Integration Of Risk Evaluation In Cardiovascular Disease Management Programs.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$5,162,176.00
Summary
This study will determine the feasibility of a coordinated health care team approach to the treatment of cardiovascular disorders. It will examine a range of issues – who would most benefit from this approach, its value for money, the relative importance of health care services to consumers, and where to invest additional health funds. Built on strong collaborations between expert researchers in advanced diagnostic techniques, coordinated health care, community health care and health economics, ....This study will determine the feasibility of a coordinated health care team approach to the treatment of cardiovascular disorders. It will examine a range of issues – who would most benefit from this approach, its value for money, the relative importance of health care services to consumers, and where to invest additional health funds. Built on strong collaborations between expert researchers in advanced diagnostic techniques, coordinated health care, community health care and health economics, this provides a unique opportunity to benefit millions of Australians.Read moreRead less
QUality Improvement In Primary Care To Prevent Hospitalisations And Improve Effectiveness And Efficiency Of Care For People Living With Heart Disease (QUEL)
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$828,305.00
Summary
Heart disease accounts for a great number of deaths and admissions to hospital. We aim to improve ongoing prevention for people with heart disease by supporting general practices to use their data and provide more systematic care. We propose a randomised trial to determine whether a practice level strategy reduces cardiovascular events and hospitalisations and saves money. The research will directly inform government decision-making and policy regarding primary care incentive payment programs.
Measuring The Productive Efficiency Of Hospitals - A Comparison Of Parametric And Non-parametric Approaches
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$61,815.00
Summary
In the face of rising health service costs, an ageing population, and falling private health insurance rates, the efficient use of scarce health service resources has become a central theme in health system reform. Productive (or technical) efficiency is a key aspect of health system reform - that given health services are produced with the minimum feasible amount of resources. Despite the importance of technical efficiency there have been few published studies in Australia which measure technic ....In the face of rising health service costs, an ageing population, and falling private health insurance rates, the efficient use of scarce health service resources has become a central theme in health system reform. Productive (or technical) efficiency is a key aspect of health system reform - that given health services are produced with the minimum feasible amount of resources. Despite the importance of technical efficiency there have been few published studies in Australia which measure technical efficiency in the health sector. This study will develop theoretical and empirical approaches to measuring technical efficiency in the production of hospital services using data from Victoria. Measures of hospital technical efficiency will be developed using two quantitative modelling approaches: stochastic frontier modelling and data envelopment analysis. Results will be used to investigate the impact of patient and hospital characteristics on efficiency, and to identify economies of scale and scope in the provision of hospital services. The robustness of results to changes in variables, the sample of hospitals studied, and model assumptions will be tested, and two techniques will be compared to assess their appropriateness in the health services context which has not previously been done. Criteria for assessing the approaches include the degree to which: assumptions affect the robustness of results; the techniques capture the salient features of health services production; and the techniques produce similar rankings and estimates of inefficiency. The methods used will represent a significant contribution to international knowledge of hospital efficiency measurement, and the relationships between hospital characteristics, casemix, and efficiency. The study wil provide improved measures of hospital efficiency in Victoria, and will inform debate on hospital funding policy.Read moreRead less
Centre For Research Excellence In Reducing Healthcare Associated Infection
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,495,795.00
Summary
Each year in Australia 180,000 patients suffer a healthcare associated infection. Risk can be reduced with relatively simple technology but substantial costs arise with system wide adoption and monitoring. The economic paradigm is that funds can be invested for infection reduction to save costs and lives. The CRE will reveal the cost-effectiveness of infection control programmes and show health services decision-makers how to improve patient outcomes, save resources and save lives.
New Insights on Modelling Time Trends with Panel Data: Theory and Practice. This project aims to tackle important challenges in time trend modelling by taking advantage of panel data structures. This project expects to propose flexible models in time trend modelling to retrieve reliable inference. The expected outcomes include innovative econometric models and methods that have a wide range of applications, and are particularly suited for empirical problems within large and complex systems. This ....New Insights on Modelling Time Trends with Panel Data: Theory and Practice. This project aims to tackle important challenges in time trend modelling by taking advantage of panel data structures. This project expects to propose flexible models in time trend modelling to retrieve reliable inference. The expected outcomes include innovative econometric models and methods that have a wide range of applications, and are particularly suited for empirical problems within large and complex systems. This will provide significant benefits to all fields in which data displays any form of trending behaviour. The proposed model is used to evaluate the economic consequences of climate change and global housing market contagion, which provide strong evidence-based insights to the environmental and economic policies in Australia.Read moreRead less
Constrained and Stable Solutions of Nonlinear and Semismooth Equations. In this project, comprehensive models for designing safe power system parameters will be proposed, efficient algorthms for solving these models will be constructed. The new models and algorithms in this project will provide efficient tools to prevent catastrophic events in power systems, which is related with national security. This project will also strengthen collaboration of Australian applied
mathematians with inter ....Constrained and Stable Solutions of Nonlinear and Semismooth Equations. In this project, comprehensive models for designing safe power system parameters will be proposed, efficient algorthms for solving these models will be constructed. The new models and algorithms in this project will provide efficient tools to prevent catastrophic events in power systems, which is related with national security. This project will also strengthen collaboration of Australian applied
mathematians with international researchers and engineering scientists. This is important for the advance of science and technology in
Australia.Read moreRead less
Improving Vision And Quality Of Life: An Innovative And Comprehensive Eye Care Model For Individuals In Residential Care Facilities
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$896,953.00
Summary
Elderly people living in residential care facilities have high levels of vision loss which can impact on emotional health, falls, daily functioning, and quality of life. Appropriate correction and cataract surgery can improve vision and, with low vision rehabilitation, can enhance quality of life. This project will assess the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of a new model of eye care targeting vision impairment to improve residents’ daily functioning, enhance their emotional well-being and quali ....Elderly people living in residential care facilities have high levels of vision loss which can impact on emotional health, falls, daily functioning, and quality of life. Appropriate correction and cataract surgery can improve vision and, with low vision rehabilitation, can enhance quality of life. This project will assess the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of a new model of eye care targeting vision impairment to improve residents’ daily functioning, enhance their emotional well-being and quality of life; and reduce falls.Read moreRead less
Computational modelling of nanofluids for industrial applications. The use of nanoparticles in heat transfer fluids, then known as nanofluids, increases their specific heat and thermal conductivity. Recent experimental works highlight that anomalous transport phenomena are evident in nanofluids that cannot be adequately described by classical conservation laws. We will extend these conservation laws to incorporate fractional operators to capture the fluid memory effects and the impact of particl ....Computational modelling of nanofluids for industrial applications. The use of nanoparticles in heat transfer fluids, then known as nanofluids, increases their specific heat and thermal conductivity. Recent experimental works highlight that anomalous transport phenomena are evident in nanofluids that cannot be adequately described by classical conservation laws. We will extend these conservation laws to incorporate fractional operators to capture the fluid memory effects and the impact of particle clustering. Computational modelling and experimental investigations will be undertaken to identify the heat transfer mechanisms of various nanofluids. The outcomes of the work will increase knowledge on nanofluids and offer a significant opportunity to improve the efficiency of many thermal engineering systems.Read moreRead less
Identification and inference in nonparametric models. This project will develop reliable methods for identification, estimation and inference of nonparametric models for the evaluation of economic policies on outcome variables of interest. This econometric methodology will allow a better understanding of the quantitative effects of an economic policy which will result in better informed policy decisions. The results will have applications to labour market policies, health care policies and educa ....Identification and inference in nonparametric models. This project will develop reliable methods for identification, estimation and inference of nonparametric models for the evaluation of economic policies on outcome variables of interest. This econometric methodology will allow a better understanding of the quantitative effects of an economic policy which will result in better informed policy decisions. The results will have applications to labour market policies, health care policies and education policies among others. The project will also provide national benefits in terms of building up the local stock of researchers trained in the area of identification and estimation of nonparametric models; it will further improve the international reputation that Australia has in econometric theory.Read moreRead less
Dynamics of eigenvalue/eigenspace algorithms with applications to signal processing. Many problems in signal and systems lead naturally to an eigenvalue/eigenspace determination and tracking problem; for example (acoustic) echo-cancellation, crosstalk suppression in ADSL modems, direction of arrival determination with an array of sensors, linear system identification etc. Exploiting methods from global analysis and dynamical systems theory we will study the available algorithms for eigenspace de ....Dynamics of eigenvalue/eigenspace algorithms with applications to signal processing. Many problems in signal and systems lead naturally to an eigenvalue/eigenspace determination and tracking problem; for example (acoustic) echo-cancellation, crosstalk suppression in ADSL modems, direction of arrival determination with an array of sensors, linear system identification etc. Exploiting methods from global analysis and dynamical systems theory we will study the available algorithms for eigenspace determination to characterise their computational efficiency, accuracy and effectiveness in various data scenarios. The analysis will lead to improved designs for eigenvalue/eigenspace algorithms, as well as design tools to engineer algorithms to specific situations.Read moreRead less