- Government support boosts WA's national grant success rate
- Curtin University receives funding for student suicide prevention platform
- UWA awarded funding for project aimed at improving dental health in Indigenous children
The Cook Government is providing more than $2 million to support two Western Australian- based research projects - one targeting mental health issues for students and the other focused on dental health of Indigenous children in remote communities.
Medical Research Minister Stephen Dawson said the funding was being provided via the Government's successful Future Health Research and Innovation (FHRI) Fund through its Major Research Application Support (MRAS) program.
The MRAS program is designed to provide financial support for WA-based research teams applying for nationally and internationally competitive grants to boost their chance of success.
Two MRAS recipients were successful in securing funding through the National Health and Medical Research Council's (NHMRC) Partnership Project scheme, securing the third highest allocation of funding for WA.
Curtin University's Professor Penelope Hasking was awarded over $1 million in NHMRC funding for a suicide prevention platform known as COMPAS-S - Checking on Mental Health Providing Alternatives to Suicide for Students.
The COMPAS-S program proactively reaches out to students identified at high-risk of suicide and offers support, personal referrals and puts them in touch with other suitable mental health services.
The University of Western Australia's Dr Peter Arrow has received almost $1.5 million in NHMRC funding for a project that aims to improve the dental health of Indigenous children in remote communities.
The study is looking at the use of silver fluoride and Tele-Dentistry to manage and prevent childhood dental decay.
It is anticipated these measures will improve the dental health of recipients not only in childhood but through to adulthood.
The Cook Government established the productive FHRI Fund in 2020, which is backed by the State's almost $1.8 billion sovereign wealth fund. This has resulted in nearly $250 million being available over the next four years to support health and medical research and innovation in Western Australia.
The Partnership Project scheme funds collaborations between researchers, local government, health service providers and not-for-profit organisations to define questions, carry out research, and translate the findings into health policy and practice.
Successful MRAS applicants need to demonstrate that their project addresses a significant health issue in WA, build capacity in research and has the potential to attract external funding to the State.
The MRAS (Major Research Application Support) program is offered through theFuture Health Research and Innovation (FHRI) Fund.
Comments attributed to Medical Research Minister Stephen Dawson:
"This recent round of national grants success demonstrate how WA's talented cohort of researchers are taking a unique approach to tackling important and relevant issues facing the community.
"The MRAS program assists our WA-based researchers' competitiveness and ability to leverage national funding programs like the NHMRC Partnerships Project scheme which requires co-funding.
"The Cook Government is committed to ensuring WA researchers receive a fair share of national research funding.
"We want to invest in WA's innovative research, so we are actively contributing to developing solutions for ongoing and emerging global health challenges.
"These Partnership grants have not been won since 2021 and programs such as the MRAS are just one of many initiatives planned to improve success."
