NICM HRI recognised for research excellence among top institutes and scholars

9 November 2023

The Australian's 2024 Research Magazine(opens in a new window) has ranked Western Sydney University and researchers as national leaders in their fields within health and medical science; earth and life sciences; and humanities, literature, and the arts.

The prestigious sixth annual Research Magazine celebrates Australian research excellence, ranking the top researchers and institutions in Australia in 250 research fields.

Western Sydney University's NICM Health Research Institute (NICM HRI) has been recognised as Australia’s leading research institution in the field of Alternative and Traditional Medicine. In addition, NICM HRI's Professor Jerome Sarris has been honoured as the top researcher in Natural Medicines and Medicinal Plants.

"We are honoured to be recognised once again by The Australian’s Research Magazine, continuing a tradition of excellence and impact that has seen NICM HRI receive accolades in 2019, 2020, 2022, and 2023,” said Professor Dennis Chang, Director, NICM HRI, Western Sydney University.

“The recognition highlights our commitment to producing world-class research and making an impact in the field, advancing research and the evidence-base in health and medical science.

“Our achievements are the results of the dedication shown by our team of eminent scientists, clinicians, and healthcare professionals in traditional, complementary, and integrative medicine.

“I congratulate our researchers at Western and the broader Australian research community whose collective efforts continue to position our country at the forefront of global scientific inquiry and innovation."

Other fields led nationally by Western Sydney University include:

• MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development and Associate Professor Mark Antoniou as the foremost institute and field leader in Language and Linguistics, respectively.
• Western acknowledged in the field of Pregnancy and Childbirth.
• Distinguished Professor Brajesh Singh from Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment named field leader in Microbiology in the life sciences and earth sciences categories.
• Western’s Professor Paul James from the Institute for Culture and Society, and Adjunct Professor Alexis Wright, School of Humanities and Communication Arts; Writing and Society Research Centre, also celebrated under the category of ‘living legends’.

The Australian, partnering with the League of Scholars, uses advanced data analysis to identify top researchers and institutions in 250 fields. Their methodology and ranking system use an 'impact score' that evaluates research quality and impact through assessments of top-tier journal publications and citation counts.

The report notes, “To create the impact score we use public data published by Google Scholar, and we largely follow its taxonomy to determine the 250 fields, although we leave out some fields which have little relevance to Australia.”

Fields led nationally by NICM HRI:

September 2019:

• Dr Joseph Firth was recognised as one of the top 40 early career researchers and named one of the top five Australian rising stars for Health and Medical Sciences (psychiatry).
• Professor Caroline Smith was acknowledged as the Field Leader in Alternative and Traditional Medicine within the Health and Medical Sciences discipline.

September 2020:

• NICM HRI was the Lead Institute in the field of Alternative and Traditional Medicine within the Health and Medical Sciences discipline.

November 2022:

• NICM HRI continued to lead in the field of Alternative and Traditional Medicine within the Health and Medical Sciences discipline.
• Professor Jerome Sarris was recognised as the Field Leader in Natural Medicines and Medicinal Plants within the Health and Medical Sciences discipline.

November 2023:

• NICM HRI maintained its position as the Lead institute in the field of Alternative and Traditional Medicine within the Health and Medical Sciences discipline.
• Professor Jerome Sarris retained his title as the Field Leader in Natural Medicines and Medicinal Plants within the Health and Medical Sciences discipline.