Health leadership and management research

A/Prof Anurag Sharma (CI and Health Economics Lead)

Medical Research Future Fund  #MRF2036251 "MyMedicare for older adults living in residential aged care homes: mixed-methods evaluation" (2025-2029). Total Amount: $1M

A/Prof Anurag Sharma (AI) and Dr Anthony Sunjaya (AI)

Medical Research Future Fund  #MRF2035697 "National Multidisciplinary Primary Care Research, Policy and Advocacy Consortium" (2025-2029). Total Amount: $5.2M

A/Prof Anurag Sharma

CIC: NH&MRC Ideas Grant # GNT2013323 "Hospital trajectories for 15 million Australians” (2022-2025). Total Amount: $655,934

A/Prof Anurag Sharma

CI and Health Economics lead: NH&MRC Partnership Grant # GNT2006240 "Developing a model of Preventative Healthcare for People with Intellectual Disability" (2021-2026). Total Amount: $1,244,755

Investigators: Hutchinson, K., Hogden, A., Triandafilidis, Z., Labra J., Goodwin, N., Zurynski, Y., Fisher, G., Quick, L., Werth, B., Barnett, T, and Hough, J.

Funder: FightMND

Funding period: 2025-2027

Summary: The lack of consistency in the way MND care is delivered and received has caused inequalities in access to health care and impacted health outcomes, which is unacceptable. This research will develop a framework to optimise the MND care coordinator model to improve care experiences and care delivery.

Investigators: Anne Hogden (UNSW), Julie Labra (MND Australia), Karen Hutchinson (UNSW)

Funder: FightMND

Funding period: 2024-2026

Summary: People living in remote, rural and regional areas of NSW have significantly poorer health outcomes, increased premature deaths, inferior access to health and hospital services, and face significant financial challenges to access care. Our prior research indicated people with motor neurone disease (pwMND) encounter similar issues nationally. Our long-term goal is that the co-designed solutions generated by this project are implemented to improve the lives of pwMND (especially those living rurally) and the findings are incorporated into national policy, practice guidelines and advocacy documents for care of people with MND.

Investigators: Marnie Graco (IBAS), Dr Kate Carey (IBAS), Prof David Berlowitz (IBAS), Prof Jill Francis (University of Melbourne), Phil Camden, Natalie Parke, Jean Downton, Anne Hogden (UNSW), Karen Hutchinson (UNSW), Dr Tom Jenkins (WA Health), Vivienne Travlos (MND WA), David Ali (International, Lois Quick (QLD Health), Lauren Giles (TAS Health), Dr Craig Hukins (QLD Health), Nicole Grivell, Nicole Sheers (University of Melbourne)

Funder: Fight MND

Funding period: 2024-2026

Summary: Less than one in five Australians with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) try non-invasive ventilation (NIV); a treatment that improves quality of life and longevity. Working in partnership, researchers and the MND community will co-design and test different strategies and products to overcome the barriers to NIV use in Australia.

Investigators: Led by Australian Institute of Health Innovation, in collaboration with NDIS Commission, Western Sydney LHD, NSW Agency for Clinical Innovation, Health Consumers NSW

Funder; MRFF

Funding period: June 2022 – June 2027 

Summary: Working Together: Innovation to improve Emergency Department (ED) performance, patient outcomes and experience for five complex consumer cohorts 

To apply collective expertise in consumer-focused design, human factors, and ED care to optimise ED performance so that patients are seen quicker, stay for a shorter period, and re-present at the ED less often; whilst improving patient outcomes and the care experience for the diverse demographic cohorts of consumers (older adults, mental health, disability, Aboriginal and CALD populations) who seek care in NSW EDs. 

Dr Anthony Sunjaya (HLM Program Investigator)

Investigators: 34 Commissioners from around the world led by Harvard Medical School

Funder: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Summary: The Commission aims to address gaps in evidence and practice to ensure that health systems worldwide truly serve and engage with the people they are designed for. The Commission emphasizes the need for meaningful engagement with people who have lived experience, across all stages of health policymaking and care delivery. Our goal is to promote equitable, high-quality care, grounded in the principles of people-centered care and health equity.

Investigators: Anne Hogden (UNSW), Marnie Graco (IBAS), Nicole Sheers (University of Melbourne), Ashely Crook (Macquarie University), Dr Karen Hutchinson (UNSW), Liz Kapur (South Australia Health).

Funder: Fight MND

Funding period: 2024-2026

Summary: This project will develop interactive, web-based decision support tools (DSTs) for people living with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) who face difficult decisions for their care. The tools are being codesigned with members of the MND lived experience and care professionals and care researchers to help people with MND talk about their choices and preferences for care and life with their families, health and support professionals, regardless of where they live, the care services they receive or their care funding. The project team will deliver and implement high-quality Australian DSTs based on evidence and expert consensus, to improve the quality of care and life of Australians living with MND.

Investigators: Prof Samar Aoun (University of WA), Angus Cook (University of WA), A/Prof Susan Mathers, Geoff Thomas, Dr Anne Hogden (UNSW), A/Prof Kirsten Auret (WA Country Health Service, Dr Tom Jenkins (WA Health).

Funder: Fight MND

Funding period: 2023-2025

Dr Anthony Sunjaya (HLM Program Investigator)

Investigators: Collaborators from The George Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, University of Sydney, University of Newcastle

Funder: 2021 MRFF Chronic Respiratory Conditions Grant

Summary: The BREATHE study aims to integrate a clinical decision support system (BREATHE CDSS) in the electronic health record to better identify and manage patients with breathlessness in primary care. The pragmatic implementation trial will be a cluster randomised controlled 2-arm trial in 40 primary care sites. Practices will be recruited from urban and rural areas. 

Dr Anthony Sunjaya (HLM Program Investigator)

Investigators: Collaborators from University of Notre Dame, The George Institute for Global Health, University of Sydney

Funder: 2023 MRFF Clinician Researchers – Applied Research in Health Grant

Summary: The study aims to develop and test an automated system that identifies at-risk patients with breathlessness to improve outcomes for patients with the condition. This system will be tested along with the BREATHE CDSS in a cluster randomised controlled trial in urban and rural Australia.

Dr Anthony Sunjaya (HLM Program Investigator)

Investigators: Collaborators from School of Population Health, School of Clinical Medicine, Westmead Hospital, Bankstown Hospital

Funder: NHMRC IDEAS Grant

Summary: This pioneering project focuses on developing TRIBOT, an AI-powered conversational chatbot to streamline triage in emergency departments. TRIBOT integrates natural language processing with clinical triage protocols to enhance real-time decision-making and optimize patient flow, serving as a cutting-edge digital front-door strategy for acute care services.

Dr Anthony Sunjaya (HLM Program Investigator)

Investigators: Family physicians and primary care researchers from 17 countries.

Funder: Rathlyn Foundation (Canada)

Summary: 

The international Consortium is an ongoing partnership between family physicians and primary care researchers from 17 different countries around the world with access to data from over 240 million patients being analysed. The Consortium undertakes international comparative studies in primary care to answer a variety of questions including variation in anxiety and depression presentations as well as treatments for diabetes and obesity.