ORCID Profile
0000-0002-8099-3107
Current Organisation
South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute
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Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 2013
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 13-05-2021
Abstract: High prevalence of chronic and infectious diseases in Indigenous populations is a major public health concern both in global and Australian contexts. Limited research has examined the role of built environments in relation to Indigenous health in remote Australia. This study engaged stakeholders to understand their perceptions of the influence of built environmental factors on chronic and infectious diseases in remote Northern Territory (NT) communities. A preliminary set of 1120 built environmental indicators were systematically identified and classified using an Indigenous Indicator Classification System. The public and environmental health workforce was engaged to consolidate the classified indicators (n = 84), and then sort and rate the consolidated indicators based on their experience with living and working in remote NT communities. Sorting of the indicators resulted in a concept map with nine built environmental domains. Essential services and Facilities for health/safety were the highest ranked domains for both chronic and infectious diseases. Within these domains, adequate housing infrastructure, water supply, drainage system, reliable sewerage and power infrastructure, and access to health services were identified as the most important contributors to the development of these diseases. The findings highlight the features of community environments amenable to public health and social policy actions that could be targeted to help reduce prevalence of chronic and infectious diseases.
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 27-06-2022
Abstract: Recent crises have underscored the importance that housing has in sustaining good health and, equally, its potential to harm health. Considering this and building on Howden-Chapman’s early glossary of housing and health and the WHO Housing and Health Guidelines, this paper introduces a range of housing and health-related terms, reflecting almost 20 years of development in the field. It defines key concepts currently used in research, policy and practice to describe housing in relation to health and health inequalities. Definitions are organised by three overarching aspects of housing: affordability (including housing affordability stress (HAS) and fuel poverty), suitability (including condition, accessibility and sustainable housing) and security (including precarious housing and homelessness). Each of these inter-related aspects of housing can be either protective of, or detrimental to, health. This glossary broadens our understanding of the relationship between housing and health to further promote interdisciplinarity and strengthen the nexus between these fields.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2023
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-03-2013
DOI: 10.1111/NHS.12040
Abstract: Teaching is a key role for nurses in contemporary clinical practice. Consequently, peer-assisted learning continues to gather momentum in nursing education in tertiary and professional education settings. In this study, we investigated the factor structure of the Peer Teaching Experience Questionnaire when completed by a group of nursing undergraduates from a large Australian university. Data from the 14-item Peer Teaching Experience Questionnaire completed by third year undergraduate nursing students were analyzed using factor analysis. A total of 257 final (third)-year undergraduate nursing students participated in the study. Factor analysis of the 14 items revealed three factors with eigenvalues above 1, accounting for 47.3% of the total variance. Items with loadings greater than ± 0.40, with the factor in question, were used to characterize the factor solutions. Findings from the exploratory factor analysis provide preliminary results that the Peer Teaching Experience Questionnaire has adequate dimensionality and reliability.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 08-04-2022
DOI: 10.1071/PY21219
Abstract: In promoting positive cardiovascular health for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, there is a need to ensure provision of high-quality risk assessment and management in primary healthcare settings. There is some evidence of gender gaps for Australian women in the provision of cardiovascular risk assessment and management however, there is little understanding of whether these gaps are also present for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women. A mixed-method systematic review was utilised to synthesise existing evidence on the provision of assessment and management against guideline-recommended care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, and determine whether gender disparities in provision of care exist for this population. Sixteen studies that report gender-specific data indicate there are significant gaps in the provision of assessment and management for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and men alike. There is no evidence of incorporation of social and emotional wellbeing into cardiovascular care and limited studies outlining the assessment and management of behaviours and factors that may be protective of cardiovascular health. Furthermore, little is known about the provision of care in mainstream primary health services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 05-01-2018
Abstract: nadequate administrative health data, sub-optimal public health infrastructure, rapid and unplanned urbanization,environmental degradation and poor penetration of information technology make the tracking of health and well being of the populations within developing countries more challenging. This necessitates setting-up comprehensive surveillance platforms integrated with the information technologies that can cater to the full spectrum of the public health problems. his manuscript aims to provide methodological insights on establishing GIS integrated comprehensive surveillance platform in resource constrained rural settings. he INCLEN (International Clinical Epidemiology Network) Trust International established a comprehensive SOMAARTH Demographic, Development and Environmental Surveillance Site (DDESS) in a northern Indian rural setting. The surveillance platform evolved through adopting four major steps: 1) site preparation 2) data construction 3) data quality assurance 4) data update and maintenance system. Arc GIS 10.3 and QGIS 2.14 software were employed for geo-spatial data construction. Surveillance data architecture was built upon the geo-referenced land parcel data sets. The composition data pertaining to the land use (residential, non-residential, and vacant), water bodies, roads, railways, community trails, landmarks, water, sanitation and food environment, weather and air quality, demographic characteristics were constructed in relational manner within the surveillance platform. comprehensive surveillance platform encompassing 0.2 million population residing in 51 villages over a land mass of 251.7 sq. Km having 32,662 households and 19,260 nonresidential features (cattle shed, shops, health, education, banking, religious institutions etc.) is established. The processes adopted for sub ision of villages into sectors helped in developing geo-referenced location identification system in a setting where no postal addresses or postal codes system were in place. Also the socially and economically homogeneous community clusters (78% of 676 sectors) which usually hide within the village aggregates were disclosed. Characterization and storage of variety of data sets critical for health and epidemiology and generation of new information e.g. water, sanitation and hygiene through geo-analytics were demonstrated. Settlement pattern was compact to the extent that 80% of habitation was concentrated in 9% of the total village area. Community involvement proved helpful in the ground-truthing of the data sets for ascertaining the level of positional, temporal and attribute accuracies and identification of small habitations, missing in the official records. OMAARTH experience allowed characterization and monitoring of wide range of attributes from demography, development, and environmental domains and developed geospatial inter-phase to explore and explain their dynamic relationships, associations and pathways across multiple levels i.e. in idual, household, neighborhood, and village. The methodology takes care of the common challenges faced while building information system in the developing countries. However generalizability and scalability needs to be tested in other resource constrained settings as well.
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 26-07-2018
Publisher: Hindawi Limited
Date: 2018
DOI: 10.1017/GHEG.2018.17
Abstract: Evidence exists of an increasing prevalence of chronic conditions within developed and developing nations, notably for priority population groups. The need for the collection of geospatial data to monitor the health impact of rapid social-environmental and economic changes occurring in these countries is being increasingly recognized. Rigorous accuracy assessment of such geospatial data is required to enable error estimation, and ultimately, data utility for exploring population health. This research outlines findings from a field-based evaluation exercise of the SOMAARTH DDESS geospatial-health platform. Participatory-based mixed methods have been employed within Palwal-India to capture villager perspectives on built infrastructure across 51 villages. This study, conducted in 2013, included an assessment of data element position and attribute accuracy undertaken in six villages, documenting mapping errors and land parcel changes. Descriptive analyses of 5.1% ( n = 455) of land parcels highlighted some discrepancies in position (6.4%) and attribute (4.2%) accuracy, and land parcel changes (17.4%). Furthermore, the evaluation led to a refinement of the existing geospatial health platform incorporating ground-truthed reflections from the participatory field exercise. The evaluation of geospatial data accuracies contributes to understandings on global public health surveillance systems, outlining the need to systematically consider assessment of environmental features in relation to lifestyle-related diseases.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 09-02-2017
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 05-10-2018
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 31-05-2019
Abstract: Remote Indigenous Australians experience disproportionately poor cardio-metabolic health, which is largely underpinned by adverse dietary intake related to social determinants. Little evidence exists about the community environmental-level factors that shape diet quality in this geographically isolated population group. This study aimed to explore the modifiable environmental-level factors associated with the features of dietary intake that underpin cardio-metabolic disease risk in this population group. Community-level dietary intake data were estimated from weekly store sales data collected throughout 2012 and linked with concurrent social, built, and physical environmental dimension data for 13 remote Indigenous Australian communities in the Northern Territory. Statistical analyses were performed to investigate associations. At the community level, store sales of discretionary foods were lower in communities with greater distance to a neighbouring store (r = −0.45 (p 0.05)). Sales of sugar-sweetened beverages were lower in communities with higher levels of household crowding (r = −0.55 (p 0.05)), higher levels of Indigenous unemployment (r = −0.62 (p = 0.02)), and greater distance to neighbouring stores (r = −0.61 (p = 0.004)). Modifiable environmental-level factors may be associated with adverse diet quality in remote Indigenous Australian communities and further investigations of these factors should be considered when developing policies to improve dietary intake quality in geographically isolated populations.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 15-04-2021
Abstract: The high prevalence of preventable infectious and chronic diseases in Australian Indigenous populations is a major public health concern. Existing research has rarely examined the role of built and socio-political environmental factors relating to remote Indigenous health and wellbeing. This research identified built and socio-political environmental indicators from publicly available grey literature documents locally-relevant to remote Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory (NT), Australia. Existing planning documents with evidence of community input were used to reduce the response burden on Indigenous communities. A scoping review of community-focused planning documents resulted in the identification of 1120 built and 2215 socio-political environmental indicators. Indicators were systematically classified using an Indigenous indicator classification system (IICS). Applying the IICS yielded indicators prominently featuring the “community infrastructure” domain within the built environment, and the “community capacity” domain within the socio-political environment. This research demonstrates the utility of utilizing existing planning documents and a culturally appropriate systematic classification system to consolidate environmental determinants that influence health and disease occurrence. The findings also support understanding of which features of community-level built and socio-political environments amenable to public health and social policy actions might be targeted to help reduce the prevalence of infectious and chronic diseases in Indigenous communities.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2013
DOI: 10.1016/J.HEALTHPLACE.2013.01.009
Abstract: Walkability of residential environments has been associated with more walking. Given the health benefits of walking, it is expected that people living in locations with higher measured walkability should have a lower risk of cardiometabolic diseases. This study tested the hypothesis that higher walkability was associated with a lower cardiometabolic risk (CMR) for two administrative spatial units and three road buffers. Data were from the North West Adelaide Health Study first wave of data collected between 2000 and 2003. CMR was expressed as a cumulative sum of six clinical risk markers, selected to reflect components of the metabolic syndrome. Walkability was based on an established methodology and operationalised as dwelling density, intersection density, land-use mix and retail footprint. Walkability was associated with lower CMR for the three road buffer representations of the built environment but not for the two administrative spatial units. This may indicate a limitation in the use of administrative spatial units for analyses of walkability and health outcomes.
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 04-05-2016
DOI: 10.1136/MEDETHICS-2016-103533
Abstract: This response refutes the claim made in a recent article that organs for transplantation in China will no longer be sourced from executed prisoners. We identify ongoing ethical problems due to the lack of transparent data on current numbers of transplants in China implausible and conflicting claims about voluntary donations and obfuscation about who counts as a voluntary donor. The big unanswered question in Chinese transplant ethics is the source of organs, and until there is an open and independently audited system in China, legitimate concerns remain about organ harvesting from prisoners of conscience.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2021
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 2021
DOI: 10.1017/S1463423621000402
Abstract: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander holistic health represents the interconnection of social, emotional, spiritual and cultural factors on health and well-being. Social factors (education, employment, housing, transport, food and financial security) are internationally described and recognised as the social determinants of health. The social determinants of health are estimated to contribute to 34% of the overall burden of disease experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Primary health care services currently ‘do what it takes’ to address social and emotional well-being needs, including the social determinants of health, and require culturally relevant tools and processes for implementing coordinated and holistic responses. Drawing upon a research-setting pilot program, this manuscript outlines key elements encapsulating a strengths-based approach aimed at addressing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander holistic social and emotional well-being. The Cultural Pathways Program is a response to community identified needs, designed and led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and informed by holistic views of health. The program aims to identify holistic needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the starting point to act on the social determinants of health. Facilitators implement strengths-based practice to identify social and cultural needs (e.g. cultural and community connection, food and financial security, housing, mental health, transport), engage in a goal setting process and broker connections with social and health services. An integrated culturally appropriate clinical supervision model enhances delivery of the program through reflective practice and shared decision making. These embedded approaches enable continuous review and improvement from a program and participant perspective. A developmental evaluation underpins program implementation and the proposed culturally relevant elements could be further tailored for delivery within primary health care services as part of routine care to strengthen systematic identification and response to social and emotional well-being needs.
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 22-09-2023
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2017
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2017
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 19-08-2022
DOI: 10.1071/PY22064
Abstract: Background For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, the premature burden of cardiovascular disease is affecting their capacity to fulfil roles in society, and promote the health and wellbeing of future generations. In Australia, there is limited understanding of the difference in primary preventive cardiovascular care experienced by women, despite knowledge of sex and gender differentials in health profile and receipt of guideline-based acute care. This paper sought to explore the health profile and receipt of assessment and management of cardiovascular risk for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women accessing preventive primary health care, and investigate gender differentials. Method Records of 1200 current clients, 50% women, aged 18–74 years from three Aboriginal Health Services in central and South Australia for the period 7/2018–6/2020 were reviewed. Results Twelve percent had documented cardiovascular disease. Compared with men, women with no recorded cardiovascular disease had a greater likelihood of being overweight or obese, a waist circumference indicative of risk, diabetes, and depression. Women were less likely to report being physically active. Conclusions The research concluded that gaps exist in the provision and recording of guideline-recommended primary preventive care regardless of sex. These are stark, given the evident burden.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-06-2019
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2016
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 12-12-2019
Abstract: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) poses significant challenges to in iduals and broader society, much of which is borne by disadvantaged and marginalised population groups including Indigenous people. The increasing prevalence of T2DM among Indigenous people has meant that rates of diabetes-related complications such as blindness from end-stage diabetic retinopathy (DR) continue to be important health concerns. Australia, a high-income and resource-rich country, continues to struggle to adequately respond to the health needs of its Indigenous people living with T2DM. Trends among Indigenous Australians highlight that the prevalence of DR has almost doubled over two decades, and the prevalence of diabetes-related vision impairment is consistently reported to be higher among Indigenous Australians (5.2%–26.5%) compared to non-Indigenous Australians (1.7%). While Australia has collated reliable estimates of the eye health burden owing to T2DM in its Indigenous population, there is fragmentation of existing data and limited knowledge on the underlying risk factors. Taking a systems approach that investigates the social, environmental, clinical, biological and genetic risk factors, and—importantly—integrates these data, may give valuable insights into the most important determinants contributing to the development of diabetes-related blindness. This knowledge is a crucial initial step to reducing the human and societal impacts of blindness on Indigenous Australians, other priority populations and society at large.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 22-12-2023
Location: Australia
Location: Australia
Start Date: 2019
End Date: 2023
Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council
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