Parliament House event during National Science Week highlighted four
Canberra hosted a parliamentary event on 17th August 2026 focused on a practical problem in Australian healthcare: how to ensure proven research changes the care patients receive.
During National Science Week, the HCF Research Foundation held its inaugural Research to Reality Parliamentary Showcase at Parliament House.
Parliamentarians, researchers, clinicians, consumer representatives, healthcare leaders and policy advisers attended the event.
For more than 25 years, the HCF Research Foundation has supported health services research on how care is delivered, accessed and experienced.
At the showcase, the foundation highlighted research already improving care for Australians and examined what helps evidence become routine practice across the health system.
Adjunct Professor Karen Price, chair of the HCF Research Foundation, said the central issue comes after a study ends. “One of the most important questions in healthcare is what happens after the research is done.”
She said patients benefit only when evidence changes the care they receive. Price also argued that health services research can make care safer, more effective, more equitable and more sustainable.
Projects focus on heart, knees and care
Four HCF Research Foundation-funded projects formed the centre of the event.
One project aims to improve access to specialist heart failure care for people living in regional communities.
Another focuses on knee osteoarthritis. It aims to help people reach appropriate care sooner and reduce unnecessary time on surgical waiting lists.
A third project looks at how more older Australians can receive safe care at home where appropriate.
The fourth expands access to evidence-based mental health support through THIS WAY UP digital care programmes.
Dr Chris Pettigrew, head of the HCF Research Foundation, said the projects show how health services research can deliver practical benefits for patients, clinicians and the health system.
According to Pettigrew, the examples also show how better outcomes can come from changes in how care is designed, delivered and accessed.
Price said lasting improvement needs cooperation across the system. Researchers, clinicians, healthcare providers, governments, funders and consumers all have a role in turning evidence into better care, she said.
As a result, the event focused less on publishing studies and more on moving proven approaches into everyday healthcare.
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Last updated: 20 August 2026, 11:51 am
