Research support

Timely access to research methods and services is essential to building top-tier clinical research. Working with an appropriately qualified Biostatistician, Health Economist, Health Informatician, or Implementation Scientist and/or Clinical Trialist who can inform on study start-up, study conduct as well as study completion, are amongst the services MISCH can provide.

MISCH collaborates on NHMRC, MRFF and many other grants as chief and associate investigators.

  • Biostatistics collaborations include input into protocol development and analysis. Expertise includes individual and cluster, stepped-wedge and adaptive trials, as well as observational cross-sectional, cohort and case-control studies ranging in size from pilot and feasibility to confirmative research.
  • Health Economics supports cost-effectiveness research with expertise in economic evaluation and modelling, health technology assessment and economic evaluation alongside trials and trial design.
  • Health Informatics supports REDCap, standard language packages for grants and health information technology applications.
  • Co-Design and Implementation Science provides expertise in intervention design, development and implementation for all health research study designs. This includes advice on implementation study designs and strategies to embed within research grants to ensure uptake and embedding of interventions. There is also support available for process evaluation designs to embed within clinical trials and other research study designs.
  • What we support

    Our academics have a Masters or PhD with national accreditation's and are embedded within academic departments to ensure contemporary knowledge and skills.

    The research scope includes basic science, cohort and epidemiological studies, clinical trials and health services research. Through supportive collaborations, MISCH is able to support University of Melbourne staff and honorary staff with:

    • Grant development and submission
    • Participate in Departmental panels for grant pitch reviews
    • Research concept development
    • Protocol design and development
    • Pilot project development
    • Clinical trial planning and budgeting
    • Data analysis
    • Reporting of results and publication
    • Data management (REDCap)
    • Database linkages
    • Data storage and archiving
    • Medical apps
    • Systematic reviews
    • Meta-analysis
    • Grant re-submissions
    • reviews
    • Without prior engagement grant rebuttal support will require a 5 hour ($725) upfront subscription.

    Contact MISCH for more information.

    While we do not review grants this support may be available through your Department grant panel reviews. Grants that have undertaken departmental review are then commonly forwarded to MISCH. For information on how to access support for grant and fellowship applications, please visit MDHS Research Development.

  • How we can support

    Support is enabled through three options,

    1) Grant Development is best for the development of new research grant applications and strengthening research design and methodology. This is offered as a free service where MISCH academics are listed as a CI or AI, and where the grant is successful, the EFT budgeted covers work to be conducted.

    2) Subscription is used for pilot projects, research development ideas, grant re-submissions and panel reviews. It is often used by hospitals, research Departments or research groups.

    3) Hub & Spoke is used for long-term Biostatistical and Co-Design and Implementation collaborations. This is used where an ongoing EFT need has been identified by a hospital or research Department. This model enables Biostatisticians or an Implementation Science researcher to remain embedded within a peer group at the University of Melbourne and work for a hospital or Department on an agreed EFT. An example of this for an Implementation Science researcher would be to collect and analyse data as part of a process evaluation for a clinical trial.

    A collaboration agreement is signed to enable our work together in a clear and transparent manner.  Please contact MISCH using the online contact form to coordinate an appointment.

  • Research grant development

    When planning your University of Melbourne research also think about biostatistics, health economics, health informatics and implementation science

    How MISCH can support your research.

    Step 1: Inclusion of MISCH in Departmental peer review panels to support grant development

    The MISCH team of biostatisticians, Implementation scientists and health economists provide expertise in the design of research studies and preparation of grant applications at the University of Melbourne. The inclusion of MISCH staff on departmental grant development panels is a cost-effective investment to improve the statistical and health economic aspects of grant applications, and qualitative, mixed-method process evaluations with multiple grants reviewed in 3 to 6-hour panel sessions and an effective way to initiate collaborations with the MISCH team.

    Inclusion supports an independent review by academics with methodological expertise and perspectives that may not be represented within the department. This can provide an opportunity for specialists in relevant fields to comment on a full draft grant application, including recommendations before a final submission to RIC. Table 1 provides recommendations for panel dates. See step 1 notes below for further details.

    Table 1: Recommended panels and review date examples

    Scheme

    Open

    Minimum data  

    Due to RIC

    Applications close

    Synergy grants

    16 Feb 2022

    16 March 2022

    21 March 2022

    11 April 2022

    Clinical Trials & Cohort Studies (CTCS)

    29 June 2022

    27 July 2022

    1 August 2022

    24 August 2022

    Ideas Grants

    9 March 2022

    6 April 2021

    7 April 2022

    2 May 2022

    MRFF planning

    ongoing

     

    Preparatory review

     

    At this time MISCH is unable to support Health Economic burden of disease analysis, NHMRC development grants (commercial) or consumer development in grant applications.

    Step 2: Research collaboration in grant applications

    Where a grant is endorsed subsequent to the grant panel and requires full methodological development, MISCH can also be engaged for grant development support, subject to available resources.

    Table 2 outlines key dates with proposals to be forwarded through the MISCH online contact portal requiring a collaboration agreement.

    We require a minimum of 8 weeks between MISCH linkage to NHMRC submission date to ensure the best possible support for researchers.

    Table 2: MISCH engagement cut-offs for NHMRC funding research applications

    Scheme

    NHMRC Open

    MISCH engagement no later than

    RIC submission

    Link to guidelines

    Ideas Grants

    8/03/2023

    8/02/2023

    13/04/2022

    here

    Synergy Grants

    8/02/2023

    8/01/2023

    13/03/2023

    here

    Clinical Trials & Cohort Studies Grants

    28/06/2023

    23/05/2023

    7/08/2023

    here

    For all research funding schemes, visit:  https://sites.research.unimelb.edu.au/research-funding

    Step 1 notes:

    All correspondence is confidential per the research integrity policy (MPF1318).

    Process:

    • Departments contact MISCH (misch-info@unimelb.edu.au) to put forward proposed dates and timings.
    • MISCH manager liaises with MISCH academics to book timings
    • Department sends draft grants to MISCH minimum 1 week prior to panel
    • MISCH reviews grants for presentation at panel
    • MISCH sits on departmental review panel providing expert feedback to group and researcher
    • MISCH generates charge out for payment

    Costs:

    Costs are linked to hours of use and include the time for draft grant review prior to the panel review (30 minutes per grant), plus the time spent sitting on the panel (per MISCH academic).

    For example, biostatistics support for 5 grants (30 min x 5 grants) and plus participating in a 3- hour grant panel is 5.5 hours. If biostatistics and health economics are included, the total academic hours are 11 hours. Please note costs are pro-rata based on hours. The minimum is 5 hours.

    The rates for internal (UoM) casual / subscription support are: $725 for 5 hours, $1,350 for 10 hours, $2,500 for 20 hours, $6,000 for 50 hours. This is also reflected in the MISCH collaboration agreement.

    Where panels are not conducted at Parkville, time for travel will be included in the subscription rate if applicable.

    Co-Design support for intervention and grant proposal development is costed at different rates depending on needs.

  • REDCap - web-based data management

    REDCap (Research Electronic Data Capture) is a secure web-based data management tool used for building and managing online surveys and databases that is free for use with University of Melbourne research.

    While REDCap can be used to collect virtually any type of data (including 21 CFR Part 11, FISMA, and HIPAA-compliant environments), it is specifically geared to support online or offline data capture for research studies and operations. For more information, see the consortium home page.

    The University's REDCap service storage and backup policies that comply with University standards. The software is hosted on Melbourne University data centre infrastructure.

    You can apply for REDCap access via the user accounts page. If you have any questions, you can contact our support team at red-cap@unimelb.edu.au. We run Beginner and Intermediate-level workshops every few months; you can book a place via our training resources page.

    For health database linkage see the GRHANITE website.

  • STUDIO Work Up

    "Studios" are a series of structured, dynamic sessions bringing together relevant research experts to focus on developing up a research proposal. We offer studios for all stages of the research cycle including hypothesis generation, study design, implementation, analysis and interpretation, translation and manuscript development.  Studio workup sessions are intended to enhance research quality, foster advances in clinical practice and improvements in patient health, increase publications, and generate new ideas.

    The Process: The researcher submits an online proposal to the MISCH Manager for consideration by the MISCH research team. Applications deemed to suitable for a Studio workshop review will be asked to give a short 3-5 minute presentation to the panel. Guidance and feedback will be provided to the researcher(s) who then have an opportunity to resubmit their proposal (usually within a 2 week timeframe) and will be provided with additional written feedback.