The use of social marketing strategies and adult education principles to improve asthma self management in older people. Asthma is estimated to affect up to 10 per cent of people aged 65+ some of whom experience the condition for the first time later in life. Mortality rates from asthma in Australia are highest in the older population and statistics show that older people are most likely to be admitted to hospital following attendance at an Emergency Department for asthma. Older people lack aw ....The use of social marketing strategies and adult education principles to improve asthma self management in older people. Asthma is estimated to affect up to 10 per cent of people aged 65+ some of whom experience the condition for the first time later in life. Mortality rates from asthma in Australia are highest in the older population and statistics show that older people are most likely to be admitted to hospital following attendance at an Emergency Department for asthma. Older people lack awareness about asthma, often manage it poorly, and their health related quality of life is impacted by asthma. There is disparity in asthma information, management and service provision targeted specifically to the needs of the elderly. This project will provide much-needed evidence on the effectiveness of carefully researched and targeted programs for older asthmatics.Read moreRead less
Efficacy of strategies to increase participation rates in disease management programs. The aim of this project is to determine the most effective strategies for maximising recruitment and retention of at-risk adults into evidence-based disease- and risk-management programs, as well as completion of health risk assessments. It is evident from the literature on risk factor modification, and on the economic and social costs of chronic diseases, that increasing participation in these programs will ....Efficacy of strategies to increase participation rates in disease management programs. The aim of this project is to determine the most effective strategies for maximising recruitment and retention of at-risk adults into evidence-based disease- and risk-management programs, as well as completion of health risk assessments. It is evident from the literature on risk factor modification, and on the economic and social costs of chronic diseases, that increasing participation in these programs will lead to reduced health costs and reduced morbidity and mortality among the target population. The primary outcome of this project will be evidence-based guidelines on the best strategies for recruitment to, and retention in, disease and risk management programs.Read moreRead less
Implementing guidelines to prevent chronic disease in the community. The burden of chronic disease in Australia has resulted in prevention of chronic disease being an important priority for the Australian health system. High quality evidence for preventing chronic disease exists; however the practice falls short of the evidence. Finding ways to implement the evidence for preventing chronic disease is an urgent national need. This study aims to apply the evidence for preventing chronic disease in ....Implementing guidelines to prevent chronic disease in the community. The burden of chronic disease in Australia has resulted in prevention of chronic disease being an important priority for the Australian health system. High quality evidence for preventing chronic disease exists; however the practice falls short of the evidence. Finding ways to implement the evidence for preventing chronic disease is an urgent national need. This study aims to apply the evidence for preventing chronic disease in practice. It will generate data and validate a model on how to effectively improve the uptake of guidelines by both practitioners and consumers. This project is of national and community benefit because it will enable the potential of preventing chronic disease to be realised.Read moreRead less
Implementation and evaluation of a comprehensive sun protection program for adolescents. Australia has the highest incidence of skin cancer in the world, costing our health system an estimated $300 million each year. The majority of skin cancers are preventable, if the public could be persuaded to adequately protect themselves from the sun, especially during childhood and adolescence. Australia currently leads the world in the development of sun protection education campaigns for children. Howev ....Implementation and evaluation of a comprehensive sun protection program for adolescents. Australia has the highest incidence of skin cancer in the world, costing our health system an estimated $300 million each year. The majority of skin cancers are preventable, if the public could be persuaded to adequately protect themselves from the sun, especially during childhood and adolescence. Australia currently leads the world in the development of sun protection education campaigns for children. However, adolescent sun protection behaviours continue to decrease, and very few programs have shown potential for any impact on this key target group. This project will provide much-needed evidence on the effectiveness of carefully researched and targeted programs for adolescents.Read moreRead less
The use of social marketing theory and practice to develop innovative and comprehensive sun protection campaigns. This project uses both academic theory and best-practice in real-world campaigns to develop a comprehensive strategy for the development of theoretically-sound and innovative campaign for the promotion of sun protection behaviours. It then utilises this strategy for the actual development, implementation, and evaluation of the campaign, conducted under the auspices of the highly-reg ....The use of social marketing theory and practice to develop innovative and comprehensive sun protection campaigns. This project uses both academic theory and best-practice in real-world campaigns to develop a comprehensive strategy for the development of theoretically-sound and innovative campaign for the promotion of sun protection behaviours. It then utilises this strategy for the actual development, implementation, and evaluation of the campaign, conducted under the auspices of the highly-regarded industry partner, The Cancer Council NSW. Further, the knowledge gained in the review of existing campaigns, the analysis of literature in theory and practice, and the campaign development and evaluation will greatly enhance our ability to develop cost-effective social marketing campaigns to improve the well-being of Australians.Read moreRead less
Critical Windows: Health-related Behaviour in Children After School. Global concerns for increasing body fatness and insufficient physical activity in children highlight the importance of health promoting behaviour in younger populations. A critical window for healthy behaviour is created after school. We aim to improve the ability to assess healthy behaviour during 3 pm-7 pm and subsequently to describe activity and nutritional practices in Grade 5 children (randomly selected) from Western Sydn ....Critical Windows: Health-related Behaviour in Children After School. Global concerns for increasing body fatness and insufficient physical activity in children highlight the importance of health promoting behaviour in younger populations. A critical window for healthy behaviour is created after school. We aim to improve the ability to assess healthy behaviour during 3 pm-7 pm and subsequently to describe activity and nutritional practices in Grade 5 children (randomly selected) from Western Sydney. Psychosocial and environmental correlates and the extent to which seasons and annual growth influence behaviour will be considered. Outcomes involve an effective instrument for future research and an enhanced understanding of healthy behaviour in Western Sydney children.Read moreRead less
The effectiveness of pro-active telemarketing of a smoking cessation telephone counselling service. Despite the availability of services, such as telephone support lines to help people quit, only a small number of smokers seek help. One solution is to pro-actively contact and offer support with quitting to smokers in the community. This study will involve pro-actively contacting households by telephone and offering intensive, personalised telephone counselling to smokers to support them in the q ....The effectiveness of pro-active telemarketing of a smoking cessation telephone counselling service. Despite the availability of services, such as telephone support lines to help people quit, only a small number of smokers seek help. One solution is to pro-actively contact and offer support with quitting to smokers in the community. This study will involve pro-actively contacting households by telephone and offering intensive, personalised telephone counselling to smokers to support them in the quitting process. Such a service will provide treatment to smokers who might not otherwise seek assistance to quit, thereby greatly increasing the potential impact of quit smoking services at a community level.Read moreRead less
Improving health and criminal justice outcomes among Australia's offender population using a multi-disciplinary, all of government approach. Offender populations comprise some of the most marginalised and socially excluded individuals in society. With this comes poor health, engagement in risk behaviours and reduced social outcomes. Violence, mental health, infectious diseases, and substance misuse are all characteristics of offender populations and have a huge impact on the wider community. The ....Improving health and criminal justice outcomes among Australia's offender population using a multi-disciplinary, all of government approach. Offender populations comprise some of the most marginalised and socially excluded individuals in society. With this comes poor health, engagement in risk behaviours and reduced social outcomes. Violence, mental health, infectious diseases, and substance misuse are all characteristics of offender populations and have a huge impact on the wider community. The research programme linked to this application will collect new information aimed at reducing this impact and also develop a much needed intervention to reduce violent reoffending. Indigenous people are over-represented in the Australian prison system and will benefit from the work programme associated with this application.Read moreRead less
A randomised controlled trial of motivational interviewing as a tool to enhance secondary prevention strategies in cardiovascular disease. While there is increasing evidence for the efficacy of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) in reducing mortality and morbidity, adherence to risk factor modification strategies are problematic for many CR patients. This project will evaluate in a randomised controlled trial the benefit of motivational interviewing (MI) in enhancing secondary prevention strategies in ....A randomised controlled trial of motivational interviewing as a tool to enhance secondary prevention strategies in cardiovascular disease. While there is increasing evidence for the efficacy of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) in reducing mortality and morbidity, adherence to risk factor modification strategies are problematic for many CR patients. This project will evaluate in a randomised controlled trial the benefit of motivational interviewing (MI) in enhancing secondary prevention strategies in CR patients. Given the role of self-efficacy in predicting adherence, MI needs to be evaluated in CR. This study is significant in terms of preventative health, and its potential to improve the design and delivery of CR programs and increase patient adherence. Expected outcomes include increased adherence to cardiovascular risk modification and improved psychological well-being.Read moreRead less
Time of day, time awake and alcohol: the effects on fatigue and performance. The results of this study will clarify the effects of sleep deprivation and time of day on the experiences of fatigue and on performance. This information will have a direct impact on policy and practice relating to the management of fatigue. The results will have a direct impact on community safety, especially on the road and in the workplace. The study therefore has direct relevance for guidelines and regulations de ....Time of day, time awake and alcohol: the effects on fatigue and performance. The results of this study will clarify the effects of sleep deprivation and time of day on the experiences of fatigue and on performance. This information will have a direct impact on policy and practice relating to the management of fatigue. The results will have a direct impact on community safety, especially on the road and in the workplace. The study therefore has direct relevance for guidelines and regulations deveoped by bodies such as national and state road safety and workplace health and safety bodies.Read moreRead less