Here at FW we love hearing about the efforts of people in our community to build a more equitable health and medical research sector. Here Dr Nicola Straiton, Senior Research Fellow at the Nursing Research Institute (Australian Catholic University and St Vincents Hospital Sydney), talks about falling off the research cliff and why stronger advocacy is needed for nursing and midwifery early– to mid–career researchers.
Nurses and midwives represent more than half of the global healthcare workforce and play a critical role in improving patient outcomes, delivering high-quality care and educating the next generation of health professionals.
However, those pursuing research careers within these professions face persistent and systemic challenges – including limited recognition, restricted career advancement and disproportionately low funding, with nurse- and midwifery-led research receiving less than 5% of Australia’s national competitive research funding.
Early- to mid-career researchers (EMCRs, defined as 0–10 years post-PhD) are particularly affected. The lack of structural support to integrate research within academic and clinical roles hampers the translation of evidence into practice, and places nursing and midwifery EMCRs at risk of burnout and attrition. This not only impacts individual career trajectories, but also threatens patient outcomes, care quality and innovation across the sector.
In response to these challenges, I – together with the Early to Mid-Career Researcher Group of the Maridulu Budyari Gumal – Sydney Partnership for Health, Education, Research, and Enterprise (SPHERE) Nursing and Midwifery Implementation Science Academy – and a team of national and international collaborators have developed and recently launched the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Early to Mid-Career Researcher Advocacy Roadmap.
This Roadmap presents a strategic framework aimed at addressing critical gaps in support, recognition and career development for nursing and midwifery EMCRs. It is intended to guide coordinated action across key sectors, including universities, healthcare organisations, research institutes, funding bodies and policymakers.
The Roadmap targets several key issues:
- Systemic challenges limiting career progression
- Inadequate institutional and policy-level recognition
- The urgent need for stronger clinical–academic collaboration
We call on Australian organisations to invest in the next generation of nursing and midwifery researchers. Supporting these emerging leaders is vital to driving innovation, advancing evidence-based care and improving health outcomes for all.