New Health Research and Innovation Centre a game changer for Tasmania
Clifford Craig Foundation CEO Peter Milne. Picture: Courtesy of Paul Scambler/The Examiner
The Clifford Craig Foundation has provided a business case to the federal government and is seeking a $4 million funding commitment to help establish a state-of-the-art Health Research and Innovation Centre at the Launceston General Hospital that will deliver tangible benefits for the community.
The Centre would be led by a Director of Research – something the LGH has never had before – and would serve the state’s North and North-West, providing the Tasmania Health Service with a nationally recognised model of care aimed at filling existing shortfalls related to research governance.
The cost of establishing and operating a Health Research and Innovation Centre based at the LGH is estimated to be $800,000 per annum.
With a $400,000 per annum funding commitment, over five years, already reached with the Tasmanian Government, the Clifford Craig Foundation is now seeking a matched commitment from the federal government.
It is essential the new Health Research and Innovation Centre is fit for purpose.
As such, the Foundation is also seeking a one-off $2 million contribution from the federal government to re-fit the 1300 square metre first floor of the Northern Integrated Care Service facility.
Clifford Craig Foundation CEO Peter Milne said the proposal would transform the way medical research is conducted in Tasmania and take the role currently filled by the Foundation to a whole new level.
It will also help to address numerous challenges facing the state’s health sector and the region more broadly.
“The Clifford Craig Foundation has been funding and facilitating medical research projects at the Launceston General Hospital for the past 30 years. Our existing program is substantial, but it is limited,” Mr Milne said.
“For a long time we have held serious concerns about the uncoordinated and unsupported nature of research being conducted at the hospital - outside of what's offered by the Foundation.
“This new Research and Innovation Centre represents a major development and will help establish a much-needed level of research governance within the Tasmanian Health Service, while delivering great benefits for rural and regional communities.
“The Foundation believes this relatively modest investment will significantly support the State and Federal Governments health research policy objectives.”
The funding commitment and the establishment of a Health Research and Innovation Centre will lead to the creation of four additional THS roles including a Director of Research, Business and Site Governance Coordinator, Clinical Trials Manager and Research Nurse Coordinator.
It will also help address many of the shortfalls faced by regional hospitals.
This includes advantages in clinical workforce recruitment, a significant increase in the quality, quantity and profile of research undertaken by the THS and the prospect of national recognition and funding as a world-class teaching and learning centre.
A similar $4.4 million purpose-built facility established at Townsville Hospital in 2017 (Townsville Institute of Health Research and Innovation) has been celebrated as a “game-changer” for Northern Queensland, helping to meet a growing demand for services with space for clinical trials, research, education and support staff.
By establishing a department of research within the LGH itself, Mr Milne said the expansion would lead to greater collaborative studies and help dismantle existing silos that currently deter clinicians from conducting clinical research.
“This is a significant step forward for medical research across Tasmania’s North and North-West,” he said.
“It will open the door to collaborative national and international research being undertaken here in our region, which can bring significant research revenue, plus create additional employment research positions.
“Importantly, the establishment of this new centre will greatly enhance the reputation of the LGH as a recognised research and teaching hospital, which provides the additional benefit of supporting the attraction of clinicians to come and work here.”
Additional statements of support:
Jonathan Mulford
Dr Jonathan Mulford, Orthopaedic Surgeon:
“Already, the Clifford Craig Foundation offers a unique service to enable research activity to be undertaken at the LGH. But as clinician researchers, we have been concerned with the uncoordinated and unsupported approach to research by the hospital.
“This proposal by the Clifford Craig Foundation will enable the “one stop shop” operational support we have been seeking and greatly improve the ability for hospital clinicians to conduct clinical research.”
Professor Katie Flanagan, Head of Infectious Diseases at Launceston General Hospital:
Professor Katie Flanagan.
“The research model proposed by the Clifford Craig Foundation is what the LGH desperately needs and will address the existing shortfalls in organisational management and support of research, an issue that we have struggled with for many years.
“A well-co-ordinated and effective research centre will help local clinicians to advance health research locally and translate their results into better health treatments for our patients.”
John Batten AM
Mr John Batten AM, Retired Orthopaedic Surgeon and Past President Royal Australasian College of Surgeons:
“This proposal offers a strategic solution that will directly advance healthcare in the region. It will combine and harness the research activity across the three main public hospitals in the northern region and allow and encourage the people of Northern Tasmania to actively participate in the research.
“The program will greatly support the recruitment of medical professionals to the region, facilitating even greater research, attracting research dollars into the region, and providing translational solutions to the health issues that are faced by our regional communities.”
Associate Professor Kim Rooney OAM, Retired Haematologist and past Director Launceston Clinical School
Associate Professor Kim Rooney OAM
“This will address many of the shortfalls that are faced by hospitals located in regional communities. The proposed model to establish the Research and Innovation Centre at the LGH will enable the hospital to develop a reputation as a highly recognised research and training hospital.
“This will be an important factor in overcoming the clinical workforce recruitment difficulties faced by regional hospitals and help bridge the gap between the city and the country.”
Further Background:
In 2016 the Clifford Craig Foundation commissioned KP Health to develop a Northern Tasmanian Strategic Framework for Clinical Research.
The report identified a number of serious concerns about the leadership and governance of research at the LGH and recommended that an increased investment in research would provide significant benefits for the hospital and the community.
In 2021 the Foundation signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Tasmanian Government, to establish a research and innovation centre on the Launceston General Hospital’s main campus.
As part of the LGH Masterplan, this will be located at the Northern Integrated Care Centre, replacing the Foundation’s existing office on Level 5 of the hospital and serving to support additional clinical research across the state’s North and North-West.
In 2022 the Clifford Craig Foundation will provide more than $700,000 in funding to medical research projects across the state’s North and North-West.
Since being formed in 1992, it has provided more than $7 million in funding for medical research grants.
Its support of the LGH has also been recognised as a major incentive for attracting and retaining specialists to the region.