New virtual GP-paediatrician care model strengthens primary healthcare for children

A new virtual paediatrician-GP support service called SUSTAIN is being implemented across NSW primary healthcare. The model is designed to support primary care practitioners deliver best quality of care for children across the state and reduce burden to hospital services, ensuring children receive the right care, at the right time, closer to home.

SUSTAIN was adapted from the Strengthening Care for Children (SC4C) trial, which measured an 18% reduction in GP referrals to public hospital Emergency Departments and outpatient services, as well as a 13% reduction in referrals to private specialists.

Families praised the shared-care approach for delivering timely, high quality advice closer to home, improving access and care coordination. With such strong evidence, the SUSTAIN model will now support more equitable and connected paediatric care across urban and regional NSW.

SUSTAIN was led through the Population Child Health Research team at Kids Research, with the SC4C trial having support by the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Foundation and an NHMRC Partnership grant.

 

Building research capacity in fetal alcohol spectrum disorder

A new $3 million NHMRC-funded Centre of Research Excellence in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD Research Australia) is being launched by researchers at the University of Sydney in collaboration with Kids Research, UNSW, Deakin University, Menzies School of Health Research, Burnet Institute.

The Centre will position Australia as a global leader in FASD research and translation, bringing together leading experts across epidemiology, implementation science, health economics, Indigenous research, and paediatrics. It will aim to build capacity among early and mid‑career researchers and support high‑impact studies that translate directly into better outcomes for children and adolescents with FASD. Central to the program is a commitment to co-design, where people living with FASD will inform priorities to ensure research addresses real‑world needs and delivers meaningful change.