Policy and Practice Interface in Health Care
UNSW is committed to ensuring that research undertaken at clinical and health services levels feeds into improved policy and practice. Translational research – from laboratory to clinical setting, as well as from clinical setting to policy and practice, is increasingly attracting attention. This reflects growing recognition that investment in research is limited if further steps are not taken to ensure that what is learned through research feeds into benefits for patients, the broader community, and the health system more generally.
UNSW, through several schools and affiliated organisations, provides leadership at a local, national and international level in facilitating the translation of research into new policy and practice activities. Enhancing the policy and practice interface enhances the delivery of health care. We are committed to researching and understanding this interface and developing enhanced mechanisms to facilitate practice- and policy-relevant research.
In order to promote enhanced policy and practice, linkages with primary care divisions, hospitals, area health services, non-governmental organisations, the Sax Institute, NSW Health and the federal Department of Health and Ageing are necessary. Linkages with other parts of local, national and regional governments typify our research relationships. Research is increasingly conceptualised with players from these agencies and teams working together to facilitate uptake and utilisation of research.
The Faculty will promote the strengthening of research in public and population health and the socio-technical interfaces between people, systems, and technologies. There is a strong history of commitment to such policy and practice-relevant work.
The Centres and Schools below are committed to analysing and learning from their experiences at the interface of research with policy and practice and to building the evidence-base and skills required to greatly enhance this interface.
The UNSW-based participating groups include -
- School of Public Health and Community Medicine
- School of Psychiatry
- School of Women’s and Children's Health
- School of Sociology and Anthropology
- National Centre for HIV Social Research
- National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research
- National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre
- NSG initiative in Human Rights (cross-Faculty Medicine, Law and Arts and Social Sciences)
- Centre for Refugee Research (cross-Faculty research initiative)
- Centre for Clinical Governance Research in Health
- Centres for Primary Health Care and Equity Research
- Simpson Centre for Health Services Research
- Muru Marri Indigenous Health Unit
- Injury Risk Management Research Centre (cross-Faculty initiative)
- Social Policy Research Centre