The effective support and dissemination of primary health care research is critical to improving the health of Australians and the Primary Health Care Research and Information Service (PHC RIS) plays a prominent role in achieving this.

PHC RIS actively supports the dissemination of primary health care research results through the national General Practice & Primary Health Care Research Conference. This annual conference has long been seen as a key event for researchers to showcase their work and provides an opportunity for them to connect with decision makers and practitioners.

PHC RIS takes great pride in convening this important event and goes to great lengths to ensure that the program provides opportunities for collaboration. For example the findings of Nick Zwar’s work (pg 4) came to the attention of policy makers in the Department of Health and Ageing at the Conference and were influential in the revision of care plan policy.

PHC RIS provides additional means of sharing research and information with researchers, decision makers and practitioners through the newsletter PHC RIS infonet, the PHC RIS website and the Roadmap Of Australian primary health care Research (ROAR), a research database that allows researchers to not only ‘present’ their research findings but for all to find out what work is being done. All of these allow primary health care researchers to communicate in domains accessed by both policy advisors and practitioners.

See www.phcris.org.au