The Heart Foundation and the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) have announced a five-year strategic partnership to improve heart-disease treatment and care for all Australians.
An initial focus of the partnership is exploring ways in which the Heart Foundation can improve its programs of support and care for people living with heart disease.
"This work is more vital than ever before, because while the number of Australians dying from heart disease is declining, there has been an increase in people living with the condition," says Heart Foundation Group CEO, Adjunct Professor John Kelly.
"Every day, around 440 Australians are treated in hospital for heart disease. Across the country, approximately 580,000 people live with the daily pain, discomfort and challenges of these conditions.
"For more than 60 years, the Heart Foundation has been committed to providing innovative, evidence-based programs to support people living with heart disease, as well as their families and carers.
"Our collaboration with UTS is part of this commitment. It is allowing us to take a fresh look at the ways in which we are currently engaging with health professionals and their patients to provide support and care, and investigate quality-of-life improvements that will provide better outcomes for people with heart disease."
UTS Associate Dean Research with the Faculty of Health, Professor Debra Anderson, says the partnership has incredible potential.
"This partnership is unique in that the Heart Foundation will be able to harness the expertise of academics across UTS from an array of disciplines – from data science to public policy and health – to drive positive outcomes.
"There is a real opportunity to improve consumer education and drive behavioural change through this collaboration, which brings fresh, research-informed ideas and perspectives together with UTS' world-class research facilities."
The Heart Foundation and UTS have been collaborating on research partnerships and projects since 2017, including work with the UTS Centre for Business and Social Innovation (CBSI) and the UTS Design and Innovation Research Centre (DIRC).
Project lead and Associate Dean with the UTS Business School, Professor Michelle Baddeley, says that the research collaboration between UTS and the Heart Foundation is already delivering important and impactful insights.
"The first phase, now completed, has focused on the landscape of the heart-health services currently available to support people living with pre-existing cardiovascular conditions by visually mapping Australia's heart-health landscape and the Heart Foundation's role within it.
"The project's ongoing research, to be carried out by an embedded PhD student, is exploring in more depth the role of formal and informal services and relationships supporting heart patients' health and wellbeing, building important policy insights to ensure that Australians with heart conditions get the best care and support."
This project is also providing a road map for future fruitful partnerships between UTS and the Heart Foundation, showcasing UTS's proven track record of delivering impact back into the broader community – consistent with the UTS 2027 Strategy.
Media
