Nominations open for new NHMRC-MRFF advisory committees

The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) will work more closely together to provide holistic advice on the health and medical research landscape in Australia, under a new structure announced this month.

It is believed that the new advisory structure will better harmonise and promote collaboration by key government funders in Australia’s health and medical research sector, making it easier for researchers to engage with funders. Better alignment and coordination of the NHMRC’s Medical Research Endowment Account (MREA) and MRFF should see the best of both funds come to fruition, strengthening Australia’s research capability to improve the health of its citizens.

As part of the restructure, nominations are being sought for two NHMRC Principal Committees, as well as four new joint advisory committees that are being established to advise on strategies and funding for both the MRFF and MREA. The committees should bring together a diverse array of expertise while complementing broader work towards aligning NHMRC and MRFF funding programs and activities to address pressing health challenges now and in the future, and include:

• Research Committee — advises on the quality and scope of health and medical research in Australia, including the application of the MREA and the MRFF;
• Australian Health Ethics Committee — advises on ethical issues relating to health and develops human research guidelines;
• NHMRC-MRFF Consumer Advisory Group — to advise on consumer and community involvement in health and medical research, including on strengthening consumer involvement in MREA and MRFF grant programs;
• NHMRC-MRFF Industry, Philanthropy and Commercialisation Committee — to advise on industry and philanthropic involvement in health and medical research and strategies to foster greater research commercialisation;
• NHMRC-MRFF Public Health and Health Systems Committee — to advise on strategies for strengthening preventive health, public health, primary care and health services, and for embedding research translation in the Australian health system; and
• NHMRC-MRFF Indigenous Advisory Group — to advise on health research involving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and capacity building for health researchers who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders.
   

Nominees should be interested in the role of research in improving health outcomes for the Australian community, and may include consumers and community members; industry representatives; philanthropy representatives; physicians and other clinicians; and health and medical researchers at all career stages. Nominations are open until 5 pm AEST on 31 July and can be made on the NHMRC website.

The new structure was revealed just days after the Australian Government announced the distribution of its latest MRFF grants, including $20 million to commercialise digital health research; $27 million for genomics research to improve the diagnosis of genetic disease and cancer; and $30 million for research into new ways to use AI to improve access to health services.

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