Background Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in Australia. Investment in research solutions has been demonstrated to yield health and a 9.8-fold return economic benefit. The sector, however, is severely challenged with success rates of traditional peer-reviewed funding in decline. Here, we aimed to understand the perceived challenges faced by the cardiovascular workforce in Australia prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are leading causes of death and morbidity in Australia and worldwide. Despite improvements in treatment, there remain large gaps in our understanding to prevent, treat and manage CVD events and associated morbidities. This article lays out a vision for enhancing CVD research in Australia through the development of a Big Data system, bringing together the multitude of rich administrative and health datasets available. The article describes the different types of Big Data available for CVD research in Australia and presents an overview of the potential benefits of a Big Data system for CVD research and some of the major challenges in establishing the system for Australia. The steps for progressing this vision are outlined.

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Introduction: The VALID BP project was initiated to increase the availability of validated blood pressure measuring devices (BPMDs). The goal is to eliminate non validated BPMDs and minimise over- and underdiagnosis of hypertension caused by inaccurate readings. This study was undertaken to assess the potential return on investment in the VALID BP project. Methods: The Framework to Assess the Impact of Translational health research was applied to the VALID BP project. One of the three methods used included a cost benefit analysis to monetise past research investment and model future research costs, implementation costs and benefits. Analysis was based on reasoned assumptions about potential impacts from availability and use of validated BPMDs (assuming an end goal of 100% validated BPMDs available in Australia by 2028) and improved skills leading to more accurate BP measurement. Results: After five years, with 20% attribution of benefits, there is a potential $1.29 return for every dollar spent if the proportion of validated BPMDs and staff trained in proper BP measurement technique increased from 20–60%. After eight years (2020–2028) and assuming universal validation and training coverage, the returns would be $3.20 per dollar spent (not including cost of side-effects of unnecessary medication or downstream patient impacts from unmanaged hypertension). Conclusion: This modelled economic analysis indicates there will be positive downstream economic benefits if the availability of validated BPMDs is increased. The findings support ongoing efforts toward a universal regulatory framework for BPMDs and can be considered within more detailed future economic analyses.