About CHRISP

Purpose and history

In 2016 the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District and University of Wollongong established the CHRISP Research Partnership. In July 2020, the University of Wollongong's School of Medicine joined the partnership. The partnership aims to provide access to high-quality health data and build capacity for research and evaluation to benefit the Illawarra Shoalhaven populations by establishing the following:

• CHRISP – the research centre and team, established at the end of 2016
• The Illawarra Health Information Platform (IHIP) which is comprised of:
  • A non-identifiable databank with data sourced from the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District and potentially other sources
  • A health records linkage system
  • Research project datasets for release to clinicians and other researchers, following relevant approvals

CHRISP aims to support three streams of research, ISLHD priority-driven, investigator-driven and research capacity building. Criteria used to prioritise potential research projects include:

• Alignment with the priorities of the Local Health District
• The potential impact of findings and translation into policy and practice
• Capability and capacity building e.g. expertise, collaborations, evidence
• Strength, rigour and appropriateness of research design
• Resources required e.g. team time, funding, third party data
• Research output

Policies and guidelines

A set of policies and guidelines have been developed which detail the governance, approvals and processes under which the CHRISP team undertakes research and facilitates access to data for research. Three of these key documents are the CHRISP Data Policy, Prioritisation Policy and Authorship Guidelines. 

For further information, visit the Governance & policies page.