Health and life sciences | Global Australia

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Australia’s high-quality and affordable healthcare system is envied around the world. It’s underpinned by a world-class medical research sector, which is nurtured in our universities and hospitals, medical research institutes and life science companies.

Health and life sciences is one of our largest export sectors, and was worth A$5.6 billion in 2021.

$70b

In grants and incentives

Australia offers nearly A$70 billion in grants, incentives and funding pools to Australian-based companies across priority sectors.

Source: Accenture

A culture of innovation

Australia is a hub for cutting-edge, life-saving medicines and procedures. Medical research pioneers are drawn to our culture of innovation backed by generous funding and incentives. With our history of Nobel Prize-winning research and high-tech solutions, Australia has made a significant contribution to global medical scientific discovery.

When you bring your talent to Australia, you’ll have access to collaborative innovation hubs and research centres, and a world-class clinical trials ecosystem.

Add to this strong intellectual property protection, an ideal testbed market for clinical trials and access to large export markets, and you have an ideal location for the development of new diagnostics, devices and therapies.

Life sciences research in Australia

ranked 8th globally overall

ranked top 6 in optometry, ophthalmology, paediatrics and reproductive medicine

A woman with an off-the-ear cochlear implant

Doctor using ultrasound on pregnant woman

I first worked in Australia in 2004 as a Thinker in Residence in Adelaide. The 3 months working with a wide range of sectors related to science, will stay with me for the rest of my life: I have never before experienced such rewarding teamwork, nor had such fun both inside and out of professional commitments. This initiative then led to my returning to Australia the following year by which time I had been part of exciting new developments, such as the Ri Australia’s Science Media Centre. Since that time, I have returned to Australia at least once a year (apart from during the pandemic) and now feel it is my second home.

In addition to the public sector activities, I’ve now been involved in other projects in Melbourne and Sydney including scientific collaborations and commercial networking. Half of the shareholders in my company (Neuro-Bio Ltd.) are actually Australian. I therefore feel qualified to testify that Australia is a fantastic place for science and all STEM activities. I really feel my experiences there have gone a long way to building my confidence in a way that would not have been possible in the UK.

To anyone considering relocating in Australia, I would say that this is a wonderful opportunity!

Baroness Susan Greenfield, CBE, research scientist and CEO

Neuro-Bio

For 40 years, Cochlear has been the global leader in implantable hearing solutions – providing more than 650,000 devices that give the gift of hearing to people around the world, and showing that Australia has all the ingredients for building a successful global med-tech company. Cochlear was founded in Sydney with just three employees – and now has more than 4,000 employees in over 30 global locations, and provides implants in more than 180 countries.

It all started by bringing together exceptional Australian academic research, entrepreneurial experience, and targeted government support – a combination that continues to be a great model for success 40 years later.

We’re a proudly Australian company, but we’ve succeeded by bringing together exceptional people from all parts of the world. Fortunately for us, Australia is a fantastic place to live and has a blossoming tech community. So we can attract the best people from around the world – the people who will bring our life-changing technology to more people in more places.

Ms Alison Deans, Chair

Cochlear Limited

With a grandmother who had fled from Hungary to start a new life in Australia and parents who were both bioscientists, I was imbued from an early age with a sense of curiosity and the spirit of possibility.
Decades on, those characteristics still underpin my work as a geneticist and inspire my research into aging, lifespan extension and keeping people healthier for as long as possible.

While much of my time is spent at Harvard Medical School, I come back to Australia whenever I can. And as a conjoint professor at my alma mater, the University of New South Wales, I keep a keen eye on the world-leading research coming out of Australia and the many opportunities there for talented professionals in health and life sciences.

For those who share the same spirit of possibility and want to push the boundaries of science, as I have, Australia is a wonderful place to pursue your passions.

Professor David Sinclair AO, Professor of Genetics and Co-Director

Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research at Harvard Medical School

A high-energy ecosystem

Our top-ranking universities and academics are global leaders in clinical medicine and pioneers in many areas of health and life sciences research. We’re breaking new ground in specialist fields such as oncology, neurology, regenerative medicine, medical devices, tropical diseases, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and diagnostics.

Australia is home to several comprehensive cancer care centres that are pioneering genome research. We also boast world-leading immunology facilities with the infrastructure and expertise to develop viral vectors and companion diagnostics.

Our medical technology, biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors work in lockstep with industry, entrepreneurs and academics. Collaborating with an Australian university can give you access to some of the world’s best minds and a share of the impressive A$10.6 billion in revenue generated via partnerships with Australian universities each year. The Australian Government is now giving a boost to university–industry partnerships with the A$2.2 billion University Research Commercialisation Package.

Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, is leading new strategies to prevent and minimise the impact of diseases through the delivery of evidence-based products, programs and services. Its expertise includes molecular diagnostic solutions and precision health and medicine research.

It’s also an internationally renowned catalyst for advanced manufacturing, connecting industry to global supply chains. Its work with industry on research into 3D printing has led to world-firsts in printing human body parts. It even invented Wi-Fi, the empowering technology at the heart of the digital health revolution.

CSIRO is in the top 1% of the world’s scientific institutions in 15 of 22 research fields.

Podcast: Bloomberg interview with Professor Sharon Lewin

Bloomberg interview with Professor Sharon Lewin, Director, Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity

Audio file

Ideal location for clinical trials

Australia’s clinical trial capabilities, skilled workforce and specialised infrastructure are second to none. With around 50 clinical trial networks and as many biobanks across the country, 1880 clinical trials were started in 2019, with 95,000 Australians participating. Conduct your clinical trials in Australia and you benefit from:

streamlined regulatory and ethics approval
a multicultural population ideal for trials
high-quality data that is recognised around the world
cost effectiveness – once tax incentives are taken into account, it’s 60% cheaper to run trials here than in the US.

Australia’s legal system also provides robust protection for intellectual property, encourages innovation and safeguards investment. Our IP regime consistently ranks in the top tier of international IP systems and is aligned with international standards.

It’s no wonder that our sophisticated clinical trials environment draws both local and overseas participants, with nearly one-third of industry-led trials in Australia led by multinational companies. In 2019 alone, more than $1.4 billion was spent on clinical trials in Australia.

Scientist removing a sample out of a petri dish using a pipette

#11

for intellectual property rights

Australia ranks 11th for intellectual property rights on the International Property Rights Index 2021

Source: Property Rights Alliance, International Property Rights Index 2021

Top 20

Australia is in the global top 20 for medtech patents

Source: Why Australia Benchmark Report

Medtech, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals

Combine our advanced manufacturing capability with our expertise in medical technology, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals and the result is world-leading medical products – from drugs, biologics and vaccines to innovative devices and diagnostics.

We’re in the world top 20 for medtech patents and our booming medical devices export industry was worth more than A$2.6 billion in 2018.

Australia’s strengths include:

drug and vaccine development
personalised medicine
immunotherapies
medicines manufacture
bionic devices
implantables
nanotechnology
wearable devices
digital smart devices
digital therapeutics
3D-printed body parts.

There are more than 2650 home grown and international companies working in our medical technology, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals sectors, including global powerhouses like CSL, Resmed, Cochlear and Nanosonics, and newer players like Vaxxas, Synchron, Global Kinetics Corporation and OncoRes Medical.

Our long history developing and growing the biologics industry is underpinned by CSL and its vaccine facilities. Soon, global pharmaceutical company, Moderna will also establish a new mRNA vaccine manufacturing facility in the state of Victoria.

As COVID shut down businesses around the world, Australian manufacturers ramped up. Development that would usually take years became innovative solutions within weeks or months. Australia’s medical technology sector played a key role in our swift response with companies pivoting to deliver essential supplies such as face masks, ventilators and diagnostic tests.

Centres of excellence

Our world leading immunology and medical research institutes include the Doherty Institute, the University of Queensland’s Centre for Clinical Research, the Translational Research Institute and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute.

Industry accelerators and incubators are attached to many of our leading universities. They drive innovation, halving development times and accelerating growth. There are more than 30 medtech incubators and accelerators in Australia, helping to grow small and medium-sized companies. Examples include:

Medtech Actuator, Australia’s national medtech accelerator
Cicada Innovations, a program-driven incubator for deep tech startups
Medical Device Partnering Program (MDPP), an ideas incubator for medical technologies with global potential
ANDHealth, a program-driven accelerator/incubator for digital health technology.

To this list Australia will soon add the A$50 million BioMedTech Incubator, which will nurture Australian SMEs undertaking early-stage medical research.

We also have health innovation hubs throughout Australia, including the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct, the Adelaide BioMed City, the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research in Perth, and in Sydney, the Macquarie Park Innovation District and Westmead Health Precinct.

CSIRO is building Australia’s first collaborative worldwide accredited lab for producing protein for Phase-I and Phase-II trials.

Australia has a strong and active Regenerative Medicine (RM) industry ecosystem, with internationally recognised basic and translational research, clinical trials framework and clinical centres There are more than 30 companies in Australia developing products, and more than 30 clinical trials in progress. The sector comprises 1200 researchers across 12 universities and 45 medical research centres. Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre is a world-leading cancer research, education and treatment centre and Australia’s only public health service solely dedicated to caring for people affected by cancer. The more than 3200 staff, including over 700 laboratory and clinical researchers, are all focused on providing better treatments, better care and potential cancer cures.

Australia is home to several comprehensive cancer care centres that are pioneering genome research, including the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Victoria and the Kinghorn Cancer Centre at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in NSW. There is also Australian Genomics in Victoria, a national collaboration supporting the translation of genomic research into clinical practice. All have a history of international collaboration.

Australia is a receptive market for the development of genomics and precision medicine:

75% of Australians would be willing to use genetic testing to identify the most effective drug to treat their disease.
95% are willing for their results to be used to improve treatments for future patients.

Top Australian innovations

CPAP – a successful, non-invasive breathing support device – invented in 1981 and used by patients during the COVID-19 pandemic

EVestG – a diagnostic tool that detects mental and neurological illnesses

Gardasil – the HPV vaccine that is significantly lowering the risk of HPV-related cancers for women around the world

Electronic pacemaker

Ultrasound for pregnancy

Bionic ear

Spray-on skin

Prevention of spina bifida with folate

Penthrox green whistle - pain relief inhaler used in trauma/emergency settings

Case studies

Digital Health

Digital health opportunities in Australia have expanded dramatically. We’re world leaders in electronic medical records and the Australian healthcare sector is embracing big data and artificial intelligence, mobile health, connected devices and wearables, telehealth and telemedicine, and personalised and precision medicine. This is opening up exciting opportunities to access and create data-driven health services and products.

This is partly driven by the development of national health infrastructure that is highly interoperable. Australia’s federal and state governments are investing in multi-billion dollar infrastructure programs focused on supply chains, health identifiers and authentication services. The first regions in Australia are already showcasing comprehensive interoperability between all public and private health services, and care services.

Australians are eager to embrace new technologies in health. A national electronic patient record was rolled out in 2018 and is now used by 90% of Australian citizens.

AR and VR tools have been developed to help ensure healthcare professionals in rural and regional areas can maintain their training certifications and keep informed by attending conferences virtually.

Australia’s National Digital Health Strategy articulates national priorities for Australia’s vision of digital health. It includes secure fit-for-purpose interoperable digital solutions, supporting a culture for digital health adoption, use and innovation, and continues to progress opportunities to ensure Australians have equitable access to health services that meet their needs, especially in remote and rural Australia (including wider use of telehealth).

The strategy creates multiple opportunities for investment.

The Australian digital health market was worth around US$1.85 billion in 2020.

Case studies

The University of Newcastle has developed a VR tool called Road to Birth for midwifery students. A digital headset takes users on a 3D-journey through pregnancy, depicting a life-size female figure in front of them, whose gestation can be explored and observed.
SIMTICS has created online simulations of over 120 clinical procedures to enable clinicians to practice their techniques, including sonography, radiography and ultrasounds.
EDIE is a virtual reality smartphone app that helps people look through the eyes of a person living with dementia
Visionflex is enabling remote assessment and diagnosis

Aged care

Aged care is a growing industry in Australia, with governments spending A$23.6 billion nationwide in 2020 – 21. The Australian population is ageing rapidly: by 2066, it’s estimated that 22% of the Australian population will be aged 65 years or over.

The sector is undergoing major reforms to improve care experience, quality and safety, workforce design, technology and innovation, strategic planning, infrastructure optimisation, and operational alignment.

If you’re a newer business or startup, there are incubators like innovAGEING to help you network and advance your ideas.

Case studies

Aged care provider IRT Group and CheckedIn Care developed the IRT Connect App, which helps clients stay connected to loved ones and manage their services.
U City retirement residences were recognised for their innovation. They are considered the most mixed-use demographic high-rise developments in Australia, with access to extensive community service programs
My Dementia Companion is an award-winning web-based tool that provides personalised and practical support to people caring for someone with dementia.

Grants, incentives and support

Australia's A$20 billion Medical Research Future Fund aims to transform health and medical research and innovation to improve lives, build the economy and contribute to health system sustainability. Granting activities from the Medical Research Future Fund include:
- the A$450 million Medical Research Commercialisation initiative supports innovative early-stage health and medical research in Australia. It will also help researchers to transform their ideas into life-saving medicines, devices and treatments to help future patients
- the A$47 million MRFF Targeted Translation Research Accelerator, which is improving the prevention and treatment of diabetes and cardiovascular disease
- The Clinical Trials Activity initiative will provide $750 million over 10 years from 2022–23 to help Australian researchers and patients test new treatments through national and international clinical trials.
MTPConnect, part of the Australian Government’s Industry Growth Centres Initiative, champions the growth of Australia’s medtech, biotech and pharmaceutical (MTP) sectors. MTPConnect raises awareness, fosters collaboration and competition, and aggregates and shares existing knowledge with the broader MTP sectors. It also delivers several strategic funding initiatives on behalf of the Medical Research Future Fund.
The National Health and Medical Research Council supports investigator‑led research activities across all areas of health and medicine, providing grants in excess of A$850 million per annum.
The Australian Research Council funds fundamental and applied research across a broad range of fields that contribute to advancements in health and medical science, (e.g., AI, engineering, and the development of biomaterials), and brokers partnerships between researchers and industry, government, community organisations and the international community.
The Biomedical Translation Fund is A$501 million co-investment program helping translate biomedical discoveries into products and services.
Australia’s A$1.5 billion Modern Manufacturing Strategy has a dedicated stream for medical products.
The Research and Development Tax Incentive encourages businesses to invest more in R&D through tax offsets.
The Australian Tax Office’s New Investment Engagement Service gives tailored guidance on tax issues to businesses planning significant new investments in Australia.
Business.gov.au provides information, grants, services and support from across government to help businesses succeed.

The MTPConnect podcast series connects with the people, projects and issues behind Australia’s growing medical technologies, biotechnologies and pharmaceuticals sector. Since its launch in February 2019, the podcast has featured a range of guests including notable scientists, physicians, entrepreneurs and business leaders.

Case studies

Are you a talented individual working in health industries?

Get an idea of the kinds of skills and roles we’re looking for

We’re targeting exceptionally talented individuals who are leading ground breaking projects in medtech, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, medical research, disease management, and health IT.

The following specialisations are intended to be used as a guide and are not an exhaustive list. The global talent profile provides examples of the calibre of individuals who may meet program requirements.

Specialisations

Antimicrobial resistance
Biochemistry and cell biology
Biostatistics
Biotechnology
Biomedicine and bioengineering
Cell and gene therapies - genomics
Clinical trials
Commercialisation experience in the health industry
Digital health
Healthcare entrepreneurship
Health economics
Implantable and wearable devices (3D printed devices, bionics
and prosthetics)
Infectious disease prevention
Medical devices
Medical physics
Microbiology and immunology
Nanotechnology and genomics
Neuroscience and neurology
Pharmaceuticals
Precision medicine
Point of care diagnostics
Regenerative medicine

Global talent profile

Exceptional candidates

Pharmaceutical executive and founder of a multi-million dollar global company dedicated to accelerating clinical trial processes by utilising a novel e-platform to track patient data.

Renowned infectious diseases researcher and practitioner of international repute.

Strong candidates

Senior auditory neuroscientist with a track record of research in health technologies, leading the research and design of cochlear implant technology.

Biomedical engineer with expertise in medical application of polymers, biomaterials and delivery platforms.

Not usually eligible

The following experience or professions would not usually meet the parameters of the program:

General practitioners
Retail pharmacists
Dentists
Physiotherapists
Nurses
Veterinarians
Aged care workers

Factsheet

Australia’s health and life sciences ecosystems

Recent arrivals

Zachary M Smith - Medtech

From United States of America

“Australia is not only a great place to work, but also a fun place to live and explore!”

Zachary Smith is a scientific leader in the research of neural prostheses for restoring the sense of hearing. As Director of Algorithms & Applications at Cochlear Ltd in Sydney, Smith works on the next generation of an Australian invention, the cochlear implant, to improve the lives of those with debilitating hearing loss.

Smith says he’s especially driven to improve access, effectiveness, and usability of cochlear implants so more people can stay connected with family, work, and community in a world full of sound.

Dr Fatemeh Karimi - Medtech

From Iran

“Australian researchers are pioneering work in health and personalised medicine.”

Dr Fatemeh Karimi is a biomedical scientist/engineer. She joined the University of New South Wales (UNSW) after receiving the highly prestigious and competitive Vice Chancellor’s Research Fellowship and started her own research team. She completed her PhD in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Melbourne.

Dr Karimi is a multidisciplinary researcher with extensive knowledge, skills, experiences, and expertise on design, synthesis, and development of polymers, biomaterials, and delivery platforms for various biomedical applications including cardiovascular disease, diabetic wound healing, tissue engineering, and tissue regeneration.

Dr Eve Purdy – Health and life sciences

From Canada

“I moved to Australia to work with a research team with world leaders who have similar interests to mine − and with the energy and means to translate what we know into something useful for others around the world!”

Dr Eve Purdy works as an emergency medicine physician and applied anthropologist in hospitals. As an anthropologist she works with different healthcare teams to identify how they can work together better, leading to better experiences and results for patients as well as happier staff who are more likely to continue working in healthcare.

In Australia, Dr Purdy is Emergency Medicine Consultant at the Gold Coast University Hospital delivering care to the sickest, most undifferentiated patients in the healthcare system. She is also continuing her work as an applied anthropologist coaching the hospital’s healthcare teams around tangible ways to shape their organizational culture. Dr Purdy’s research on team improvement, with the Bond University Translational Simulation Collaborative, will advance the understanding of team science in healthcare and help shape the understanding of safety and excellence in the healthcare system.

Dr Purdy completed her emergency medicine training in Ontario, Canada at Queen’s University while concurrently studying for her Master’s in Applied Anthropology at the University of North Texas.

Photo of Dr Syed Faraz Ahmed sitting at a table in a meeting room

Dr Syed Faraz Ahmed – Data science and Health and life sciences

From Pakistan

“The excellent research opportunities and support, together with the presence of field experts within and around the University of Melbourne, influenced my decision to move to Australia.”

Dr Syed Faraz Ahmed’s research work has helped guide the design of multiple vaccine candidates against COVID-19. Using innovative data science based approaches, his research work has helped to design assays used to assess T cell-based immune responses against SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19).

Overall, his research work has helped to develop advanced computational approaches to accelerate identification of vaccine targets that can potentially help with the design of next generation vaccines.

In Australia Dr Ahmed will continue his research as a Research Fellow at the University of Melbourne. There he will work with experts from multiple disciplines to develop computational approaches and methodologies to identify robust targets for the design of next-generation vaccines against different infectious diseases.

Dr Lamia Harper – Health and life sciences

From the United States

“As a black woman in science, I understand the challenges facing underrepresented people in STEM and the need for resources and support to increase diversity, which will fuel innovation. I am excited to be building something that will have an impact on an individual, national, and global level.”

Dr Lamia Harper received her PhD in Biomedical Science from New York University School of Medicine where she investigated how the bacterial pathogen S. aureus coordinates the expression of virulence. She has extensive experience as a biomedical researcher and as a science communications strategist.

Dr Harper is passionate about helping people from underrepresented backgrounds reach their full potential and is involved in initiatives which further that goal. She founded the organisation Faith in STEM to help equip and empower young people not only as students in STEM but also as future global leaders with a higher sense of purpose.

Dr Mary Petrone – Health and life sciences

From the United States

“I think Australia is in a strong global position as a gateway to the Asia-Pacific and its concerted effort to attract skilled individuals from all over the world. For these reasons, I believe the future of Australian research will be highly innovative, and I want to be a part of that.”

Dr Mary Petrone’s PhD research at the Yale School of Public Health focused on investigating the genomic epidemiology of emerging RNA viruses, including the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. During the COVID-19 pandemic she contributed to the development of a low-cost saliva-based COVID diagnostic test and was also involved in developing the infrastructure to perform large-scale genomic epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in New Haven, Connecticut.

Before going to Yale, Dr Petrone received a two-year Post-Baccalaureate Research Training Award through the National Institutes of Health, where she worked in Dr Anthony Fauci's laboratory and studied the efficacy of experimental functional cures for HIV.

In Australia, Dr Petrone is a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Sydney, where she is using metagenomic sequencing to discover highly divergent RNA viruses in marine invertebrates.