We must understand what we’re funding if we are to support a sustainable research ecosystem

Medical: Australia must have a clearly articulated national approach to support a sustainable research ecosystem, with a focus on excellence in fundamental and translational research and areas of global competitive advantage.

In an interview with Health Industry Hub, Research Australia CEO Nadia Levin, representing the national peak body for health and medical research, discussed the Pre-Election Statement which outlines four key reforms to ensure Australia’s future innovation and health of our nation.

Research Australia CEO Nadia Levin said “This is about the Commonwealth working side by side with the states and territories, working side by side with health providers, with private sector, industry and consumers because this is all part of the continuum of what a successful health system looks like and how do we essentially use needs based research translated into healthcare delivery.

“I’m not saying the whole system’s broken and it’s all terrible and the money is being wasted – not in any way, shape or form. But we must understand exactly what we’re funding, where we’re funding it, how we’re funding it, why we’re funding it, and then overlay it with what’s missing for our population and how we capitalise on our strengths of the research that we do.”

She added “Consumers as co-designers of research to enable consumers and researchers to come together to bring those skills to be able to improve that research translation is absolutely paramount.”