A message from our CEO
Annette Schmiede

A reflection on a transformative year for digital health 

As we approach the close of another year, it is the ideal moment to reflect on what has been a milestone year for digital health and the DHCRC. The past 12 months have marked significant advancements in innovation, collaboration, and the adoption of digital technologies within Australia’s healthcare landscape. This progress builds on the momentum sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic, which illuminated the potential of digital health to revolutionise patient care.

A standout development this year was the growing focus on embedding digital tools to create a robust and sustainable healthcare system, especially as we face challenges like an ageing population, rising chronic disease prevalence, and persistent workforce shortages. The release of the Productivity Commission report emphasised the transformative role of digital technology in generating cost savings and enhancing connectivity within our healthcare ecosystem. DHCRC is proud to have facilitated consultation with its SME partners as part of this process.

AI and the future of healthcare
Artificial intelligence has dominated discussions across industries this year, and healthcare is no exception. While the potential of AI to drive efficiency and improve outcomes is immense, its application in such a personal and private domain requires thoughtful implementation. At DHCRC, we are deeply engaged in projects that incorporate AI, ensuring its integration is underpinned by strong ethical frameworks and consistent guardrails. As highlighted in this year’s achievements, our Research and Development initiatives focus on developing scalable, evidence-based tools that benefit healthcare workers and improve patient outcomes.

Building pathways for innovation
One of DHCRC’s critical roles is to forge commercialisation pathways for digital health solutions, translating innovation into practical applications. Unlike the more established life sciences sectors, pathways for digital health innovation remain nascent. Projects like ADaPT Eastern Health and Aged Care Data Compare Plus exemplify our commitment to collaborating with industry and academia to build these pathways.

Additionally, our education and workforce initiatives have been pivotal in nurturing emerging talent. This year, we celebrated 170 current and graduated emerging leaders who have honed their skills through DHCRC-sponsored programs. The establishment of Australia’s first cross-university digital health network, the Australian Council of Senior Academic Leaders in Digital Health with 37 founding members, marks a significant step forward in advancing evidence-based research, collaboration, and curriculum implementation.

A national and local focus
This year also saw the Federal Government commit substantial funding to the Digital Health Blueprint and Action Plan, a vital step forward. Challenges remain, particularly in promoting local innovation and fostering collaboration across governments, industry, and universities. Addressing these gaps, such as reforming government procurement policies, is a priority as we strive to bolster Australian SMEs and prevent talent from seeking opportunities offshore.

A personal highlight this year was visiting Pirlangimpi in the Tiwi Islands, where we are collaborating with the community to explore how technology can enhance primary care in remote Indigenous communities. This experience reinforced the importance of equitable access to digital health solutions.

Looking ahead
Securing an unfunded extension from the Department of Industry, Science and Resources (DISR) was a testament to the value of DHCRC’s work. Over the next two years, we will deepen our focus on embedding research and education through leadership, commercialisation, and translation programs while continuing to support Australia’s digital health technology sector.

Our mission remains clear: to transform healthcare for all Australians through collaboration, innovation, and the strategic use of digital technologies. We are fortunate to work with 64 participant organisations across government, academia, and industry, all at the forefront of this evolution. Their unwavering commitment has been instrumental in our journey.

Thank you and season’s greetings
As we close the year, I want to extend my sincere thanks to our Board, partners, participants, and the dedicated DHCRC team. Together, we have achieved remarkable progress and laid a strong foundation for an even brighter future. I hope you have a restful and festive holiday season, and I look forward to building on this momentum in 2025.

Latest News 

Doubling down on deterioration

Australia’s first electronic screening and risk prediction tool for deterioration in aged care residents has been recognised again on the national stage.

Developed by researchers at RMIT, and Telstra Health in collaboration with Digital Health CRC, the risk prediction tool won the Digital and Data Health Innovation Award at Research Australia’s Health and Medical Research Awards last month.  

The tool represents a vital step toward fulfilling the Royal Commission into Aged Care’s goal of protecting and improving the safety, health, wellbeing, and quality of life for those receiving government-funded aged care.

New report reveals progress and challenges for women in Australia’s digital health workforce

Australian-first online tool to support safe and responsible use of AI in healthcare

This month, we unveiled a new initiative with the Department of Health and Aged Care, and two specialist AI teams within the University of Technology Sydney, UTS Rapido and UTS Human Technology Institute, that will create an online tool to help classify different types of Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions used in Australian healthcare.

The online tool will adapt the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) AI Classification Framework to the Australian context by ensuring recent government policies, including proposed mandatory guardrails for AI across the Australian economy.

Education Update

DHCRC’s Effective Telehealth Delivery learning experience is comprised of bite-sized, app-based lessons packed with practical skills to enhance telehealth practice. Designed for busy health professionals, it ensures learning fits seamlessly into your schedule, empowering you to excel in virtual care delivery. The course developed in collaboration with WA Country Health Service, La Trobe University and Curtin University, uses an innovative science-backed learning modality that is proven to enhance knowledge retention. 

Big Thinkers Forum: showcasing emerging leaders in digital health innovation

Hear from four of our brilliant emerging leaders with Big Thinkers Forum posts hot off the press:  

• Jia Wei Koh: VIRGO uses Bayesian AI to enhance risk adjustment in urology, improving clinical decisions and outcomes. Read more
• Vineeth Ramesh: AI-powered food logging automates tracking, enhancing accuracy and understanding of dietary patterns. Read more
• Kevin Poh: Exploring consumer empowerment in digital health through better education and health literacy initiatives. Read more
• Varun Karnik: Examining how AI perfectionism impacts mental health in a world driven by machine-generated standards. Read more

Our emerging leaders are represented on the DHCRC Talent Hub: take a moment to explore this diverse and powerful community.

Menopause and lymphoedema start-ups benefit from the Curiosity Camp advantage

Across November and December, Lymbase founder, Robyn Sierla, and Metluma co-founder, Georgie Drury, supercharged their start-up growth trajectories through the DHCRC's collaborative problem solving model, Curiosity Camp.

Teaming up with a diverse tribe of problem solvers and mentors, Robyn refined the business development pathway for the Lymbase app (a secure cloud-based clinical decision support system for lymphoedema), and Georgie accelerated her advocacy agenda and market strategy for the Metluma platform (an innovative digital support tool for women navigating perimenopause and menopause).

Curiosity Camp is an innovative learning experience centred around real-world challenges, founded by DHCRC in 2023. Learners are immersed in live projects led by industry and government that are based on existing and emerging needs in the healthcare ecosystem and current or future business challenges.

Read more about Robyn and Georgie's Curiosity Camp experience and outcomes here: Lymbase and Metluma.

Synthetic Data Community of Practice (SynD) powers ahead: SynD CoP on world stage

SynD member Professor James Boyd and SynD Co-Chair Dr Ben Hachey attended the International Population Data Linkage Network (IPDLN) conference in Chicago, USA, in September. Founded in 2007, IPDLN facilitates the exchange of ideas and methods about data linkage and has a global membership of nearly 2,000 researchers and practitioners. 

James and Ben co-led a workshop titled 'Synthetic data, common data models and federation: holy trinity or unholy mess?' with collaborators from Population Data Science at Swansea University (UK) and ICES (Canada) that explored the relationship between synthetic data and common data models (CDMs), such as the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) CDM. Workshop participants explored what the relationship between synthetic data and CDMs could offer in terms of enhancing data interoperability, scalability, and privacy preservation within healthcare research, education and innovation systems. Find out more about the workshop activities and outputs.

Ben also delivered two presentations at the conference showcasing DHCRC projects, 'Designing a utility evaluation framework for synthetic health data' and 'SynD: Australian synthetic health data community of practice'.

Fake patients for real outcomes

The Australasian Institute of Digital Health NSW Branch Event in November, 'Fake patients for real outcomes', featured a fascinating and thought-provoking panel discussion about synthetic data hosted by Peter Birch from Talking HealthTech with guest panellists, SynD Co-Chair Dr Ben Hachey, Patty Correll and Keren Pointon. The panel explored real-world applications and tackled questions around the opportunities, limitations, and ethical considerations of synthetic data in Australian healthcare, with key takeaways:

• Synthetic data complements real data by supporting early-stage research, bias detection, and algorithm training.
• It provides a faster, more inclusive pathway to health innovation.
• Public trust is essential. Education, clear communication, and robust governance are crucial for unlocking the potential of synthetic data, ensuring that life-saving insights are accessible to all.

Better, faster and cheaper health data – a video introduction from SynD Co-Chair Dr Ben Hachey  

SynD Co-Chair Dr Ben Hachey’s presentation 'Better, faster, and cheaper health data research' offers a clear and compelling overview of what synthetic data is and the associated opportunities and challenges. This presentation is an extract from Ben’s introduction to the SynD Symposium held in Brisbane in August. Enjoy!

Project Update

Exploring the economic of virtual care in remote communities

Understanding how technology can be used to better deliver accessible healthcare to remote Indigenous communities across Western Australia is the focus of a new research project between Western Australia Country Health Service (WACHS), The University of Sydney, and the DHCRC.

The research initiative will provide important insights into remote health service delivery through a study on expanding the WACHS Command Centre into additional remote Indigenous communities.

Following a successful pilot of providing virtual emergency services in a community with approximately 700-800 residents, the community has since been accessing these services for over three years.

Upcoming Events

A time to rest, refresh, and rejuvenate for 2025...

The DHCRC team will be out of the office from the 20th of December and will be reopening on the 6th of January 2024.

We would like to wish everyone a very happy, safe, and festive season, and a joyous New Year.

Date: 4-6 February 2025

Join The University of Sydney for a dynamic, multi-university event focused on the latest innovations and research in digital health. Our program will feature over 80 presentations, ePoster sessions, and networking opportunities each day - both in person and virtually!