Partnership project highlights child development

Wednesday, 10 April 2013

A major study into children's health and development led by University of Adelaide researchers has been announced today by the Minister for Health, the Hon. Tanya Plibersek.

Ms Plibersek made the announcement at the University of Adelaide, where she met with grant recipient Professor John Lynch (School of Population Health).

Professor Lynch will receive more than $273,000 for a whole-of-population study into child health and development.

The study - which is one of 11 Partnerships for Better Health - Partnership Projects announced today - is supported by the Australian Government and project partners from the Women's and Children's Health Network and the South Australian Department for Education and Child Development.

Children's healthy development is important for their readiness to learn, academic achievement at school, and for their future health and economic capability.

Professor Lynch's study links whole-of-population administrative data from nine different government sources, and data collected evaluating the effects of the South Australian Family Home Visiting program, to inform policy and service delivery in child health and development in South Australia.

The University of Adelaide was the only university in the State to receive one of the Partnership Projects.

Jointly funded through the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and partners, the grants encourage alliances between partners who deliver health care services, partners who make decisions about health practice, and researchers who can offer tailored, evidence-based solutions.

"The Australian Government is focused on improved patient care, better disease prevention and more cost-effective delivery of services," Ms Plibersek said.

"This aligns with recommendations from the recently released McKeon Review's call to imbed research into all facets of the health system.

"Collaboration in research provides a great example of where the whole is greater than the sum of parts."

Partnership Project partners include Commonwealth and State agencies, hospitals, medical research institutes, and patient advocacy groups.

"Each partner has an important contribution to make and comes to the table to find workable solutions to a set of problems. By encouraging collaboration, we can share our knowledge and experiences and pool our resources to get the most out of research to benefit Australians," Ms Plibersek said.

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