Our History

Centre for Health Policy

The Centre for Health Policy has its origins in the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) National Centre for Health Program Evaluation, which was established in 1991 as a joint venture between the University of Melbourne and Monash University. Professor David Dunt led the Program Evaluation Unit, which was the University of Melbourne’s side of the Centre.

The Program Evaluation Unit returned to the University of Melbourne in 2003, and was recognised as the Centre for Health Policy, Programs and Economics (CHPPE) by the University in 2006. In 2009, Professor Jane Pirkis took the reins as the director of the CHPPE with the late Professor Margaret Kelaher as Deputy Director. The new Centre continued to focus its work around three workstreams: Mental Health, Primary Care and Health Promotion (later renamed Evaluation and Implementation Science) and Health Economics. The Health Policy and Law (later to be renamed Law and Public Health) stream was established in 2007.

In 2013 there was a major restructure of centres in the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, with CHPPE reforming into two centres; the Centre for Health Policy (CHP) and the Centre for Mental Health (renamed in 2024 as the Centre for Mental Health and Community Wellbeing). Professor Jane Pirkis became the Director of the Centre for Mental Health and Professor Margaret Kelaher became the Director of CHP. During this year, the former Australian Health Workforce Institute was also incorporated as the Health Systems and Workforce Unit and in 2015, and CHP became the host and coordinating Centre for the Master of Ageing.

In 2016 the Demography & Ageing Unit (led by Professor Peter McDonald) was established, and the Health Systems and Workforce Unit was retired upon the departure of Professor Gary Freed back to the United States.

Professor Philip Clarke was appointed Centre Director and Chair of Health Policy in 2017 and the Cancer Health Services Research Unit (led by Professor Maarten IJzerman) was established in May 2018. Professor Clarke relocated to Oxford in 2018 and Professor Nancy Devlin commenced as Centre Director in January 2019 until September 2020, when Professor Adam Elshaug commenced as Chair of Health Policy and Centre Director. In 2021 the Healthy Housing Unit (led by Professor Rebecca Bentley) was established. The Centre is also the coordinating home to M-VAC, the Melbourne Health Technology and Value Assessment Collaborative, established in 2021.

In April 2023, two units from MSPGH’s Centre for Health Equity joined CHP: the Health and Society Unit (led by Professor Richard Chenhall) and the Disability and Health Unit (led by Professor Anne Kavanagh). At the time that Professor Chenhall’s Unit joined CHP, they were called the Health Humanities and Social Sciences Unit, but renamed to the Health and Society Unit (HSU) in 2024.