AUSTRALIA'S ‘research engine' SLOWS DOWN

As the COVID-19 has spread around the globe, it has created profound disruption across communities, patients and clinicians. Pharma and medtech companieshave found themselves front and center—supplying (and rapidly scaling up) vitally important medical products to support patients in their time of need, while also attracting widespread attention as the industry sprints to develop new therapeutics and vaccines for COVID-19. At the same time, the clinical and product development “research engine” has experienced profound disruption as colleagues adjust to remote work environments and lab capacity is reduced. Due to this crisis the focus has been now devoted to COVID-19 affecting research and development in other areas across the globe including R&D in Australia.

- Narayan Kulkarni

What impact is the pandemic having and likely to have on Australia’s research workforce and will we have the research workforce capability to support our recovery efforts? Responding to this question from the Australia’s Industry, Science and Technology Minister, Karen Andrews; Health Minister, Greg Hunt; and Education Minister, Dan Tehan, Australia’s Chief Scientist, Dr Alan Finkel haveconvenedRapid Research Information Forum (RRIF), a group of 35 research sector lead organizations,and its operations are led by the Australian Academy of Science. The RRIF has come up with report titled “Impact of the Pandemic on Australia’s Research Workforce”. The report noted that the Australian medical research workforce will be severely impacted for an extended period of time.

The report was submitted on May 6, to Neville Power, Chair and David Thodey, Deputy Chair, National COVID-19 Co-ordination Commission (NCCC), a strategic advisory body for the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic by the Australian Government. The NCCC was established on March 25, 2020 by Prime Minister Scott Morrison to provide advice on public–private partnerships and coordination to mitigate the social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia.