Balancing the scales: Why are we missing the mark on diabetes?

As Australia marks National Science Week, two of the nation’s leading voices in diabetes research and policy sit down to confront a question few are asking loudly enough: is the country’s approach to diabetes and diabetes research keeping pace with the scale and complexity of the disease in our communities?

A/Professor Sof Andrikopoulos, CEO of the Australian Diabetes Society, and Professor David James, Interim Academic Director and Biology Domain Leader at the Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, offer essential insights that challenge the status quo.

The duo explore why Australia is underinvesting in a health crisis that touches 1.5 million adults, and why current research priorities are missing the full picture of diabetes disease burden at $17 billion per year. A/Professor Andrikopoulos and Professor James compare the nation’s approach with other OECD countries, shedding light on what reform could look like if research funding and policy were more aligned with real-world need.

In light of the National Diabetes Strategy and the Parliamentary Inquiry into Diabetes report, the discussion also confronts the political realities, highlighting the tension between ambitious reform and a lean health budget, and questioning where diabetes sits on the Federal Health Minister Mark Butler’s complex agenda.

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