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As Australia marks 90 years of nationally coordinated, high quality health and medical research funding, the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) is celebrating nine significant decades of discovery through to impact. Here, NHMRC reflects on how research has changed over time, and why research needs to continue to evolve in order to face current and emerging challenges impacting all Australians.
Australia’s health system is widely recognised as one of the strongest in the world, underpinned by a long tradition of high quality health and medical research. Over decades, research discoveries have driven major gains in life expectancy, disease prevention and the quality and safety of care. NHMRC’s role in funding research discoveries cannot be overlooked, as their impact has been greatly felt across major public health challenges such as immunology, malaria and cardiovascular health.
As Australia’s healthcare system has, and continues to, respond to an ageing population, rising chronic disease and evolving community needs, the role of research has never been more important — as has the role of NHMRC as Australia’s leading expert body in health and medical research.
Expectations of health and medical research are rightly high. Clinicians and consumers look to research for timely evidence, clear guidance and solutions that reflect real world practice. As a response, Australian research continues to deliver, informing clinical care, shaping policy and strengthening health systems at home and internationally.
Research has improved health outcomes for Australians for generations, from reducing infectious disease mortality to advancing cancer treatment and improving maternal and child health. While translating discovery into impact can take time, Australia has built a system that values rigour, independence and long term benefit. The focus now is on accelerating the journey from evidence to practice, so discoveries reach communities sooner and more equitably.
Australia’s geography and diversity present unique challenges, highlighting the importance of research that is inclusive and connected to people and place. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people in rural and remote communities, and those experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage continue to face poorer health outcomes.
Australia’s research community produces world leading science. The task now is to do better through strengthening the connection between research and practice, supporting sustainable research careers, mentoring the next generation, and ensuring public investment translates evidence into impact. Strong national stewardship of health and medical research remains essential to Australia’s health and prosperity.
90 years of discovery to impact
For 90 years, health and medical research effort has been guided by a simple but powerful principle: that rigorous, independent research should inform health care, policy and practice. Since its establishment in 1936, NHMRC has supported generations of researchers whose work has contributed to improvements in prevention, diagnosis and treatment across the lifespan.
One of the most powerful recent examples is Australia’s progress towards eliminating cervical cancer. Just recently the Australian Government announced the country is on track to achieve elimination by 2035 — an extraordinary public health milestone. Central to this success is NHMRC-funded research led by clinician scientist Emeritus Professor Ian Frazer AC FRS FAA. Together with Doctors Jian Zhou and Xiao-Yi Sun, Professor Frazer developed and patented the technology behind the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.
From 1986, and through a number of NHMRC grants, the HPV vaccine (GARDASIL®) was commercialised and by 2007, Australia became the first country in the world to include the HPV vaccine in its National Immunisation Program — protecting generations from HPV infection and reducing the risk of developing cervical cancer.
In 2021, the national cervical cancer rate decreased to 6.3 per 100,000, compared to 6.6 per 100,000 in 2020 and for the first time since records began in 1982, there were no cervical cancer cases diagnosed in women under 25 in 2021. The success of the HPV vaccine stands as a compelling example of how sustained investment in research can deliver profound and lasting health benefits.
Looking across NHMRC’s 90-year history (timeline), several strengths stand out. Australia has built a highly respected peer review funding system, strong international research collaborations and a culture of methodological rigour. Investment in early and mid-career researchers has helped sustain capability across disciplines, while long term funding schemes have enabled work that delivers impact over decades rather than funding cycles.
NHMRC’s history has also provided valuable lessons. As the system has evolved, so too has the need to continually improve how research is conducted to ensure high quality, ethical research that is translated and embedded in care. Key to this is the agency’s commitment to maintaining national guidelines and advice which helps Australian researchers meet global standard for ethical conduct and integrity in research.
These insights are shaping the next chapter of Australian health and medical research.
What the next decade demands
The coming decade presents an opportunity to build on this strong foundation built by NHMRC over the nine that came before it. The future of Australian health and medical research will be defined by impact, equity and integration — ensuring NHMRC-funded research continues to answer the questions that matter most to clinicians, patients and communities, and that findings are readily applied in everyday practice just like the HPV vaccination.
Closer alignment between consumer involvement, research priorities, health system needs and government policy will be key. Strengthening implementation science, supporting partnerships across hospitals, primary care and community services, and focusing on conditions that contribute most to illness and disability will help maximise the return on public investment.
Equity must remain central. Research led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and research that meaningfully involves communities experiencing poorer health outcomes, should be supported as core business. The same applies to rural and regional research capacity, where locally driven solutions are often best placed to improve care.
Sustaining the research workforce is equally critical. Early and mid-career researchers need clearer pathways, stable support and recognition of roles that span research, clinical care and translation. Investing in people and the environments in which they work will ensure Australia continues to attract, retain and nurture research talent.
Finally, as the Australian community looks to health and medical research to solve our greatest challenges, healthy dialogue and open discussions across our nation will help build confidence in science. With an emphasis on research that is ethically responsible and conducted with integrity, Australians can be ensured that they can trust the science happening in across our nation.
Conclusion
As NHMRC marks 90 years, this incredible milestone is not only an opportunity to reflect, but to be proud. Proud of what has been achieved, proud of the researchers and communities who make it possible, and confident in the role Australian health and medical research will continue to play in improving health — for all Australians, now and into the future. The future of health and medical research is complex, bold, and full of opportunities, and NHMRC remains committed to supporting the people, the evidence and partnerships needed to meet it.
Natasha Ness and Emily Phelps are senior communications professionals at the NHMRC. Their work focuses on translating complex health and research policy into clear, accessible language, and telling the stories of the researchers and evidence that shape Australia’s health system — from discovery to impact.
The statements or opinions expressed in this article reflect the views of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official policy of the AMA, the MJA or InSight+ unless so stated.
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