Prof Naomi Priest PhD
@naomipriest.bsky.social
Health equity and social inequalities Social epidemiologist Living and working on unceded Wurrundjeri land, Naarm/Melbourne
The UK government’s research grant agency wants to cut grant processing times from 195 days to 90. Meanwhile, the Australian equivalent, has increased it from 195 days to at least 435 (DP26 vs. DP27). This is for comparable, “applicant led grants”. Make it make sense.
UKRI pledges to cut grant processing time in half - Research Professional News
Funder’s new five-year strategy aims to boost national priority fields, while backing curiosity-driven research
researchprofessionalnews.com
Universities target individuals in redundancy processes. We've all seen it. They see some people as too difficult, too female, too diverse, too disabled, too outspoken, too union... Proud of @nteunion.bsky.social. Shame on #MacquarieUni. Solidarity Jo & Jumana! ✊ www.abc.net.au/news/2026-06...
'Punched in the guts': Sacked academics take uni to Fair Work Commission
Two senior academics from Macquarie University allege they were targeted for redundancy because of their union activity.
abc.net.au
When Victoria Police unlawfully disclosed her pregnancy, Joanna Adams took them to VCAT and won
Woman took on detective who unlawfully told witness she was pregnant — and won
A woman who says she suffered life-changing stress and anxiety – and later, the death of one of her babies – after a Victoria Police officer unlawfully disclosed that she was pregnant wants her story known.
abc.net.au
Massive governance failure at the ANU where the executive made up a financial crisis to justify redundancies. We were put through hell for nothing
NTEU ACT@nteuact.bsky.social · 2mo agoThe ANAO report on #ANU is out. Careers were destroyed, livelihoods lost, lives wrecked and people damaged - for what? @nteunion.bsky.social members stood up for the ANU and won. Join at www.nteu.au/join. ✊️
I wrote to the Health Minister about this yesterday. Women with breast cancer and endometriosis will be denied a critical drug "for commercial reasons", while men with prostate cancer will still be able to access it.
Lifesaving breast cancer and endometriosis drug to be pulled from shelves
Patients have been left frustrated and scared after learning that a life-saving breast cancer and endometriosis drug is to be pulled from shelves in Australia and some other countries.
abc.net.au
Australians with disabilities copped the biggest cuts in the budget. Yet conservative media’s heart bleeds for the wealthy - by @grogsgamut.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/business/gro...
Australians with disabilities copped the biggest cuts in the budget. Yet conservative media’s heart bleeds for the wealthy | Greg Jericho
The reaction to the budget has revealed Australia’s warped priorities, with the appalling inequality in dental care among the issues actively ignored
theguardian.com
“You know why the Norwegians charge their kids nothing to go to university? “Because they tax the gas industry and they fund public services.” – Dr Richard Denniss, co-CEO of The Australia Institute ✍ Sign to support a 25% tax on all Australian gas exports ➡️ https://theaus.in/3R78MQ4
there’s no end to the list of serious medical conditions that doctors will misdiagnose in women as “anxiety”
Australia is leaving money put aside for medical research funding in the bank while our brightest minds head overseas and young researchers question their future in medical research.
theaustralian.com.au
#PEM is real & not the same as fatigue. It is biological, not due to deconditioning or lack of motivation. Telling people to push through can cause harm. Join us 2pm AEST, Tuesday 12 May, for a conversation on recognition, validation & preventing harm. zurl.co/umjjR
More than 60% of Australian medical researchers left active research roles between 2019 & 2024 because they could not make ends meet - while my costings from the PBO suggest the govt could more than double annual spending from the MRFF without any effect on its base level of funding.
Up to $1.4 billion in medical research remains unused under government cap
Researchers say securing funding has become increasingly tough, with many left with no choice but to spend a disproportionate amount of time applying for grants.
abc.net.au
Australia's health and medical research funding is utterly broken, so many great researchers leaving and critical work not being done. It's totally unsustainable to spend months writing grants that have very little chance of being funded www.abc.net.au/news/2026-03...
Up to $1.4 billion in medical research remains unused under government cap
Researchers say securing funding has become increasingly tough, with many left with no choice but to spend a disproportionate amount of time applying for grants.
abc.net.au
Addressing vaccine hesitancy requires skill and patience – some days, the people who do it feel like they’re drowning in a sea of lies. www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02...
America's vaccine wars are shaking Australia, driven by 'sticky' myth
With immunisation rates declining and outbreaks of infectious diseases like measles increasing, the consequences of vaccine hesitancy in Australia are becoming clearer.
abc.net.au
excellent thread on pacing for people w ME/CFS and other energy limiting conditions
Tom Kindlon@tomkindlon.bsky.social · 6mo ago"Pacing in the Real World" Another blogpost I liked a lot by this OT who specialises in ME/CFS & long Covid. Contains lots of practical tips. As she says, an emphasis is harm reduction rather than perfection onelifelivedwell.substack.com/p/pacing-in-... #MEcfs #LongCovid #CFS #PwME #Pacing
Devastating the algal bloom in Sth Australia is continuing almost 12 months after it began www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2...
Beaches previously untouched by algal bloom 'hit with a vengeance'
While parts of South Australia celebrate what could be the end of a devastating algal bloom, nearby communities are seeing the effects for the first time.
abc.net.au
The utter sham of offsets, yet again... “Destroying the equivalent of 40 MCGs worth of greater glider habitat and then attempting to relocate all hollows and claim this somehow offsets the harm to greater gliders is genuinely deluded, and contemptuous.” - me www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Qld coalmine expansion approved by Albanese government will clear habitat and fuel climate crisis, scientists say
Conservationists estimate coal exported from expanded mine to release CO2 equivalent of about half Australia’s annual carbon footprint
theguardian.com
As long as our political 'leaders' keep supporting the fossil fuel industry, major 'donors' to political parties, people, communities, wildlife and ecosystems will all face increasing dangers. It's basic physics, chemistry and ecology. Duty of care, anyone? www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘We shouldn’t be surprised’: bushfires in Victoria push threatened species to the brink
The impact of fires on wildlife can be ‘catastrophic’, with some plant species feared extinct
theguardian.com
New misfeasance in public office decision dropped. A cracker: Judge awarded $2m in damages, including v. rare punitive exemplary damages, against former head of Medicare watchdog. Matters are RARE. Wins rarer. A boon to potential Robodebt + other cases. www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/health/...
Exclusive: Misfeasance case paves way for robodebt action
A damning judgement of ‘highhandedness or cynical disregard’ by the Medicare watchdog has established a new front for civil litigation of public servants named in the robodebt royal commission.
thesaturdaypaper.com.au
Another totally messed-up act in colonial Australia. First Nations peoples disregarded and sidelined, again. Wongari (dingoes) murdered. Shame on all responsible. www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01...
Traditional owners heartbroken by dingo cull after Piper James's death
The Queensland government euthanises six dingoes involved in Piper James's death on K'gari, and is expected to cull more in the coming days.
abc.net.au
Literally every criteria used in this article was there in Trump’s first presidency. The only new part is the occupation of cities and killing of citizens, which were logical next steps predicted by many. You can be a fascist and a mafioso and many other bad things at once.
Justin Hendrix@justinhendrix.bsky.social · 6mo agoGift link: www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
Advance -- recipient of $50,000 from Australia's Special Envoy To Combat Antisemitism Jillian Segal & her husband John Roth -- is helping to promote this mob Reclaim Australia Day from Indigenous protesters. www.theage.com.au/national/sec...
Secret chats reveal $10,000 plot to kidnap PM as police raid neo-Nazi associates
Apparent threats, including a recording of a man being offered $10,000 to rent a van and kidnap Anthony Albanese, were posted in an online chat room run by March for Australia organisers.
theage.com.au
Andy Fleming@slackbastard.bsky.social · 7mo ago1/ Australia's Special Envoy To Combat Antisemitism Jillian Segal & her husband John Roth help pay for this Advance 🇦🇺 propaganda to the tune of $50,000 ...
The Attorney General can’t rule out that accurately describing Israel as committing genocide could land you in jail for 15 years.
MLK Jr. said America suffers not just from "the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people." Remember this.
Please share: Pew Research Center will provide $3,000 each for 19 new papers using our recent global datasets. We encourage reuse of our Pew-Templeton Global Religious Futures data! https://www.pewresearch.org/2026/01/16/seeking-research-using-recent-pew-templeton-global-religious-futures-datasets/
"92 per cent of Australian medical researchers who applied for the National Health and Medical Research Council’s annual “ideas grants” last year were unsuccessful; about half of those deemed to have an outstanding application were rejected."
Dr Shane Huntington OAM@drshanerrr.bsky.social · 7mo agoMore voices standing up.
