Neuroscience Institute of Schizophrenia and Allied Disorders (NISAD): 10 years of Australia's first virtual research institute.
OBJECTIVE
To review the first 10 years of operation of the Neuroscience Institute of Schizophrenia and Allied Disorders (NISAD), Australia's first virtual research institute.


METHODS
Narrative description of the evolution of NISAD.


RESULTS
Since inception in 1996, NISAD has developed a wide range of activities to enhance existing efforts and develop new initiatives in schizophrenia research, initially throughout New South Wales, but increasingly on a national scale. This involved the initial development of critical research infrastructure to provide the foundation, with the subsequent focus on developing a multidisciplinary programme of schizophrenia research, across the basic to applied research spectrum. While the primary focus has been the scientific domain, NISAD has also played a leading role in increasing public awareness of schizophrenia as a disease amenable to scientific investigation.


CONCLUSIONS
NISAD has succeeded in building a framework to apply the latest developments in neuroscience to the study of schizophrenia and has formed a multidisciplinary network of clinicians and neuroscientists who are actively collaborating on a range of research initiatives. The 'virtual institute' structure of NISAD has proven cost-efficient and consistent with innovative thinking about research resource management.
Draganic
Daren M
DM
Neuroscience Institute of Schizophrenia and Allied Disorders, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010, Australia. d.draganic@nisad.org.au
Catts
Stanley V
SV
Carr
Vaughan J
VJ
D000046:Academic Medical Centers / Q000266:history*; D001315:Australia; D035843:Biomedical Research; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders; D009488:Neurosciences / Q000266:history*; D012559:Schizophrenia; D014584:User-Computer Interface