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Consumer and Community Advisory Committee

About the Consumer and Community Advisory Committee (CCAC) The George Institute for Global Health, Australia's Consumer and Community Advisory Committee (CCAC) has been providing consumer leadership since December 2021. The Committee functions at the organisational level and works with Institute leaders. The objective of the CCAC is to ensure the research The George Institute does is relevant, important and makes the biggest difference to the Australian population. The CCAC has been instrumental in developing a CCI framework and strategy for the Institute. These resources guide the work of the CCI Program, and the development and engagement of the Consumer and Community Network. Aim1. Inform the Institute’s programs of work including identifying areas of need within the community2. Inform CCI strategies and support functions to facilitate partnerships between researchers, consumers, and community members3. Promote the Institute’s work, ensuring that relevant communic

Establishing consumer panels

The key role of Panel members at The Institute is to offer health consumer perspectives and lived experiences within the context of their respective the Institutes research programs. This provides consumers the opportunity to contribute to current and future research activities. Consumer panel members may also assist in identifying the gaps, barriers, strengths, and opportunities for improvement in Consumer and Community Involvement (CCI) within the research program. The George Institute for Global Health currently has three consumer panels: Brain Health, Cardiovascular Health, and Kidney Health. Role of consumer panel While each consumer panel has established its own processes, Panel member’s involvement includes: Input into grant applications and research proposals Providing advice and feedback on study design, patient-centred outcomes, and patient-facing materials Assisting with the communication and sharing

Consumer and Community Involvement in health research projects

What is Consumer and Community Involvement in health research? Consumer and community involvement in health research is about ensuring that consumers and community members have a say in the research conducted and that the research best supports consumer and community needs and interests. Consumers and researchers work together to provide the best value for, and have the greatest impact on, the wider community. Consumers can be involved from the very beginning such as forming questions and co-designing studies with researchers, and throughout all stages of the research process. What does it look like? Consumers can be involved at any stage of the research cycle shown below. The level of involvement will vary depending on the consumer’s role and the type of research study. STAGE 1 - DECIDING WHAT TO RESEARCH Consumers can help identify and prioritise research questions. Examples include:   participating in and sharing ideas at relevant consumer/c

Consumer and Community Involvement Program

The CCI Program was established to ensure meaningful and fit-for-purpose involvement of those most impacted by health research, as guided by the NHMRC statement on Consumer and Community Involvement: “The active involvement of consumers and community members in health and medical research benefits the quality and direction of research. Consumer and community involvement is about research being carried out with or by consumers and community members rather than to, about or for them. The CCI Program recognises the valuable insights and expertise of those with lived experience and that members of the community can contribute to all areas of research. The Program supports the integration of consumer and community members in all levels of health and medical research. Role of Consumer and Community Involvement program The CCI Program is a centralised support service for consumers and researchers. It provides the following services for the George Institute: Advi

Policy statements and recommendations

The George Institute is producing high-quality, high-impact evidence to inform policy, guidelines and practices across the world. We are engaging with key decision makers to enact real change in health policy and practice where it is needed most.

Register your interest in becoming a part of our Consumer and Community Network

We welcome you to express your interest in the Institute’s Consumer and Community Network. Please complete the following secure form and a member of our team will contact you to discuss further.

Impact stories

We strive to make a meaningful impact with everything we do It’s not just our research - it’s how we approach it and turn it into action that makes a real difference. Our unique approach ensures that evidence creates real-world impact, with a strong focus on advocacy. Collaboration is key - our consistent, sustainable and meaningful engagement with consumers and communities ensures we focus our efforts where they are most needed. Read our stories of impact and see how our work is making a difference to the health of people around the world. Sravanthi a SMARThealth pregnancy patient with an ASHA health worker

Five ways we can respond to a Trump Administration

News / Media mentions

Food policy

Research Program

Fuelling the big ideas in the healthy food revolution

The Ian Potter Foundation invests AUD $1.2million in The George Institute’s vision for a healthier world.

Dr Anthony Paulo Sunjaya

Profile

Anthony Sunjaya is a medical doctor from Indonesia and Honorary Fellow at the Respiratory and Health Systems Division, The George Institute for Global Health, UNSW Sydney, Australia. He is also an Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Public Health, Imperial College London and a Visiting Researcher at the Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals.

His research focuses on cardiorespiratory diseases, complex chronic diseases, primary care, and digital health especially the development, validation and translation of decision support systems, AI, and virtual care. He has a special interest in supporting universal health coverage, improving care, especially in low-resource settings and primary care through the use of innovative evidence-based solutions.

He is Chief Investigator of the Breathlessness Rapid Evaluation and THErapy (BREATHE) trial funded by the Australian Government Medical Research Future Fund to optimise the assessment and management of chronic breathlessness in primary care through implementation of a clinical decision support system for breathlessness across 40 GP practices in Australia building upon work during his PhD which was supported by the UNSW Scientia PhD program.

He is currently Chair, Primary Care SIG, Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand (TSANZ); Chair, Membership Committee, Society of Medical Decision Making (SMDM); Vice-Chair of the Digital Transformation Leadership working group in the International Society for Telemedicine and e-Health (ISfTeH), and Editorial Advisory Board member of the Annals of Family Medicine. He is also an active social entrepreneur and co-founder of BantingMed, a diabetes digital health startup.

He was previously President of Postgraduate Council UNSW and ASEAN Society UNSW, a delegate to the 2023 Group of 7 Youth Summit in Japan and has contributed to reports for the World Health Organization and Asthma Australia.

Dr Y.K. Sandhya

Profile

Sandhya received her doctoral degree in Social Medicine and Community Health from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Her work with The George Institute's mental health programme involves assessing the effectiveness of technology-enabled delivery of mental health care by primary healthcare workers for depression, suicide and stress among adolescents in urban slum communities in Delhi and Vijayawada.

Her research interest includes developing a gendered understanding and analysis of mental health issues in India. Prior to joining The George Institute, Sandhya was at SAHAYOG as the Assistant Coordinator.