Northern Community Health & Research Foundation

14/04/2026

Calling early career researchers!

There is still time to apply for the 2026 Derek Frewin Early Career Researcher Award, made possible by NCHRF to support early career researchers in medical and health sciences.

We are seeking applications for research projects and community engagement activities. This award can open important doors for early career researchers, enabling them to secure further research funding and to amplify the impact of their research in both academic fields and general practice.

Applications close 5.00pm on 17 April.

Find out more and apply at https://www.nchrf.com.au/post/2026-early-career-researcher-award-applications-now-open

Nino Di Sisto, Geoffrey Bell, Gregory Crawford AM, Dr Suren Krishnan, Kathryn Eaton, Emma Parkinson-Lawrence, David Meyer, Adelaide Boylan, Maria De Conno, Cathy Baker, Ben Goldsmith
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23/03/2026

Social connectedness is key to improved physical and mental health in the community. Research shows that isolation and loneliness amongst older adults are major contributors to increasing demand on health professionals and are significant contributing factors to ill-health.

The Chatty Cafe Walkerville provides a welcoming space where people of all ages and backgrounds can come together for conversation and connection each month. Northern Community Health & Research Foundation Chair Nino Di Sisto was delighted to join participants at the Town of Walkerville’s Chatty Cafe recently to mark NCHRF’s funding support through our community capacity building grants. This support will enable the program to be delivered at more sites, extending capacity for residents to connect with each other and participate in the program.

The Cafe is an initiative of the Walkerville Community Committee, a group of local residents and Town of Walkerville councillors who work together to provide low-cost events for the community, funded through grassroots fundraising at local events.

Read more at https://www.nchrf.com.au/post/welcoming-connection-to-increase-community-wellbeing-in-walkerville

Nino Di Sisto, Geoffrey Bell, Gregory Crawford AM, Dr Suren Krishnan Kathryn Eaton, Emma Parkinson-Lawrence, David Meyer, Adelaide Boylan, Maria De Conno, Cathy Baker, Ben Goldsmith

18/03/2026

Applications are now open for the Derek Frewin Early Career Researcher Award, presented by the Northern Community Health & Research Foundation. The Foundation is seeking applications for research projects and community engagement activities, which can include projects over one or two-year periods. Consideration is given to research rigor and potential for the project to lead to further funding opportunities. This year, NCHRF are particularly encouraging applications for projects connected to wellness and ageing.​
The award is named in honour of Emeritus Professor Derek Frewin AO in honour of his unfailing dedication to mentoring and inspiring students for more than 60 years. He is pictured here with 2026 award recipient, Dr Sonia Nath.

NCHRF’s support through this award has enabled past recipients to further their research and secure additional research funding, along with extending the impact of their research in the academic sector and the community.
Past recipients have included Associate Professor Rajiv Mahajan, Associate Professor Tongzhi Wu, Dr Sebastian O Sterling, Dr Vasilios (Bill) Panagopoulos, Dr Ashleigh Hull, Dr Jessica Stanhope, Dr Patrick Asare and Dr Sonia Nath.

Research topics previously supported through the Derek Frewin Early Career Researcher Award has ranged from brain and gut health, treatments for auto-immune diseases and improving therapeutic outcomes for patients with prostate and other cancers, to radiopharmaceuticals, the role of micronutrient-microbiome interactions in respiratory disease, the impact of green space on management of chronic pain and arthritis, and oral health care.

Applications close 17 April 2026. Read more at https://www.nchrf.com.au/post/2026-early-career-researcher-award-applications-now-open

Nino Di Sisto, Geoffrey Bell, Gregory Crawford AM, Dr Suren Krishnan, Kathryn Eaton, Emma Parkinson-Lawrence, David Meyer, Adelaide Boylan, Maria De Conno, Cathy Baker & Ben Goldsmith

25/02/2026

The Northern Community Health & Research Foundation is funding an exciting project to determine if a relatively simple mobile test, performed virtually at the bed side using an instrument not dissimilar to machines used to measure blood sugar levels, can determine whether there is a need for antivenom treatment.

This project, entitled Evaluation of the Analytical Performance of the Point-of-Care qLabs FIB Analyser Against the Gold-Standard Clauss Assay for Early Detection of Venom Induced Coagulopathy, will evaluate a new test which could give doctors more certainty about who needs treatment, reducing the number of people who may be exposed to anti-venom therapy with potentially serious and even life-threatening side effects. It will also enable earlier administration of antivenom, leading to improved health outcomes.

Read more at https://www.nchrf.com.au/post/greater-certainty-and-faster-treatment-for-snake-bite

New test to determine need for anti-venom treatmentThe Northern Community Health & Research Foundation is funding an exciting project to determine if a relatively simple mobile test, performed virtually at the bed side using an instrument not dissimilar to machines used to measure blood sugar levels...

27/01/2026

The Northern Communities Health and Research Foundation is proud to introduce the School to Scholar program, launching in 2026. This initiative connects secondary students from Adelaide’s northern suburbs with senior medical student mentors from the Northern Scholars program, providing guidance, support, and inspiration for those aspiring to a career in medicine.

The program addresses barriers many young people face, including being first in their family to attend university and having limited access to medical role models. Through one-on-one mentoring, interactive workshops, and community activities, students gain practical insight into medical careers while senior medical students develop leadership, teaching, and community engagement skills.

Jointly led by Adelaide University and the Northern Adelaide Local Health Network, School to Scholar reflects NCHRF’s ongoing commitment to improving health outcomes in northern communities and fostering the next generation of health professionals.

Aaron Boyce
Nino Di Sisto, Geoffrey Bell, Gregory Crawford AM, Dr Suren Krishnan, Kathryn Eaton, Emma Parkinson-Lawrence, David Meyer, Adelaide Boylan, Maria De Conno, Cathy Baker & Ben Goldsmith

08/12/2025

Northern Community Health and Research Foundation Chair Nino Di Sisto has released the 2024-2025 Impact Report.

Highlights for the year include steady progress in the Prescriptions for Connection: A Social Prescribing Approach for Healthy Ageing project and a highly successful Visiting Professorship for renowned pain researcher Associate Professor Peter Grace, the Foundation has continued to seek out and support initiatives and projects aiming to foster better health outcomes in the northern communities of Adelaide.

The Prescriptions for Connection project aims to develop scalable initiatives to assist in the reduction of reliance on health services to mitigate the effects of social isolation and loneliness, which currently contribute to around 20% of GP consultations. In another area of research, NCHRF supported a study into advance care planning with vulnerable populations.

Six previous recipients of the Derek Frewin Award for Early Career Researchers spoke at a special event this year which focused on the impact of this award on the recipients’ careers and research projects.

Practical support for researchers was also a key benefit of Associate Professor Grace’s Visiting Professorship, at which he generously shared his insights into building professional research networks as well as sharing the latest research findings into neuroimmunology and pain management from his team at the Department of Symptom Research at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Care Centre.

This year, the Foundation continued to provide awards to winners of the Three-Minute Thesis and 2025 Florey Postgraduate Award, and to support community-focused initiatives such as community wellbeing programs.

Read the full Impact Report 2024-2025 here https://www.nchrf.com.au/post/wrapping-up-2025-with-impact

Nino Di Sisto Geoffrey Bell Gregory Crawford AM Dr Suren Krishnan Kathryn Eaton Emma Parkinson-Lawrence David Meyer Adelaide Boylan Maria De Conno Cathy Baker

10/11/2025

Meet NCHRF board member Ben Goldsmith.

Ben is a proud South Australian with significant business experience across a range of industries. A graduate of the Elton Mayo School of Management at the University of SA, and of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Ben was a National Human Resources Manager for a Fortune 500 US-based technology company before switching lanes to rise to the position as Dealer Principal, CEO and part-owner of a large car dealership group comprising five sites and seven automotive franchises. After the successful sale of his business, Ben now spends his time between a diverse range of activities including supporting early stage companies, the family farm, commercial property, equity investing, a small coastal restaurant and various Director roles.

Ben brings diverse skills to his role on the NCHRF Board along with a passion for advocacy for the disability sector developed through his own family experience with one of his three daughters living with cerebral palsy.

Nino Di Sisto Geoffrey Bell Gregory Crawford AM Dr Suren Krishnan Kathryn Eaton Emma Parkinson-Lawrence David Meyer Adelaide Boylan Ben Goldsmith Maria De Conno Cathy Baker

03/11/2025

Each year, the Northern Community Health & Research Foundation supports Adelaide medical students through the Adelaide Medical Students’ Foundation (AMSF) through scholarship grants to supplement their learning with additional domestic and international placements and conference opportunities.

In 2025, the four recipients of these grants chose to use this support to gain experience in diverse medical environments, ranging from emergency medicine and infectious diseases to cardiac subspecialties and neonatal surgery, in even more diverse locations - London, Thailand and Brazil. Maia Kat, Tanvi Singh, Leo Bowley-Schubert and Violet Spanner all say these placements provided them with unparalleled experiences that will likely stay with them throughout their careers.

Maia Kat undertook a four week placement in the Emergency Department of Srinagarind Hospital, the largest and first tertiary care teaching hospital in northeastern Thailand. Leo Bowley-Schubert travelled to Brazil to the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) in Belo Horizonte, where he learned from teams in UFMG’s teaching hospitals focused on Infectious Diseases, Cardiology, Emergency, and Endocrinology.

Two students, Tanvi Singh and Violet Spanner, spent four weeks at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children in London. Tanvi’s placement was with the Hospital’s Specialist Neonatal & Paediatric Surgery (SNAPS) service, while Violet worked with the cardiology team, seeing complex congenital heart disease cases, undertaking ward duties, clinics and working in the cath lab on a day to day basis.

Experiences such as these, early in a medical career, offer unparalleled opportunities for students to explore and experience their areas of interest, as well as gaining working experience with care teams using different techniques, and different healthcare models. They are, as Violet said, “unforgettable learning experience[s]”.

30/09/2025

Congratulations to the 2025 Three-Minute Thesis Faculty Winners Danielle Bailey, Cate Cheney and Aniket Nadkarni on their outstanding presentations, and to Florey Postgraduate Award winner John Henrik Johansson, who all received grant support from the Northern Community Health & Research Foundation with their awards.

Read more here https://www.nchrf.com.au/post/florey-postgraduate-award-and-3mt-faculty-winners-2025-congratulations

25/08/2025

DEADLINE EXTENDED
Due to the high level of interest in these grants, the deadline for applications for these grants has been extended to 5:00pm, Friday 29 August 2025.
Apply now!

Are you working on a health research project that could benefit communities in Northern Adelaide?

The Northern Community Health & Research Foundation (NCHRF) is now inviting applications for its next round of medical research grants—supporting projects that promote wellness and healthy ageing in Adelaide's northern council districts of Prospect, Walkerville, Port Adelaide Enfield, Salisbury, and Playford.

We are especially interested in projects with strong translational potential, collaborative partnerships, and outcomes that support the long-term health of these communities. Early to mid-career researchers, with up to 15 years post-PhD are strongly encouraged to apply. Funding is available over a 2-year period for projects commencing by January 2026.

Applications close Friday 15 August 2025 at 5pm. For the complete eligibility details, selection criteria, and the application form visit our website https://bit.ly/4eamdGw

11/08/2025

Associate Professor Peter M Grace returned to Adelaide recently as the Northern Community Health & Research Foundation Visiting Professor for 2025. In a packed program of public and professional events, meetings and presentations, Associate Professor Grace shared his work at the Department of Symptom Research at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Centre focusing on neuroimmunology and pain research.

Associate Professor Grace leads an internationally renowned team in this field and was able to share his expertise and knowledge in neuroinflammatory and neuroimmune mechanisms underpinning chronic pain with colleagues at all career levels during his visit. Having achieved his own PhD in Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology from the University of Adelaide before undertaking his postdoctoral fellowship in neuroimmunology at the University of Colorado Boulder. One of the most important and enduring benefits of his visit has been the contribution made to strengthening research networks which will undoubtedly underpin future collaborations in pain research and support Adelaide’s own well-recognised strengths in pain research and clinical oncology.

Read more at Read more at https://bit.ly/45tiMGC

Photo: (L to R) Professor Andrew Zannettino Executive Dean of the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Adelaide, Professor Greg Crawford AM, Board Member NCHRF, Associate Professor Peter Grace, Professor Mark Hutchinson, Director of the Institute for Phototonics and Advanced Sensing, School of Biomedicine, University of Adelaide.

Associate Professor Peter Grace recently returned to Adelaide as the Northern Community Health & Research Foundation (NCHRF) 2025 Visiting Professor.