A case study on public health research management in the aboriginal community controlled health sector

Research management largely focuses on organisations whose core business is to develop and implement research. Increasingly these specialists, most often university and research centres, are encouraged to develop research partnerships with the organisations and communities the research has relevance for. This has particular relevance for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. In this case study we discuss how over the last 14 years public health research management has developed at VACCHO , the challenges this has posed and solutions that have been generated to address these. Quality improvement of research management has involved improving accountability in partnerships, consistent program evaluation, managing research approaches to ensure they support core business and moving from re-active to pro-active research partnerships. These processes have been developed to meet VACCHO's needs and circumstances and other organisations in the sector will have developed their own responses.