Faculty Research Engagement and Impact Award

Introduced in 2014, this Award recognises excellence by researchers who have achieved, or are currently achieving, exceptional impact, particularly through transdisciplinary challenge-led research. The award celebrates success in collaborative working, partnerships, engagement and knowledge mobilisation activities that have led to significant community benefit. Winners were nominated for the corresponding Vice-Chancellor Award.

Between 2022-2024, this award was known as Award for Research Engagement and Impact (Economic and Social), between 2014-2021 as Research Impact (Economic and Social) Award, and prior 2014 as the Innovation and External Collaboration Award.

2025 Pete Lambert

Substantial investments have been made to improve healthcare infrastructure and systems in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), however the prevalence of substandard and falsified medicines remains unacceptably high. Pete Lambert founded the Monash Quality of Medicines Initiative (QoMI) to support global efforts to address this issue.

QoMI investigates the root causes of poor quality medicines and provides evidence to support international and local policy change and regulatory action against substandard products. In addition, QoMI works with local stakeholders to build capacity and increase the resilience of local supply chains.

Since the launch of QoMI in 2023, studies in 14 LMICs (in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia) have led to the removal of a number of poor-quality products from local markets, informed new WHO guidelines and resulted in national policy change. QoMI has also provided technical training to more than 300 government officials, clinicians and supply chain managers in sub-Saharan Africa and the Pacific Islands.

2022 Simon Bell

Simon developed New Australian Guidelines for the Appropriate Use of Psychotropic Medications in People Living with Dementia and in Residential Aged Care.

The guidelines were developed by an 18-member multidisciplinary group led by Monash University's Centre for Medicine Use and Safety, with input from the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, School of Primary and Allied Health Care and Peninsula Clinical School.

The research impact is: Sustained engagement of consumers, aged care provider organisations, professional associations and governmental organisations to address an Australian National Health Priority Area (Quality Use of Medicines and Medicine Safety) and recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.

Prior to 2014, this award was known as the Innovation and External Collaboration Award which rewarded excellence by researchers who have sought to progress their research, or to extend the outreach of their research, through engagement with external partner organisations including industry, government and other not-for-profit sectors.