Health Services
Increase the quality, accessibility, and value of healthcare that children receive.
Led by Professor Harriet Hiscock, the Health Services Group supports the development and use of the best evidence to increase the quality, accessibility, and value of healthcare that children receive. It aims to reduce disparities and improve health outcomes for children across Victoria and Australia. With the growing cost and demand for health services and the complexity of healthcare delivery, health services research can better inform policymakers, clinicians and patients on how best to deliver healthcare.
Our research is a scientific field that examines:
- How people get access to healthcare.
- How much does care costs?
- What happens to patients because of this care?
Our research investigates how to improve children’s mental health care through clinical and population trials and studies of the organisation and financing of mental health care. We work in partnership with the Royal Children’s Hospital - Health Services Research Unit, which focuses on developing and testing novel approaches to shift care from the overburdened hospital system to the community and reduce the low value or wasteful care.
Systematic reviews, secondary healthcare data analysis and large, epidemiological studies underpin our work. Health services research, quality improvement and health economics perspectives are integral to our work.

Funding
- National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)
- The Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation
- Beyond Blue
- Safer Care Victoria (Department of Health and Human Services)
- Ian Potter Foundation
- Royal Australasian College of Physicians Foundation
- Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) Translational Seed Grant
- MCRI Population Health Theme Funding
- Charity Drive Day
- North Western Melbourne Primary Health Network
Collaborations
National
- Royal Children’s Hospital, Health Services Research Unit
- The University of Melbourne, Department of Paediatrics
- The University of Melbourne, Centre for Health Policy, Health Economics Unit
- The University of Melbourne, Health and Biomedical Informatics Centre (HaBIC) Research Unit
- The University of New South Wales
- School of Psychology, Deakin University
- Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP)
- Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Macquarie University
- Sunshine Hospital
- North Western Melbourne Primary Health Network
- Werribee Mercy Hospital
- Curve Tomorrow
- Monash Children’s Hospital
- Ballarat Hospital
- Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT)
- IPC Health
International
- University of Michigan, Child Health Evaluation and Research Center, Michigan, USA
- Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
- King’s College, London, UK
- University College, London, UK
Publications
Hiscock H, Sciberras E, Mensah F, Gerner B, Efron D, Khano S, Oberklaid F. Impact of a behavioural sleep intervention on symptoms and sleep in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and parental mental health: randomised controlled trial. British Medical Journal 2015;350:h68
Mulraney M, Hiscock H, Sciberras E, Coghill D, Sawyer D. Mental health difficulties across childhood and mental health service use: Findings from a longitudinal population-based study. The British Journal of Psychiatry 2019 Feb 271-6. doi: 10.1192/bjp.2019.32 PMID: 30810103
Hiscock H, Neely RJ, Lei S, Freed G. Paediatric mental and physical health presentations to emergency departments, Victoria, 2008-15. Medical Journal of Australia 2018 doi: 10.5694/mja17.00434.