_JPG.jpg)
What is the project?
All 21 Community Health First partner organisations have come together with support from the Victorian Department of Treasury and Finance’s Empowerment Fund (2025 – 2026 Grant) to build the data and evaluation capability of the community health sector.
We’re working in partnership with Monash’s Rehabilitation, Ageing and Independent Living (RAIL) Research Centre to better understand how community health improves the health and wellbeing of our clients and communities. Monash’s RAIL Research Centre is supporting the project’s research component under Monash Human Research Ethics Committee governance. The research project participant information statement is available here.
Some parts of the project are about participating organisations improving how they work with data. This quality improvement work is part of business as usual for healthcare organisations and is not under research governance.
Why is this project important?
Stories are powerful motivators that can demonstrate the impact of care. But government decision-making also relies on data.
Successful funding bids are dependent on data that demonstrate the impact on populations of clients at scale, not just individual stories. Community health currently lacks the evidence base to demonstrate that investment in our sector, and investment in early interventions, leads to reductions in downstream acute health setting costs.
We believe that the community health sector has a shared responsibility to define and use credible, high-quality outcome measures that reflect what matters to Victorians. We need these outcome measures to ensure every person can access equitable, high-quality, place-based care, and demonstrate community health’s unique value in enabling early intervention, improving outcomes and reducing avoidable pressure on the health system. We want to make sure that community health is visible, trusted and sustainably funded.
Who is participating?
The project has started with nine pilot organisations: Ballarat Community Health Service, cohealth, DPV Health, Each, IPC Health, Latrobe Community Health Service, Northern District Community Health, Primary Care Connect and Sunraysia Community Health Service.
Other partner organisations will join the project in 2027. No organisations have commenced sharing information with Monash University under the research study at this time.
This page will be updated when information sharing begins.
For Clients
Why should I participate in the project?
Community Health First partner organisations are working together to understand how our services are helping the community. This information will help us improve the services we provide to our clients and communities. Knowing more about our clients at a statewide population level will also help us advocate for long-term funding. Long-term funding would allow us to provide more services to existing clients who need them and support new clients as well.
How will my information be protected?
This project is a partnership between Community Health First and the Monash University Rehabilitation, Ageing and Independent Living (RAIL) Research Centre. Information collected by Monash RAIL Research Centre from community health organisations will be managed in accordance with relevant privacy laws and regulation.
Q: What information does Monash University receive?
A: Participating community health organisations may provide information that is routinely collected from clients as part of service delivery. Before information is shared with Monash RAIL Research Centre, direct identifiers such as names, addresses and contact details are removed. Researchers do not receive this information.
Community health organisations remain the owners and custodians of their own client records. Providing information to Monash University for the project does not transfer ownership of that information.
Q: How will Monash University make sure my information is safe?
A: Monash University receives information through secure systems that are protected by authentication, access controls and audit logging. Project information is stored within Monash University-managed Australian infrastructure and access is restricted to authorised project personnel.
Information is managed in accordance with approved privacy, ethics and governance requirements. Reports and findings produced by the project do not identify individual people. Only non-identifiable results are shared outside the authorised project team.
Project data will not be processed, analysed or managed using artificial intelligence (AI) systems.
Q: Who do I contact if I have a question about participation or consent?
A: Participation and consent arrangements are managed by the community health organisation from which you receive services. If you would like information about whether your information may be included in the project, the choices available to you, or how to discuss participation, please contact your community health organisation directly.
Additional information is available in the project's Participant Information Statement below.
Contact the Research Team
If you have questions about the research project, you can contact the Monash University Rehabilitation, Ageing and Independent Living (RAIL) Research Centre contact below:
Dr Sara Whittaker
Concerns or complaints
If you have concerns about the research project, please contact the Monash RAIL research team in the first instance. Information about research complaints is available through the Monash University Human Research Ethics Committee (MUHREC) and is included in the Participant Information Statement.