Factors influencing NHMRC grants
Dear Editor
On October 10 the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) announced the successful applications for funding to do medical research.
NSW scientists attracted approximately half the number of grants and approximately half the amount of funding as Victorian scientists (133 grants to NSW but 257 grants to Vic and $62 million to NSW but $121 million to Vic).
I believe that a salient factor contributing to the failure of NSW medical scientists to attract grants is the relative lack of support for medical research by the NSW State Government. If support for fundamental research is not augmented, NSW will not become a 'Smart State' and will fall further behind Victoria.
However, for UNSW, blaming the State is not sufficient. UNSW has slipped a further two rungs within the cohort of the Group of 8 universities (to 7th place) and it is time to take some bold steps to incentivise and support medical research at this University. The alternative is to see this once pre-eminent research university drift further toward the bottom.
George Paxinos,
Principal Research Fellow NHMRC and Professor UNSW,
Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute
|
