The funding will support two projects: one to create a national plan for young people with an intellectual disability and another to develop an AI tool to spot early signs of changes in a person's health.
UNSW Sydney researchers have been awarded $3.3 million in federal government funding to drive better health outcomes for people with intellectual disability.
Professor Iva Strnadová from UNSW Arts, Design & Architecture was awarded $2 million to co-lead a project which will transform how young Australians with intellectual disability experience health care as they move into adulthood.
UNSW Medicine & Health Associate Professor Margo Barr, meanwhile, received $1.3 million to develop an AI tool that will help people with intellectual disability detect health concerns early.
The projects are being funded through the Medical Research Future Fund's (MRFF) Improving Health Outcomes for People with Intellectual Disability scheme.
"Congratulations to our academics whose work is improving our understanding and uptake of health care for people with intellectual disability," UNSW Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research & Enterprise Professor Bronwyn Fox said.
"Both projects help us find solutions that will make a meaningful difference because they are tailored to the needs of people with intellectual disability."
Using AI to spot health changes
People with intellectual disability often need caregivers to help them access health care. However, signs of physical or mental health decline can be missed because of communication challenges or a caregivers' limited health knowledge.
A/Prof. Margo Barr will lead a project to create an easy-to-use AI tool to help people with intellectual disability and their caregivers detect these changes earlier and manage health conditions more effectively.
"The health needs of people with intellectual disability are too often overlooked or misunderstood," A/Prof. Barr said. "This tool, which is the first of its kind in Australia and globally, has the potential to transform health outcomes by detecting problems sooner and guiding better care."
The generative AI tool, EarlyCare AI, will pick up on subtle changes, and alert caregivers. It will also suggest personalised care plans in consultation with health service providers for treatments, and provide tracking and ongoing support.
"We envisage the AI tool will interact with multiple sources such as wearable devices, monitors and input from people with intellectual disability, their caregivers and health service providers," A/Prof. Barr said.
A/Prof. Barr and her team will work with people with intellectual disability and their supporters to co-design the AI tool and test it. The project will use an existing generative AI-based platform designed by industry partner, UNCAPT, which is currently being used in other health settings such as mental health support and in-home aged care.
Addressing the gap in support for young people with intellectual disability
Prof. Iva Strnadová and Dr Elizabeth Emma Palmer from UNSW Medicine & Health will co-lead a five-year project aimed at transforming the way young people with intellectual disability access health care as they become adults.
Prof. Strnadová, an internationally recognised expert in inclusive education and disability research from UNSW's School of Education and the Disability Innovation Institute, said young people with intellectual disability often face unfair healthcare transitions.
"Current gaps include limited health literacy education and support, lack of coordinated care between paediatric and adult services and insufficient opportunities for young people to develop self-advocacy skills. Families and carers frequently bear the burden of navigating these complex systems alone," she said.
The My Health Choices My Way project represents the first comprehensive national approach to address the long-standing gaps in healthcare access, coordination and communication.
It will bring together academics with lived experience of intellectual disability, along with other researchers, clinicians, educators, advocates and First Nations leaders from across Australia, working alongside young people with intellectual disability and their families.
"This project is about ensuring young people with intellectual disability have real choices and real voices in their health care," Prof. Strnadová said. "We're building tools and systems that reflect their needs, values, and rights."
