More than $575k in RACGP Foundation Grants awarded

The full list of RACGP Foundation Grant recipients has been revealed, with 12 projects run by 51 general practice researchers sharing $575,076 in funding.
 
The largest grants, supported by the Medibank Better Health Foundation, were awarded to two digital health projects which each received $125,000, while the HCF Research Foundation also contributed to a $119,971 grant that will facilitate digital pre-visit patient assessment, empowerment and monitoring.
 
The RACGP’s Research and Foundation Manager, Dr Taryn Elliott, told newsGP the grants and awards play a pivotal role in building the evidence base that informs the care provided by GPs across Australia.
 
‘Despite being the backbone of Australia’s healthcare system, general practice continues to receive less research attention and funding compared to other specialised fields, which inevitably leads to gaps in evidence and knowledge,’ she said.
 
‘Our research grants and awards are one of the few channels through which GPs can access funding to undertake rigorous research that can address those gaps and inform the way in which we design and deliver general practice into the future.’
 
The grants and awards are funded by donations from RACGP members and the general public, and through partnerships with the Medibank Better Health Foundation, HCF Research Foundation, Therapeutic Guidelines, Diabetes Australia, Motor Accidents Insurance Commission, and the Bank of Queensland.
 
Research findings are typically widely disseminated, with the Foundation’s major grants producing an average of four peer-reviewed publications within two years of a project’s completion.
 
For Dr Elliott, the high publication rate is a testament to the quality of research supported by the RACGP Foundation and ensures that clinicians and decision-makers in primary care have access to current and robust evidence derived in general practice by GPs.
 
‘This research is providing the evidence that our general practice community needs to make a difference in their practice for the benefit of patients and communities across Australia,’ she said.
 
‘I feel so proud that the RACGP Foundation has and continues to support such high-quality GP-led research.’
 
The 2023 RACGP Foundation grant recipients:
 
Medibank Better Health Foundation/RACGP Foundation Digital Health Grant ($125,000)
Dr Nancy Sturman, Ms Shauna Fjaagesund, Associate Professor Jane Nikles, Dr Stefan Konigorski, Professor Michele Sterling, and Dr Rachel Elphinston – StudyU: a pilot of digitally-enabled, personalised experiments in general practice settings to support self-management and shared decision-making in patients with persistent pain.
 
Medibank Better Health Foundation/RACGP Foundation Digital Health Grant ($124,998)
Professor Meredith Makeham, Dr Adeola Bamgboje-Ayodele, Professor Melissa Baysari, Associate Professor Fiona Robinson, Professor Susan Kurrle and Mr Pan Teng – Optimising virtual care technologies between general practice and residential aged care: a human factors approach.
 
RACGP Foundation/HCF Research Foundation Research Grant ($119,971)
Dr Gillian Singleton and Associate Professor Hassan Hosseinzadeh – ePREVENT 360 - Enhancing PREVENTion and primary care efficiency through digital pre-visit patient assessment, empowerment and monitoring.
 
RACGP Foundation/Diabetes Australia Research Grant ($60,000)
Professor Nigel Stocks, Dr Susan Williams, Associate Professor David Gonzalez Chica, Ms Antoinette Liddell, Dr Natalie Pink – Trends in diabetes monitoring and diabetes control among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people attending general practice: a comparison between urban and rural locations in Australia.
 
MAIC/RACGP Foundation Research Grant ($50,000)
Dr Nancy Sturman, Dr Sam Hariri, Ms Shauna Fjaagesund, Associate Professor Jane Nikles, Dr Stefan Konigorski, Dr Rachel Elphinston – Identifying effective self-management options for individual patients with persistent neck and/or back pain following road traffic crashes: a general practice-based feasibility study.
 
RACGP Foundation/ANEDGP Innovation Grant ($20,000)
Dr Kerry Hancock, Professor Shyamali Dharmage, Mrs Jacqueline Genesin, Dr Christopher Barton, Dr Paul Molyneux, Dr Jennifer Perret – ‘Precursor’: detecting and preventing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in ‘young’ middle-aged adults – a preliminary pilot in general practice.
 
RACGP Foundation/BOQ Specialist Research Grant ($19,999)
Dr Renae Lawrence, Ms Sonia Markoff, Dr Sameera Ansari, Associate Professor Nicola Burton, Dr Kerry Uebel, Associate Professor Kylie Vuong – A general practice toolkit to promote physical activity among people living with cancer.
 
Family Medical Care Education and Research Grant ($19,340)
Dr Wei-May Su, Professor Penny Abbott, Professor Kelsey Hegarty – Identifying and engaging with people who use interpersonal abuse and violence who present in Australian general practice.
 
Family Medical Care Education and Research Grant ($12,480)
Dr Kathleen O’Brien – Respiratory syncytial virus in Australia – an update.
 
RACGP Foundation Chris Silagy Research Scholarship ($13,288)
Dr Ben Mitchell, Professor Mieke Van Driel, Associate Professor Geoffrey Spurling, Professor Parker Magin – Qualitative analysis of GP registrar use of, and beliefs about, the role of POC tools in clinical care.
 
RACGP Foundation Indigenous Health Award ($9000)
Dr Talila Milroy, Dr Jacqueline Frayne, Dr Kate Smith – Aboriginal women’s perspectives on menstrual health and modes of engagement with primary care providers.
 
RACGP Foundation Charles Bridges Webb Memorial Award ($1000)
Dr Sonia Srinivasan, Dr Sharon James, Professor Danielle Mazza – Supporting primary care provision of contraception and abortion: an evaluation of digital content from an Australian virtual community of practice.
 
For more information about the RACGP Foundation and to donate, visit the Foundation’s website. 
 
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