SPHERE announces successful Health Innovation Fellowship applicants
SPHERE has announced the four successful applicants in its new Health Innovation Fellowship program, an initiative designed to support early- to mid-career researchers, within our health partnerships, to lead projects that address some of the health system’s most pressing challenges.
The Fellowships, supported through the National Health and Medical Research Council Research Translation Centre Grant, will fund pilot projects that improve outcomes for priority populations while responding to clinical issues that place significant pressure on the health system.
The successful applicants are:
Associate Professor Nicola Straiton, St Vincents Health Network, Sydney
Project title: Embedding Frailty Clinical Champions in Cardiac Care
Dr Anita Nitchingham, SESLHD
Project title: The Missing Link: Implementing a tiered post-discharge pathway to enhance resilience and recovery after delirium
Dr Deanne Jenkin, SESLHD
Project title: Implementing a Standardised Opioid-Sparing Discharge Pathway to Optimise Prescribing After Orthopaedic Surgery
Dr Lisa Ewans, The Sydney Children's Hospitals Network
Project title: RareEquity: Redesigning and implementing a more equitable rare disease diagnostic pathway for priority populations
Each Fellowship provides $150,000 over two years towards protected research time, enabling Fellows to translate evidence into practice within partner health services.
SPHERE Executive Director, Professor Julie White, said the successful applicants represent the kind of leadership needed to drive change from within the health system.
“Health systems are under increasing pressure, and we need to be much more deliberate about how we translate evidence into care that delivers real value,” Prof White explains.
“These Fellowships are about supporting people who can lead that change from within the system.”
The projects will focus on reducing low-value care and scaling approaches that deliver better outcomes, with a strong emphasis on equity. Priority populations include culturally and linguistically diverse communities, First Nations peoples, people with disability, those experiencing frailty and falls, and individuals with significant mental health needs.
“These are the communities where the system is often not working as well as it should,” says Professor White.
“By focusing on equity and embedding this work in health services, we can improve access to culturally safe, person-centred care while also reducing avoidable demand.”
Successful applicants will receive support through SPHERE’s network, including mentorship, training, a dedicated Disinvestment Framework and project support.