The Colorectal Department has created a foundation in evidence-based practice through their close ties to the Surgical Outcomes Research Centre (SOuRCe), established in 2002. Through this multidisciplinary collaboration within the Sydney Local Health District and the University of Sydney, the Department's research agenda addresses diverse aspects of surgical outcomes, including surgical effectiveness, patient reported outcomes and quality of life, patterns of care and evidence-based practice, health economic evaluation, assessment of patient preferences, surgical decision-making and other methodological studies.

Over many years, the Department has become one of the major research-focused units. With support from over $30 million in competitive funding (including major funding bodies such as the NHMRC, MRFF, CINSW, NIHR and others) and a multi-disciplinary approach, the Department has published in many of the top surgical and medical journals, including NATURE, BMJ, JAMA surgery, Annals of Surgery, The British Journal of Surgery, Journal of Surgical Oncology and other high impact journals. Additionally, the Department is supportive of young academic surgeons, having assisted in the supervision of PhD and MPhil and MD students. These achievements have contributed significantly to the enhancement of patient outcomes and have changed clinical practice at RPA, Australia and Internationally.