HCF RESEARCH FOUNDATION YEAR IN REVIEW 2024 MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR
It has been another big year for the HCF Research Foundation in which we continued to build on our significant research investment across three grant streams: Health Services Research Grants, Translational Research Grants and Innovation Research Grants. Each of these, alongside our partnership with the RACGP Foundation, aims to support the generation of high-quality, implementation-focused research.
Our mission to improve health and wellbeing outcomes through health services research has continued to expand our focus on supporting innovative, translatable research, and the implementation of evidence-based models of care into practice. By developing new grant schemes and encouraging applicants to embed translation and implementation approaches into their projects from the beginning, we are now seeing grants reporting changes in clinical practice and patient outcomes well ahead of completion. These positive impacts include increasing guideline-concordant care, reducing readmissions and presentations to emergency departments, improving wellbeing and freeing up valuable resources in an over-stretched health system.
Our strong focus on research partnerships this year has increased the number of conjoint research initiatives with services and organisations who share our passion for innovation and informed change. In July 2024 we hosted our inaugural stakeholder workshop on short-stay joint replacement and Enhanced Recover After Surgery (ERAS), with over 60 attendees all focused on the best way to increase utilisation of these international models within the Australian healthcare system.
Finally, dissemination remains an integral part of research translation, and the HCF Research Foundation webinar series has continued to be an informative showcase of our most successful research projects and an opportunity to facilitate awareness and translation of their findings across researchers, providers, policy makers and funders. I would like to thank all our presenters for their stimulating presentations, attracting hundreds of participants across a diverse range of interest areas.
I would also like to take this opportunity to extend my thanks to the HCF Research Foundation Board, Research Advisory Committee, and our external peer reviewers for their efforts over the past year. As we grow, their support for the Foundation is critical to helping us achieve our mission of the highest quality research improving healthcare outcomes for all.
Professor Claire Jackson
Chair, HCF Research Foundation
Board of directors
Full information and bios of our HCF Foundation Board of Directors.
History of the Foundation
The HCF Research Foundation was established in 2000 as The HCF Health and Medical Research Foundation to fund health and medical research for the benefit of all Australians. In 2008 the focus was moved towards health services research, an area of research which does not receive large funding dollars from other sources. In 2013 the name was simplified to HCF Research Foundation and in 2015 a Corporate Trustee was established to manage the Foundation’s affairs. The HCF Research Foundation was originally established with a donation from The Hospitals Contribution Fund of Australia Limited (HCF). While HCF has donated money, the HCF Research Foundation operates independently and with specific focus on funding health services research that can benefit all 27 million Australians.
Health services research examines how people get access to health care, how much health care costs, and what happens to patients as a result of this care. The objectives of the HCF Research Foundation’s health services research program are to improve the prevention, treatment and cure of diseases in the general community by funding research and study proposals that enhance and utilise current knowledge to improve health and health services; and improve the quality, efficiency, access to and equity of provision of health services.
The HCF Research Foundation’s research program therefore addresses the main dimensions of the health system that are of concern to HCF, the HCF Research Foundation and the community at large: achieving better health outcomes and access to affordable, high quality health care when and where needed.
Mission & vision
OUR MISSION
The HCF Research Foundation’s mission is to improve the delivery of health services in Australia for the benefit of all Australians. We do this by funding research projects that focus on new ways to provide high quality care to improve patient outcomes.
OUR VISION
To be known as a leading independent funder of high quality research that leads to the improvement of health care services for all Australians.
To facilitate easy-to-access funding so researchers can focus their efforts on delivering the benefits of their research projects.
To drive more research by providing transparent and fair funding opportunities for all Australian researchers, institutions and organisations.
Donations
HCF funded the corpus of the Foundation by donation from the net surplus of the health fund. Since the Foundation’s inception, HCF has made contributions to the Foundation of $55 million.
Year in Review
Our recent projects and research outcomes in the HCF Research Foundation Year in Review.
How to contact us
Email: hcf_foundation@hcf.com.au
Phone: Belinda Bahram, Senior Coordinator, HCF Research Foundation - 02 9290 8811
