hossein Afzali and CEIH Commissioner and Professor of Cardiology, Derek Chew. Applications close 15 August 2022.
- Undertake research on economic frameworks to promote innovation in health service settings. The research will investigate incentives and supports relating to the prioritisation, development, assessment and implementation of health service innovations in health service settings, engaging with clinicians, consumers and health service managers. This PhD will be co-supervised by Professor of Health Economics, Jonathan Karnon and CEIH Commissioner and Professor of Cardiology, Derek Chew. Applications close 31 August 2022.
Both scholarships will be co-located between the University and the CEIH.
To read the full project descriptions and scholarship criteria and eligibility, visit the Flinders University website.
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Want to learn more about how to be successful in the Medical Research Future Fund scheme? Join us for our current Spotlight Series!
During the month of June HTSA is sharing resources and webinars to raise awareness of the MRFF; what it is, funding pathways and how to submit successful applications!
Sign-up to our scheduled webinar's now and follow us on Twitter to learn more about the expert speakers that will be presenting over the month.
To see past webinars and Spotlight Series resources, visit out website.
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SAVE THE DATE: HTSA's next Stakeholder Forum
Please join HTSA to find out how we are designing and delivering rapid and impactful health research in South Australia.
The purpose of the Stakeholder Forum is to provide an engagement mechanism for key health and research sector stakeholders to partner together in creating better health through research.
Our next Forum will be held on Wednesday 10 August, 2022 between 3:00 - 5:00pm in the SAHMRI Auditorium. Keep an eye out for more details about the program in the next upcoming HTSA Newsletter!
To register for the event, click here.
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Mentoring essentials for career development - Supporting women researchers in early to mid-career
Join the Australian Health Research Alliance Women's Health Research Translation an Impact Network for a FREE webinar to learn what the research shows on mentoring, and hear about the essentials to kick start your mentoring. Click on the link below to view the full program.
Date: Friday, 24 June
Time: 3:00 - 4:30 pm AEST
Format: Online
To register for this event, click here.
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Other upcoming events & training
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New grant opportunities regularly available throughout the year!
National Health and Medical Research Institute (NHMRC)
Within Australia, the NHMRC is the major funding body for health and medical research. There are a range of funding schemes that have different focuses and purposes. To see all of the funding schemes available, click here.
MRFF
The MRFF provides grants of financial assistance to support health and medical research and innovation, with the objective of improving the health and wellbeing of Australians. The NHMRC works with the Department of Health to implement disbursements from the MRFF. To see what MRFF grant opportunities are currently open and their status, click here.
Many of our partner organisations have a dedicated person that can assist you in applying for MRFF grant opportunities. For a list of South Australian based MRFF Support Leads, click here.
Follow us on Linked In and Twitter to learn about other funding opportunities that become available throughout the year.
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Other grant opportunities
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Do you have an event or story you would like to share in our Newsletter?
We would love to hear from you!
Come and chat to the Health Translation SA team on Level 8 in the SAHMRI Building (left of the central staircase) or contact Alex Harris, our Strategic Communications Officer, via email: communications@healthtranslationsa.org.au.
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Connect with us in the links below
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