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Improving Parental Mental Health and Engagement in Neonatal MRI: A Co-Designed Study, 2026 MRCMHR Seed Grant
Led by Dr Liza van Eijk. Families of infants requiring neonatal MRI often experience significant stress, anxiety, and uncertainty during a highly vulnerable postnatal period. This project will examine the psychological impacts and decision-making experiences of parents in North Queensland, where some families decline imaging despite potential clinical benefits. Through reimbursed parent participation and co-designed roundtable discussions with healthcare staff, we will identify how current MRI practices and timing influence parental distress, including both increased burden and potential reassurance through earlier detection and support. Findings will inform family-centred improvements to care, supporting better mental health outcomes for families and their infants.
Perinatal palliative care: understanding a model of practice
Led by Dr Bronwyn Sacks - Victorian Paediatric Palliative Care Program. This mixed-methods study will examine the current model of care for pregnancies affected by a suspected or confirmed life-limiting or life-threatening fetal condition within a specialist maternity and paediatric centre. Funded through philanthropic funding received from Very Special Kids.
Translating the HELP-C Framework into Rural Student-Led Healthcare: A Stakeholder Engagement Case Study with Murtupuni Centre for Rural and Remote Health
This stakeholder-engagement project will translate the HELP-C Framework into the rural student-led healthcare context of the Murtupuni Centre for Rural and Remote Health in Mount Isa. Activities will include rapid context mapping, mapping local evaluation priorities against the HELP-C Framework, a one-day stakeholder workshop in Mount Isa, and the development of a locally relevant evaluation roadmap and feasibility-focused case study report. The project will examine meaningful and feasible indicators across student experience, service delivery, health outcomes, community priorities and reporting needs, and will inform a potential future multi-site evaluation pathway
Translating mental health peer support into practice for consumers in rural and regional emergency departments: feasibility and pilot testing
Funded by Medibank Private to evaluate placing embedding workers with lived experience into resource-constrained rural hospital emergency settings.
ConnectED: Avoiding unnecessary ED presentations for people with mental illness
Avoiding unnecessary ED presentations for people with mental illness. HCF Research Foundation, Health Services Research Grants. Awarded 2025, $340,840 excluding GST over three years from January 2026. Chief investigator Associate Professor Kevin Mc Namara. Evaluates the ConnectED lived and living experience peer worker model in rural emergency departments.
Leveraging NQ telehealth experience for contextually informed process guidelines to optimise health service access, quality and safety in rural and remote Australia (NQ Telehealth Project)
To optimise the quality (including accessibility) and safety (including cultural safety) of health care for rural, remote and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations in NQ by optimising the use of telehealth as part of health care delivery.
ATSIMS Engaging Science Grant
The Engaging Science Grant supported the delivery of ATSIMS, providing First Nations secondary students with immersive, hands-on experiences in marine science while strengthening connections with Traditional Owners, Rangers, researchers and industry. The funding enabled students to build STEM skills, explore career pathways, and deepen their understanding of Sea Country through place-based learning.
ATSIMS Engaging Science Grant
The Engaging Science Grant supported the delivery of ATSIMS, providing First Nations secondary students with immersive, hands-on experiences in marine science while strengthening connections with Traditional Owners, Rangers, researchers and industry. The funding enabled students to build STEM skills, explore career pathways, and deepen their understanding of Sea Country through place-based learning.
ATSIMS U.S. Embassy Grant
In 2024, ATSIMS received funding through the U.S. Embassy Public Diplomacy Small Grants Program to strengthen Australia–U.S. collaboration in STEM education. The grant supported the participation of U.S. marine scientists and provided First Nations students with opportunities to engage with international researchers, broadening their perspectives on marine science careers and global scientific collaboration.
ATSIMS GBRF Grant
The Great Barrier Reef Foundation provided $100,000 over two years (2023–2024) to support the delivery and expansion of the ATSIMS program. The funding strengthened opportunities for First Nations students to engage with marine science, Sea Country and Traditional Owner-led learning, while enhancing program capacity, partnerships and student participation.