Research grants success
Pro Vice Chancellor for the Division of Health Sciences, Professor
Robyn McDermott, and her team of researchers have been awarded a $2.4
million National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) grant to
improve Indigenous health.
The project is one of five to receive a total of almost $4 million in the latest round of NHMRC grants, bringing the total amount in NHMRC related grants awarded to UniSA this year to almost $6 million. This is a significant increase on NHMRC funding awarded to the University in previous years and acknowledges UniSA’s growing biomedical research capability.
Prof McDermott says the Building a cohort of Indigenous research leaders in community health development project aims to rebuild the capacity of Indigenous communities to deliver improved health outcomes by nurturing high potential Indigenous PhD students.
"The success of this proposal is important because it shows a strong recognition by the NHMRC that new strategies are required and that we need to support health innovation and leadership within Indigenous communities to make a real difference to their health in the long term," she says.
Three NHMRC grants totalling more than $1 million were also awarded to members of the Early Origins of Adult Health Research Group in the Sansom Institute. Members of this group, Professor Caroline McMillen and Dr Bev Muhlhausler are leading a project studying the impact of high levels of maternal nutrition on the development of childhood obesity. In another project Professor McMillen and Dr Janna Morrison are examining how poor growth before birth results in an increased risk of high blood pressure after birth. Dr Morrison, a National Heart Foundation Fellow and new appointee at UniSA, was also awarded a major grant to study heart development before birth. Another key researcher in the Sansom Institute, Associate Professor Libby Roughead, was awarded a grant to lead a team of investigators studying the impact on access and health outcomes of consumer co-payments for subsidised medicines.
The success in NHMRC grants follows the recent announcement of more than $3 million in Australian Research Council (ARC) grants awarded to UniSA for seven projects.
The Ian Wark Research Institute again featured prominently among ARC grant winners for a number of projects including improving aqueous processing and control of copper-uranium leach tails behaviour.
Another project to attract ARC funding, Education investment in Australian schooling: serving public purposes, will be led by UniSA’s Professor of Education, Alan Reid, and aims to uncover what people think are the important aspects of public education.
"In the current policy climate, we are told that there is an education market, with consumers who exercise choice," Prof Reid says.
"But large sums of public money go into education. The community has a right to expect that this money will also contribute to broad public goals."
Congratulating the recipients, Vice Chancellor Professor Denise Bradley AO said the NHMRC and ARC grants recognised the expertise of UniSA staff in a very competitive environment.
"The grants are a reflection of UniSA’s commitment to vibrant, relevant research and to the strength of our partnerships with industry, both locally and internationally," Prof Bradley says.
The University’s commitment to strengthening its research profile and success in winning nationally competitive grants from funding to agencies such as the ARC and NHMRC is reinforced by the implementation of UniSA NHMRC and ARC Development Grant Schemes. These schemes provide funding to help UniSA researchers to submit high quality project grants and include an opportunity to have draft applications reviewed by expert peers. Further details of these Development Grant Schemes can be found at www.unisa.edu.au/res/grants/intfund.asp