$780 million project to speed process of research to treatment. 
 

Working at the heart of one of Australia’s most important medical infrastructure projects means every day is a learning experience for Sam Chapman.Sam was appointed Sydney Local Health District’s Program Manager for the Sydney Biomedical Accelerator (SBA) project earlier this year. 

The $780 million project is a partnership between the District and Sydney University designed to accelerate the transition of medical research projects to treatments. It is now under construction on the Sydney Uni campus and will be linked to Royal Prince Alfred (RPA) Hospital. 

“It's an incredible opportunity,” Sam said. 

“There’s nothing like it anywhere else. You've got a world leading university physically connected to the top hospital in Australia. 

“You have this amazing mixture of the brightest minds of our clinicians and those of the university who can come together and work collaboratively to solve the most challenging health problems.” 

Much of Sam’s work is related to ensuring that the District's interests are represented in the development of the SBA and facilitating the involvement of subject matter experts in its planning.  

The breadth of her role, however, means her responsibilities range across the project. 

“I'm the jack of all trades for the SBA,” she said. 

“I'm just as involved in research as I am with figuring out who's going to clean the building, how the plumbing is going to work, what the legal framework of the SBA will be, how the commercialisation pathway will work.” 

Construction on the SBA began in May and the facility is expected to be completed in 2028. The SBA is designed to build on the research and clinical strengths of both the university and the District to establish industry collaborations and fast track commercialisation of research projects. 

Sam said she found it very rewarding to hold a role with such diversity. 

“It's not very common that you're in a role where you get so much variety and so much exposure to different parts of the organization,” she said. 

“I think one thing I've always loved about Health is that there's always something more to learn. And I feel like in this job, every day, I'm learning about something different – a new part of the organisation that I didn't know existed before, so I'm really enjoying it.”