The National Centre for Farmer Health (NCFH) is dedicated to improving the health, safety, and wellbeing of farmers, their families, and agricultural communities across the nation. Through its multifaceted approach encompassing health services, education and training, translational research, and stakeholder engagement.
 

Evidence-Based Research for Real-World Impact

At the heart of the NCFH’s success lies its commitment to outcome-driven research. The Centre focuses on studying and preventing risks that can affect the health, wellbeing, and safety of farmers, agricultural workers, and farming families. This research isn’t confined to academic journals; instead, it’s designed to make a real difference by positively impacting policies, practices, and education that guide current rural health service delivery. The NCFH collects and interprets evidence to better understand the challenges faced by farmers and their families, then uses this knowledge to create programs and projects that directly benefit farmers and address their needs. As such, the research actively informs digital products such as the Campfire platform.
 

Addressing Critical Health Challenges

The NCFH’s research portfolio addresses a wide array of pressing issues facing Australian farmers. Mental health, a significant concern in rural communities, is tackled through projects like “MH4Ag: Co-designing a peer-supported approach to improve mental health in rural farming communities”. This initiative recognizes the higher risk of suicide in rural farming communities compared to the general Australian population and aims to develop and test a framework for peer-supported psychological therapy. The NCFH understands that farmers are often reluctant to seek help themselves. The project has also worked with farmers and community stakeholders to develop Steering Straight – a personal challenge ’action plan’ template for members of the farming community.
 
Another vital area of focus is farm safety, particularly concerning children. The “Injury risk and safety behaviours of children in rural Victoria 2020-2023” project addresses the alarming rate of unintentional farm-related child fatalities. By exploring safety measures, risk-taking behaviors, and common activities of children on farms, this research aims to gain insights into the culture and perceptions around children on farms, assisting in the development of targeted interventions to improve child farm safety. This project is important as the workplace and home are often blurred on farms.
 
The NCFH also recognizes the impact of climate change on farmer health. The “Who, what, when, where, how and why: Rural Emergency Presentations in a changing climate 2022-2023” project examines trends in presentations to Emergency Departments and Urgent Care Centres in rural south-west Victoria during high heat days/episodes from 2017-2027. This research is crucial as heat kills more Australians than any other natural disaster, and rural and agricultural communities are particularly vulnerable due to long hours worked outdoors.
 

Collaborative Partnerships for Wider Reach

To ensure its research is effective and relevant, the NCFH actively collaborates with other academic institutions, healthcare providers, agricultural organizations, and farming communities. By working together, the Centre maximizes the impact of its research and develops initiatives that are suitable for the farming community. These partnerships extend beyond Australia, with collaborations established with international organisations to exchange knowledge, undertake research, and provide education and training.
 
Examples of collaborative projects include the Primary Producers Knowledge Network. This project worked with farmers, fishers and industry partners to co-design, develop and evaluate the online Campfire platform, podcasts, blogs, and social media messaging and capacity building activities to foster sustainable change across primary industries.

Also the Ripple Effect (STRIDE Project) which is an online intervention designed to investigate what works to reduce the self-stigma (negative attitudes you have towards yourself) and perceived-stigma (negative attitudes you believe others have about you) among males from the farming community.