Foundation
Researcher Pathway:
Backing researchers at every stage of their careers
Imagine spending every spare moment you have, and then some, for up to 30 days, working on a funding proposal for a project that you truly believe could save patient lives or change the future of healthcare, and then your grant application is passed over or turned down.
Unfortunately, this is the tough reality for many Australian researchers – obtaining research funding is extremely competitive. And this is, understandably, a roadblock for many talented individuals who are thinking of becoming a researcher, or, worse still, it leads to many walking away far too soon.
Put simply, this means groundbreaking ideas go unrealised.
This is something The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation understands only too well, and it is why we are committed to supporting researchers and clinicians with big hearts and bold ideas across both The Prince Charles Hospital and Caboolture Hospital.
Our mission is to help people live healthier for longer, and we strive to do this every day.
We are committed to backing researchers at every stage of their careers, nurturing their talents and empowering them to reach their full potential, and that is why we have an established Researcher Pathway. Aimed to support researchers to undertake their craft, the continuity created by this pathway, crucially, translates into more established research programs, faster progress from discovery to clinical practice, and better outcomes for patients – ensuring that important health challenges are addressed through sustained research effort and ongoing improvement in care.
“Each stage of the pathway progressively helps to keep promising researchers engaged, advances their research career, and prepares them to become the next leaders in their field,” Dr Rebekah Engel, Research and Impact Manager, The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation.
“Frequently, we provide the seed funding, allowing researchers to build on their ideas, learn fundamental research skills and grow their experience and knowledge. This support is vital and puts researchers in a far better position to apply for Category 1 funding – the most prestigious and competitive type of Research and Development funding as defined by the Australian Government. This includes Australian Research Council (ARC), National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) grants. Grant schemes like this can be worth in the millions of dollars and represent the pinnacle of competitive research funding in Australia.”
About our Researcher Pathway
The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation was established in 1986, and its initial focus was on the heart and lung research fields, as these were the hospital’s predominant service areas. Aged care, orthopaedics and psychiatry were also among the hospital’s focus areas at the time, as they are now.
Since the Foundation’s inception, our community’s generosity has helped drive more than $78 million of innovative research, life-saving equipment and compassionate patient-care projects, including support for more than 1,000 research grants.
In 2010, novice researcher grants—now called New Investigator Grants—were introduced to support researchers embarking on their research careers. With support from an experienced mentor, these grants help researchers to develop essential research training and skills.
Building on these grants, the Foundation established the Researcher Pathway in 2017 with the introduction of PhD Scholarships, Emerging Researcher Grants, Early Career Research Fellowships and Innovation Grants. Together, these programs support researchers throughout their research training and career development, helping them to build the skills, experience and independence needed to pursue their own programs of research.
The Researcher Pathway was further extended in 2024 with the addition of Mid-Career Research Fellowships, addressing a recognised funding gap for researchers more than five years post-PhD, often when they are establishing and growing independent research programs.
“These fellowships ensure continuity in research careers. They enable researchers to grow their programs, maintain momentum, and develop leadership skills. By supporting meaningful contributions to the broader research community, expanded collaborations, and leadership of larger-scale projects, these awards serve as a catalyst for excellence in research,” Dr Engel said.
Each stage of the pathway progressively helps to keep promising researchers engaged, advances their research career, and prepares them to become the next leaders in their field.
– Dr Rebekah Engel, Research and Impact Manager, The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation.
Backing researchers at every stage of their careers
Researchers who have received support from the Foundation are deeply grateful to the community of supporters who make their work possible. Time and time again, they credit philanthropy as the catalyst that has enabled their ideas to progress from promise to impact.
Adjunct Professor Jack Bell received a New Investigator Research Grant in 2011, an Emerging Researcher in 2017, along with Innovation Grants in 2018, 2021, and 2023, and an Endowment Grant in 2024.
“My research trajectory started in 2011 when I received a New Investigator Grant from The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation. Since then, the Foundation has supported me in mentoring many other new researchers on their journey,” he said.
“I am humbled to be leading the Allied Health Research Collaborative. I’m also humbled to be leading the most amazing nutrition implementation and education programs that are changing nutrition care practices for older people with hip fractures in Australia and globally. This started in The Prince Charles Hospital with my New Investigator Grant, and is now spreading across global settings, with demonstrated high-level impact across health, knowledge, policy, economic and social domains.”
“My partnership with The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation started in 2015 with a New Investigator Grant that helped to establish some key foundations for what was to develop over time into a large, international program of work focused on improving donor heart availability and outcomes following heart transplantation,” she said.
“This early work was followed by support through a Research Fellowship from the Foundation, which supported my salary for three years to perform the preclinical research that showed a donor heart could be safely preserved outside the body for up to eight hours before being transplanted into the recipient.
“This preclinical work was critical to the development of a subsequent world-first clinical trial led by Professor John Fraser AO, Professor David McGiffin, and Professor David Kaye, which showed human hearts could travel from Brisbane to Perth (over nine hours) and be safely transplanted into recipients, giving patients a new life. It is so exciting to share that what started as small seed funding with a New Investigator Grant has developed into a major program of work led by the Critical Care Research Group, and is giving life to more patients every day.
“The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation was as much a part of our study and success as the collaborative team that performed the research. The Foundation was also a critical driver for my career growth and success in research.”
Investing in tomorrow’s breakthroughs
Without the support of our generous community, we wouldn’t be able to help researchers make progress in their life-changing work. Every breakthrough starts with someone choosing to believe in what’s possible.
“For 40 years, philanthropy and community support has given researchers the opportunity to explore bold ideas, transform patient care and improve lives,” says Steve Francia, CEO of The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation.
“Behind every advancement is someone who chose to invest in a better future. It’s a decision that creates opportunities for researchers, brings hope to patients and families, and delivers benefits that can be felt for generations.”
If you would like to help fund the next breakthrough, your support can help researchers turn today’s ideas into tomorrow’s advances in patient care. Your donation can improve outcomes for people you know, people you love, and generations to come.
Are you a researcher and would like to stay informed about our research opportunities?
You can find essential information about grant funding and application dates at our Researcher Hub, or click here to join our newsletter.
Behind every advancement is someone who chose to invest in a better future. It’s a decision that creates opportunities for researchers, brings hope to patients and families, and delivers benefits that can be felt for generations.
– Steve Francia, CEO of The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation
Powering today, reinventing tomorrow – your support contributes to life-changing research and patient care initiatives. Donate today and help people live healthier for longer for the next 40 years and beyond.