Join our next TTRA Information Session on Research Projects Funding for Indigenous Health

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19 January 2023

MTPConnect will soon open the Targeted Translation Research Accelerator (TTRA) program Round 3 Research Projects funding opportunity, supporting diabetes and cardiovascular disease research projects that address Indigenous-specific priority areas to benefit the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in rural, remote, regional, and urban centres. TTRA’s Round 3 funding opportunity will open on 30 January 2023.

In anticipation of this round, MTPConnect is holding a webinar on 6 February 2023 to explain the application process and the guidelines for applicants, with an audience Q&A.

The webinar will include comments from expert panellists from the TTRA and its partners including representatives from:

  • Australian Centre for Health Service Innovations (AusHSI)
  • Lowitja Institute
  • ANDHealth
  • Medical Device Partnering Program (MDPP)
  • UniQuest
  • TTRA Research Projects Round 3 Co-Design Group

TTRA Webinar: 6 February from 12:30pm to 1:45pm. Register for Round 3 Information session.

Partnering with Lowitja Institute

A prioritisation project led by the Lowitja Institute, a community-controlled organisation and Australia’s National Institute for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Research, determined three Indigenous-specific diabetes and cardiovascular disease priority areas for this TTRA funding round.

Partnering with the Lowitja Institute, ensured the voices of Indigenous communities have been centred in every aspect of the process of determining the Indigenous-specific priority areas.

Round 3 Priority Areas

To be eligible for funding, Research Projects must develop innovative preventative, diagnostic, therapeutic and/or disease management products, services and/or models of care for diabetes and/or cardiovascular disease (D&CVD) to address one of the following three priority areas:

Priority 1: Strengths-based perspectives to chronic disease – a need to adopt a strengths-based perspective to chronic disease, which builds and develops the existing strengths, skills and capacities of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Priority 2: Culturally safe programs and supports – development of culturally safe programs and supports for D&CVD prevention and promotion of 'healthy lifestyles' among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, using empowering, evidence-based, health promotion campaigns.

Priority 3: Culturally safe strategies to address cardiometabolic disease – culturally safe strategies to address cardiometabolic disease / risk factors to improve the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women prior to and during pregnancy. This should also include a focus on babies through the life course, including management of women with pre-existing and gestational diabetes.

Applications Open and Notice of Intent

The third and final round of TTRA Research Projects will open for applications on 30 January 2023 and has been designed to deliver benefit for the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. As per the Research Projects Round 3 Funding Guidelines, applicants will be required to submit a notice of intent to MTPConnect, prior to beginning their application. A link to the notice of intent will be published on the TTRA Research Projects Round 3 webpage once applications open.

Relevant Webinar from November - key elements of Indigenous Health Research 

In November last year, MTPConnect hosted a webinar to highlight key elements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research that potential applicants should consider when building their projects and teams. Watch the webinar – ‘Principles of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research and engaging meaningfully with community’ – here. The webinar is also available to listen to on the MTPConnect Podcast.

Information about the artwork featured above:

The artwork by Ngarrindjeri artist, Jordan Lovegrove, shows the growing ripple effect that Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander-led research has on health and wellbeing. The big meeting place in the centre represents Lowitja Institute and MTPConnect. The smaller coloured meeting places connected by footprints that surround it represents our connection and work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and other partners. The other small meeting places with pathways between, represent the communities that this research positively impacts. MTPConnect is pleased to licence this artwork from Lowitja Institute for the purposes of promoting TTRA Round 3 activities.