Message from the Director
November 2023
As the new Director of the Centre for Health Economics (CHE) since July 2023, I have been impressed by the quality and impact of the research undertaken at the centre. I am fortunate to have exceptional academic and professional staff and I am excited to share some of their recent achievements.
We recently secured a significant and highly competitive Australian Research Council Discovery grant, highlighting our commitment to research excellence, in addition to new funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF), and the federal Treasury.
ARC DP recipients Nicole Black, David Johnston, Trong Anh Trinh, and Leonie Segal (University of South Australia) will investigate the economic causes and consequences of child maltreatment, including the value of economic policies for reducing the intergenerational transmission of maltreatment.
Laura Fanning will evaluate the cost effectiveness of immunoglobulin versus alternatives to prevent infections in patients with blood cancers within the RATIONAL Platform Trial, which currently includes 3 trial domains.
Current projects also include research conducted by David Johnston, Rachel Knott and Andrew Ireland and funded by the Department of Treasury that explores the impacts of temperature on labour force dynamics and business performance.
Duncan Mortimer, Anthony Harris and collaborators are working on an NHMRC Partnership Grant to investigate the effect of personalised feedback and financial incentives on young driver crashes.
Jing Jing Li, Kah-Ling Sia, Peter Ghijben, Esa Chen, Leonie Picton, Dennis Petrie, and Karen Yong have recently completed a narrative review of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee's (PBAC) decisions from 2012-2022 focusing on the role of surrogate outcomes in PBAC decisions of cancer therapies. The Health Technology Assessment group has also started working with the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) conducting evaluations to inform funding for vaccines on the National Immunisation Program (NIP) for all Australians.
Besides these new projects and grants, we launched an International Visiting Fellowship Program, which will enrich our academic community and strengthen our global partnerships.
I am also delighted to have just been appointed to a major Federal Government Medicare committee - the Strengthening Medicare Implementation and Oversight Committee of the federal Department of Health and Ageing. This follows the recent rollout of the MyMedicare scheme, under which patients can voluntarily enrol with a GP.
In October, we held our annual CHE Planning Day, which brought together all CHE staff to discuss current issues and future goals for the centre, with exciting initiatives being planned for 2024 and beyond.
Finally, I would like to welcome Rainier Arnolda and Yalelet Yihun as the newest additions to our PhD program, and welcome back visiting scholars Professor Matthew Sutton, Dr Rachel Meacock, and Dr Luke Mumford from the University of Manchester.
As we approach the end of the year, I wish you a joyful holiday season and a healthy, productive and prosperous New Year.
Warm regards,
Professor Anthony Scott
Director, Centre for Health Economics