Stream Six

1

• Stream Six
• Information Workshop
• Australian Primary Health Care Research Institute
• Professor Nicholas Glasgow
• August 2006

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Agenda

• Overview of APHCRI
• Linkage and exchange
• Stream Six
• Aim
• Three topic areas and APHCRIs focus
• APHCRI hub staff role in Stream Six
• Outcomes
• Information for applicants
• Application and Assessment processes
• Contract matters
• Timelines

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Overview of APHCRI
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PHC RED Strategy

• APHCRI is part of the PHC RED strategy
• Current components continue with sharpening of
  focus
• Value for money
• Capacity building AND research that informs
  policy and practice
• Balance between priority driven research rather
  than investigator lead research

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Mission and Aims

• APHCRIs mission is to provide national
  leadership in improving the quality and
  effectiveness of primary health care through the
  conduct of high quality priority-driven research
  and the support and promotion of best practice 
• APHCRI has four aims
• To strengthen the knowledge base of primary
  health care by conducting and supporting
  research
• To facilitate the uptake of research evidence in
  primary health care policy and practice
• To enhance research capacity in primary health
  care through strategic partnerships with other
  relevant national and international groups
• To ensure that the Institute operates to the
  highest standards by developing and improving its
  organisational capacity to lead the national
  primary health care research network through
  appropriate staffing, resources, infrastructure,
  management practices and governance and
  accountability processes.

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APHCRI a virtual institute

• Hub and Spoke model
• Hub based at ANU
• Spokes - programs of research commissioned by
  Institutes Research Advisory Board (RAB)
• Hub and Spokes form Institute

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Hub and Spoke Model
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Not a grants program

• to contribute to Institutes work program
• Working together
• Communicating often
• Participating in activities as they arise
• Publications
• Policy forums and debates
• Media activities
• Capacity building activities
• Visiting fellowships

9
Linkage and Exchange
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Mission and Aims

• APHCRIs mission provide national leadership in
  improving the quality and effectiveness of
  primary health care through the conduct of high
  quality priority-driven research and the support
  and promotion of best practice 
• Improving the quality and effectiveness of
  primary health care requires the adoption of
  evidence into policy and practice

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• Research
• Primary
• Secondary

• Pre Research
• Priority setting/review
• Questions
• Methodologies
• Funding
• Research training (not just researchers)

Dissemination
Evaluation

• Adoption
• (Use
• Direct
• Symbolic
• Enlightenment)

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Linkage and exchange

• For too long implementation of health services
  research has been viewed as a technical exercise
  in better dissemination now is the time to
  highlight the importance of inter-personal links
  and the need to embed exchange between applied
  research and practice within health service
  delivery organisations.
• Who needs to be linked?

Goering, P., D. Butterill, et al. (2003).
"Linkage and exchange at the organizational
level a model of collaboration between research
and policy." Journal of Health Services Research
Policy 8 S14.
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Linkage and exchange 1
Providers of Primary Health Care services and
their organisations
Australian Government Policy and Decision Makers
APHCRI Hub and Spokes
Consumers of Primary Health Care Services and
their organisations
Research Community
1 Lomas J. Using linkage and exchange to move
research into policy at a Canadian foundation.
Health Affairs 2000 19236-40
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Communicating

• Policy makers and decision makers in both the
  Commonwealth and States/Territories
• Providers of primary health care services and the
  various organisations with which they are linked
• Researchers and/or
• Users of primary health care services and the
  various organisations with which they are linked

http//www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2006/06/19/knHAR
RY_wideweb__470x347,0.jpg
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Linkage and exchange

• The current definition of research needs to be
  expanded to include at least the following as
  fundable stages of the research process
• The initial consultation with decision makers
  (needed to inform relevant research questions)
• The ongoing linkages (needed to maintain decision
  makers interest and researchers relevance) and
• The post-project communication and exchange
  (needed to make all decision makers aware of the
  research results)

C. H. S. R. F. (1999). "Issues in Linkage and
Exchange Between Researchers and Decision
Makers." Canadian Health Services Research
Foundation (May 1999)
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Promoting linkage and exchange APHCRI style

• Research topics built on consultations with
  policy advisers
• Research Advisory Board includes senior policy
  advisors in both Commonwealth and State
  jurisdictions
• Assessment criteria for applications within
  Stream Six reflect emphasis on policy and
  provider expertise in addition to more usual
  academic criteria
• Funding explicitly supports researchers
  participation in linkage and exchange activities
• Structured research workshops bringing policy
  advisors and researchers together
• International experts and resources engaged
• Communication strategy developed and implemented
  including
• APHCRI Dialogue
• APHCRI_at_work
• Web site including thematic presentation of work

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Stream Six

• (Refer to Information for Applicants document)

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APHCRI Declared Priorities

• Innovation in State/Commonwealth relationships
• Innovation in funding arrangements for new or
  existing services/models
• Innovation in organisation and linkages within
  Primary Health Care sector
• All relevant to Stream Six

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Stream Six Workforce

• The Research Advisory Board has determined Stream
  Six will focus on the following three topic areas
  within the domain area of workforce
• The number of workers
• Optimising the workforce
• The place of generalism
• Spokes will address different questions but use
  the same methodology of systematic review
  (including of relevant grey literature such as
  reports and policy papers) and synthesis of the
  research findings into policy relevant products
  appropriate for the Australian setting.

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Questions within topics

• Questions of two general types
• What do we know about.?
• What are the possible options?
• (Refer to information for applicants)

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APHCRIs questions

• Commissioned not investigator driven
• APHCRI has set parameters
• APHCRI has developed broad questions
• Applicants propose specific questions
• Question refinement through research process
• Focus on system issues

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Intended Outcomes

• Systematic processing of knowledge will provide
• Strong basis on which national primary health
  care policy can be informed
• Clear insights into important knowledge gaps
• Foundation on which APHCRI can build subsequent
  streams of activity
• Process for Stream Six will
• Strengthen the hub and spoke model we mean it!
• Build capacity in policy and research communities
• Continue to develop capacity in narrative
  synthesis methods
• Add to the 1325 documents on the APHCRI
  website

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Hub staff roles

• General leadership and oversight
• Develop overall approach
• Develop unifying and/or complementary methods
• Assist in identifying relevant grey literature
• Provide advice on synthesis and policy
  applications
• Promote linkages and synergies

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Eligibility to Participate (1)

• 2 - 4 CIs supported by research assistants
• CIs will have
• Relevant content knowledge
• Skills and experience in
• primary health care workforce policy, planning
  and implementation
• undertaking systematic reviews
• providing primary health care services and
• conducting economic analyses.
• One CI may have multiple skills/experience

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Eligibility to Participate (2)

• CIs commit to participation
• Single administering institution must be
  identified for each proposal
• (See http//www.anu.edu.au/aphcri/General/aphcri_c
  ommresearch.php for APHCRI's approach to
  Administering Institutions)
• Spoke and hub staff work collaboratively

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Funding for Stream Six

• Each spoke will receive a fixed amount of lt
  195,000 over one year to cover costs associated
  with
• personnel (e.g. RA, CI time)
• accessing key informants and grey literature
• participation in research components in Canberra
  (including travel)
• relevant consumables
• production of the final reports
• University/Center overheads NOT paid
• Number of spokes will depend on quality, will not
  exceed 9
• If none of sufficient quality, none will be funded

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Rural/remote Participation Costs

• Additional costs because of rural locations or
  locations remote from Canberra
• Additional funds not to exceed 25,000 per spoke
• Request plus justification included in proposal
• State capitals in eastern mainland States and
  South Australia not remote from Canberra

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Australian Competitive Grants Register

• APHCRI research activities listed on the
  Australian Competitive Grants Register (ACGR) in
  the section titled Non-Commonwealth Schemes
• http//www.dest.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/0508FE6D-DDEB-
  4C94-8701-AE5685BF602C/1209/acgr2004.pdf

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Application and Assessment Processes

• Refer to Information for Applicants, Application
  form, and ERC form
• http//www.anu.edu.au/aphcri/Spokes_Research_Progr
  am/Stream_Six.php

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Application and Assessment

• Complete application form
• Incomplete applications will be excluded
• Submit according to instructions
• Must meet all five criteria
• ERC recommendations to RAB for decisions
• See Information for Applicants page 6 of 10

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Application form

• Identify Chief Investigators (page 3)
• Succinct synopsis of the application this will
  be used to communicate what you are doing and
  will be placed on the APHCRI website if you are
  succesful (page 4)
• Project description not more than four pages
  (page 4). Only key references should be cited.
• Name all CIs. If they are named, they are
  expected to actively participate. (page 5)
• Associate investigators. What is their role?
  (page 10)
• Budget Do NOT ask for University/Centre
  overheads nor anything that is not DIRECTLY
  related to the research activity (page 11)
• Signed statement of intention to participate
  (page 13)

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Assessment Criteria

• ERC Assessment Form is provided
• ERC makes recommendations to the Research
  Advisory Board
• The RAB makes the final decisions

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Decision making

• Clear aims
• Transparent assessment processes
• Careful management of conflicts of interest
• Separate assessment and decision making
• Expert Review Committee recommendations
• Research Advisory Board decisions
• Total pool of funds available for Stream Six will
  not exceed 1.8 million
• Feedback

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Stream Six Activities

• Further refine the research questions
• Participate in research workshops in Canberra
• Participate in meetings with DoHA (policy
  analysts and advisors)
• Participate, as part of APHCRI, in responding to
  issues of the day
• Deliver outcomes in a timely fashion

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Contracts

• http//www.anu.edu.au/aphcri/Spokes_Research_Progr
  am/Handbook.php

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Contract Issues

• Typical contract on website
• Timeframe extremely tight
• Mirrors ANU contract with Australian Government
• Limited capacity to revise
• University Project Provider for IGS

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Timeline
Closing date for proposals 30 Aug
RAB announces Spoke funding
Research Component 1 Canberra
Research Component 2 Canberra
6
Contracts executed
ERC assesses proposals
RAB Meeting
Aug
Sept
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
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Any Questions?