The COVID-19 pandemic is a global health emergency that is challenging the entire community in Australian and New Zealand. It is a formidable opponent for intensive care units and their staff. The Intensive Care Foundation stands shoulder to shoulder with our community and with intensive care units.

In the 30th anniversary of the Foundation, we were pleased to open our annual granting program by calling for expressions of interest a short time ago. The Board of the Foundation includes several intensive care clinicians who understand well what has happened since. The upheaval in our lives and throughout the specialty we all love is profound.

Frontline ICU staff, including clinician researchers, are among the most important people in the country right now. You will do what it takes and apply your knowledge, skills and compassion to the best of your ability. You will do this despite working in the eye of the storm every day. Intensive care units in Australia and New Zealand are a formidable opponent for this virus.

The Expression of Interest for the 2020 granting program is now closed. The Foundation will not distract or disadvantage potential applicants in any way from achieving the mission we share. If your research and education programs must wait for you to return to normal, then your Foundation will wait for you.

Those who have expressed interest already have been notified. They will be eligible to re-apply later and can modify their current expression of interest at that time if desired.

The Foundation will announce a special funding round at time to be determined. All projects that meet our usual eligibility will be accepted. The special funding round will preference projects that can help our community and specialty recover from the pandemic, understand it, and increase our ability to adapt and respond in future. It will encourage projects which can improve the wellbeing of our workforce. We will announce details when we emerge from this pandemic together.

Anyone from the intensive care community who would like to discuss COVID-related research with the Foundation before we announce the special funding round should contact the Foundation and ask to speak with the Chairman, A/Prof David Gattas.