Advancing care: NIISQ’s commitment to brain and spinal injury research

NIISQ is pleased to announce the successful Queensland Health-based clinical and research teams that have been selected as recipients of the National Injury Insurance Scheme’s (NIISQ) Research and Education Advancing Care in Health (REACH) grants. The funding will support innovative projects with the potential to improve outcomes for people affected by traumatic brain injury (TBI) or spinal cord injury (SCI). 

The program has grown through successful collaboration between NIISQ and Clinical Excellence Queensland (CEQ), Queensland Health and the five successful projects in this inaugural round will share in $4.7 million over two years in funding. 

• A multi-site/multi-HHS pilot Complex Seating Service and Capability-Building Project so more people can access specialist care closer to home. New services will be established at the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast hospitals with support from the Rehabilitation Engineering Centre at Metro North Health. 
  
  
• Back to Belonging: led by a team at the Townsville University Hospital, this project will develop a 12-month supported paediatric rehabilitation and co-ordination post-discharge, supporting children with TBI and SCI and their families after discharge in North Queensland to ensure they receive critical support to re-engage in community activities.  
  
  
• Exploring Homelessness and Housing Pathways in TBI and SCI populations in Queensland: coordinated by clinicians in the Gold Coast Brain Injury Community Service and spinal cord injury liaison service, the project will seek to better understand homelessness and housing pathways for people with TBI and SCI and how this interacts with Queensland Health services. 
  
  
• NAVIGATE: Transition coaching to build health literacy, self-advocacy and healthy lifestyle behaviours for Queensland adolescents with acquired brain injury (ABI) and their caregivers. Helping to develop tools and resources, and trial an active coaching model to better support young people with ABI as they transition out of paediatric services. This project is led by the Queensland Paediatric rehabilitation Service at the Queensland Children’s Hospital. 
  
  
• Connected Minds: Group-Based Psychosocial Recovery after Acquired Brain Injury in North Queensland – led by the Townsville Brain Injury Community Service this project is a Pilot Study looking into additional support for psychosocial recovery after an ABI for adults in North Queensland. 
  

The competitive grants process sought projects with statewide reach, strong collaboration between health teams, a view to the future use of project learnings and high likelihood of having an impact towards achieving meaningful outcomes for injured people and their support networks.   

This funding initiative was open to Queensland Health clinicians, with the goal of enhancing treatment, care, and support for people with TBI or SCI. 

The standard of applications highlighted the incredible dedication and expertise of Queensland’s specialist TBI and SCI clinicians and reflected a passion for improving patient care.  

The selected projects are from five hospitals and health services across Queensland, from Townsville in the north to the Gold Coast in the south. 

The projects are not just about delivering healthcare but were chosen to empower individuals and their families to re-engage with their communities, rebuild their lives, and access the support they need during some of the most challenging times.  

The NIISQ Agency is now working closely with each project team with all projects scheduled to commence in June or July 2026.