Who Gets to Shape Research into Health Inequity?

Australia’s Medical Research Future Fund is developing a new Reducing Health Inequities Mission, backed by $150 million over 10 years to support research aimed at improving health outcomes and access to care for priority populations.

Importantly, the priorities for that investment are still being shaped.

The Australian Government is seeking feedback on the Mission’s draft Roadmap and Implementation Plan, including from consumers, communities, researchers, clinicians and organisations. The consultation closes 25 September 2026.

Research With Communities, Not Just About Them

The Mission focuses on populations experiencing health inequities, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, culturally and linguistically diverse communities, people with disability and LGBTQIA+ people.

For engagement professionals, that raises an important question: how do we ensure people experiencing health inequity can influence the research priorities intended to improve their outcomes?

Community insight can help identify where systems are falling short, what barriers people experience in accessing care and which outcomes matter to them. It can also challenge assumptions about what researchers or health services believe communities need.

The current consultation provides one opportunity for that input. But the broader lesson extends beyond the development of this Mission.

When research is intended to address inequity, meaningful engagement should not sit at the edges of the process. There is value in creating opportunities for communities to inform what gets researched, how research is undertaken and how its impact is understood.

For health engagement practitioners, this is another reminder of the role engagement can play in connecting lived experience with decisions about where attention, research and investment are directed.

Consultation closes 25 September 2026.

HAVE YOUR SAY ON THE DRAFT ROADMAP