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The Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing hopes to enrich health policy thinking as Australian-American Health Policy Fellows study how Australia approaches health policy issues, share lessons learned from the United States, and develop an international perspective and network of contacts to facilitate policy exchange and collaboration that extends beyond the fellowship experience.
Australian-American Health Policy Fellows are open to accomplished, mid-career health policy researchers and practitioners, including, academics, clinicians, decision makers in managed care and other private sector health care organizations, federal and state health officials, and journalists.
The Fellowships provide up to $55,000 (AUD) for terms of six to ten months, with a minimum stay of six months in Australia required.
Focused on issues of common concern to Australian and U.S. policymakers, the fellowships are structured around areas of mutual policy interest, for example: health care quality and safety, the private/public mix of insurance and providers, the fiscal sustainability of health systems, the health care workforce, management of health care delivery, and investment in preventive care strategies. (See "2010–11 Australian-American Health Policy Fellowship Areas of Interest").
Candidates must complete a formal application, including a project proposal for a study that will inform health policy in Australia and the United States. Proposals should address one of the program's areas of interest and clearly demonstrate:
Candidates may indicate the organizations to which they would prefer to be attached, but final decisions on placements are made by the program's advisory committee in Australia.
The deadline for receipt of applications for the 2009–10 fellowships is August 15, 2008. Applicants may obtain a formal application pack online at www.commonwealthfund.org/fellowships.
Up to two fellows will be selected annually. Once selected, the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing will assist fellows in refining their research projects and introduce fellows to Australian policy experts, with whom they will be encouraged to discuss their projects to gain further feedback. With guidance from its advisory committee, the department will help identify and place fellows with mentors who are experts in the policy area to be studied. Depending on the nature of the project, fellows will be placed at academic institutions, in commonwealth or state health departments, or at other health agencies. Leading policy experts will be assigned as mentors and will supervise fellows' research, provide technical expertise and guidance, and facilitate access to data, colleagues, and organizations.
The 2009–10 Packer Policy Fellows will arrive in Australia in July 2009. In addition to undertaking original policy research, fellows will participate in a program of seminars and policy briefings. These may include seminars for health leaders or meetings with senior officials at the commonwealth and state levels, ministerial officers, service providers, academics, and other stakeholders in the public and private sectors.
At the end of their tenure, fellows are expected to produce a final report and present project findings to senior government officials and policy experts at a final reporting seminar. From the beginning of their fellowship, fellows will be encouraged to think creatively about dissemination opportunities and vehicles in Australia and the United States, including peer-reviewed journal articles, policy briefings, op-ed articles for major newspapers, testimony before legislative committees, and presentations at professional meetings. Selected papers may be published and disseminated by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing and The Commonwealth Fund.
Throughout the fellowship and afterwards, Fellows will also benefit from established links with the Harkness Fellowships in Health Care Policy and Practice, a parallel program sponsored by The Commonwealth Fund that enables Australian, German, New Zealand, and U.K. professionals to undertake policy research in the United States and gain firsthand exposure to the U.S. health care system. Since 1998, the program has included over 100 health policy fellows, many of whom have moved into positions of leadership in their home countries. Packer Policy Fellows will have every opportunity to participate in Harkness alumni activities and become part of this vital health policy network.
The Packer Policy Fellowships are sponsored by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, which administers the program with guidance from an advisory committee comprised of members from the Department, State government, academic institutions, private sector sponsors, and former Harkness Fellows. Administration of the program in the United States is provided by The Commonwealth Fund, a New York City–based private foundation that supports independent research on health care issues and makes grants to improve health care practice and policy within its mission to promote a high performing health care system.