CLARA

What is Clinical AI Research Accelerator (CLARA)?

CLARA (Clinical AI Research Accelerator) is a secure research platform that enables clinicians and researchers to undertake artificial intelligence (AI) research using approved healthcare data within the protected Queensland Health environment. Developed through a partnership between The University of Queensland and Queensland Health, CLARA provides the infrastructure needed to accelerate clinical AI research while maintaining rigorous standards for data security, privacy, and governance. By unlocking the potential of real-world clinical data, CLARA supports the translation of AI innovation into practical healthcare solutions that can improve patient outcomes and health system performance.

Why CLARA?

Healthcare organisations hold vast amounts of valuable clinical data that can drive discoveries and improve health outcomes. However, the use of sensitive health information requires robust safeguards to protect privacy and ensure compliance with legislative and ethical requirements.

CLARA provides a secure environment that enables approved researchers to conduct AI research on approved health data within Queensland Health systems. This enables research that is both innovative and responsible.

Key Features and Capabilities of CLARA:

Secure research environment: Hosted within the Queensland Health network, CLARA provides secure virtual computing environments accessible only to approved users, enabling research on sensitive clinical data while maintaining strong security controls and governance protections.
AI and advanced analytics enabled: Supports a broad range of AI and data-intensive research activities, including machine learning, deep learning, natural language processing, and analysis of large structured and unstructured datasets.
Research on approved data: Enables approved researchers to analyse and derive insights from approved Queensland Health datasets.
Research collaboration environment: Provides a shared environment that supports collaboration between Queensland Health clinicians, The University of Queensland researchers, and multidisciplinary research teams.

Who can use CLARA?

CLARA supports approved Queensland Health clinicians and The University of Queensland researchers conducting AI and data-driven health research. Access is provided following appropriate approvals, onboarding, and mandatory training in data handling, cybersecurity, and ethical research practices.

Benefits to Researchers

CLARA enables researchers to:

Conduct AI research using real world clinical data in a secure environment.
Access advanced computing resources for large-scale data analysis and model development.
Collaborate with Queensland Health clinicians and UQ researchers across disciplines.
Work within established governance, privacy, and security frameworks.
Accelerate the translation of AI research into clinical practice and health system improvement.

Get in Touch

Interested in accessing CLARA? Contact the team to learn more about access requirements, onboarding, and platform capabilities.