The National Health and Medical Research Council has awarded $5.24 million to a five-year research project that aims to improve mental health treatments for developmentally disabled young people.
The research is based on The University of Queensland’s world-renowned Stepping Stones (“Triple P”) Positive Parenting Program, and will be conducted jointly by UQ, The University of Sydney and Monash University.
UQ’s Professor Matt Sanders, the founder of the Triple P program, said the mental health of young people with autism spectrum disorders was a substantial public health problem.
The new NHMRC funding would enable a multi-site trial — in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria — to evaluate the efficacy of Stepping Stones Triple P as a multi-level system of intervention and to test some newly developed modules aimed at specific causes of developmental disabilities.
Professor Sanders said the research targeted children aged under 12. Developmental disabilities affected about three per cent of children in high-income countries, equivalent to between 161,000 and 215,000 Australian children.
He said there were “stark health and access inequalities” for people with intellectual disabilities, and the life expectancy of this group was up to 20 years lower than for the general population.
Alongside Professer Sanders, the chief investigators are Professor Stewart Enfield (USyd) and Professor Bruce Tonge (Monash).
Triple P is used in more than 20 countries around the world including the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, Japan, Iran, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Netherlands, England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Germany, Curacao, Switzerland, Austria, Romania and Sweden.
Its programs have been translated into 17 languages and have helped an estimated six million families.
Over the past four years, more than 1700 health care professionals and educators in Brisbane have received Triple P training, which has helped an estimated 45,000 families develop better parenting skills.
On a state level, 3800 people have been trained in Triple P, reaching an estimated 98,000 families while nationally the figure is 7000, reaching an estimated 184,000 families.
A total of $107 million in NHMRC Program Grants were announced yesterday.
Mark Butler, the federal minister for Mental Health and Ageing, said the funding was going to some of the nation’s most distinguished and highest profile researchers.
The funding would support nine high-level medical research programs and help secure Australia’s reputation as an international leader in research.
The grants — ranging between $5.2 million to $21.3 million — are provided through the NHMRC, Australia’s peak body for health and medical research.
“The grants will enable Australia’s best and brightest to drive their own long-term research programs to address complex health problems,” Mr Butler said.
The grants cover a range of areas from the basic science of immunology, public health research in stroke, mental health, breast cancer and a common childhood cancer.
Mr Butler said funding research was critical to keeping Australia’s reputation as the clever country, and one that punches well above its weight on the international stage.
“Australia has produced two Nobel Laureates, as well as famous immunologists such as (UQ’s) Professor Ian Frazer, who was the co-inventor of the cervical cancer vaccine,” he said.
“The nine medical research programs announced today have the potential to unlock a range of key health issues and ensure that Australia is also known as the healthy country.”
“With the high calibre of researchers Australia is producing it is inevitable that before too long we’ll have another Nobel Laureate to add to our list.”
NHMRC Program Grants provide support for teams of the highest quality researchers to drive their own five-year research projects to address complex health problems. They support the development of new ideas and approaches through collaborative work, as well as assisting up and coming researchers.
Media: Professor Matt Sanders, ph +61 7 3365 7290; Fiona Cameron UQ Communications ph +61 7 3346 7086
Minister’s office, Adam Smith, +61 2 6277 7280
NHMRC, Carolyn Norrie, 0422 008 512, or +61 2 6217 9342
