NHMRC's role in research translation

Our role in research translation

NHMRC is supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council Act 1992 (the Act) which aims to raise the standard of individual and public health in Australia. The Act enables NHMRC to engage in activities to achieve its intentions and foster the consideration of ethical issues relating to health.

NHMRC’s 3 strategic themes – investment, translation and integrity – reflect its legislated functions: to fund health and medical research and training; to issue evidence-based guidelines that aim to improve health outcomes through better prevention, diagnosis and treatment; and to advise on ethical issues in health. These themes also reinforce NHMRC’s commitment to upholding the highest standards of ethics and integrity in health and medical research.

Supporting research translation

Achieving impact through research translation requires coordinated effort across the health and medical research system. Under its legislated functions, NHMRC supports and enables this ecosystem through the following: 

Alignment

• To support effective translation of research findings into health policy and practice, NHMRC aligns its translation priorities with broader national strategies and initiatives. This includes the National Health and Medical Research Strategy 2026-2036 and reviews, such as the Strategic Examination of Research and Development.

Initiatives

• The Research Translation Centre Initiative encourages excellent health research and translation in Australia by bringing together researchers, healthcare providers, education and training to improve the health and wellbeing of patients and the populations they serve.

Funding schemes

• Partnership Projects contribute to translation by creating new opportunities for researchers and policy makers to work together to define research questions, undertake research, interpret the findings and implement the findings into policy and practice.
• Centres of Research Excellence aim to improve health outcomes and promote or improve translation of research outcomes into policy and/or practice.
• Clinical Trials and Cohort Studies Grants support high–quality clinical trials and cohort studies that address important gaps in knowledge, leading to relevant and implementable findings for the benefit of human health.
• The 2025–26 Research Translation Centres grant opportunity accelerated the objectives of the Research Translation Centre Initiative by supporting the NHMRC–accredited Research Translation Centres to meet their strategic aims and objectives.
• The 2024 Collaborations in Health Services Research grant opportunity supported improvements in translation capacity through the stimulation of programs of small–scale, health service–focused research projects that related to the health system, conducted in a health service setting, by a collaboration of health services/research organisations.

Guidelines

• Guidelines translate research evidence into recommendations for clinical practice, public health and environmental health.