Collaborative approaches to the prevention of work related injuries in railway workers. RailCorp NSW is a large employer within the NSW transport industry sector and as such has a high potential exposure to occupational injury. RailCorp has committed to the safety of its employees through its efforts towards a systematic identification of injury risk factors to create a safer workplace as well as creating a 'risk aware safety culture'. Interventions which are effective in reducing the incidenc ....Collaborative approaches to the prevention of work related injuries in railway workers. RailCorp NSW is a large employer within the NSW transport industry sector and as such has a high potential exposure to occupational injury. RailCorp has committed to the safety of its employees through its efforts towards a systematic identification of injury risk factors to create a safer workplace as well as creating a 'risk aware safety culture'. Interventions which are effective in reducing the incidence and severity of work related injuries have not only immediate benefits both in terms of human (workforce retention, job satisfaction, job performance, etc) and financial factors for RailCorp management and its employees but has wider applications to other comparable complex high risk industries.
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Sound practice: Supporting sustainable careers in orchestral musicians through Occupational Health and Safety initiatives. This project will produce new knowledge about musician health, well-being and injury prevention and management. It will establish the first injury surveillance system for musicians internationally and the first set of rigorous studies to evaluate the effectiveness of injury management interventions for orchestral musicians. We will establish musician-specific assessment prot ....Sound practice: Supporting sustainable careers in orchestral musicians through Occupational Health and Safety initiatives. This project will produce new knowledge about musician health, well-being and injury prevention and management. It will establish the first injury surveillance system for musicians internationally and the first set of rigorous studies to evaluate the effectiveness of injury management interventions for orchestral musicians. We will establish musician-specific assessment protocols, practices and interventions leading to effective OHS policies, thus enabling global improvement in OHS in the music industry, preventing economic and personal loss from premature career termination due to injury, and assisting, through mentoring, the new generation of young orchestral musicians.Read moreRead less
Participation following traumatic brain injury in rural, regional and remote areas. The results of this project will lead to improved rehabilitation programs and better outcomes for people with brain injury, especially in regional, rural and remote areas, by targeting the ultimate goal more directly: participation - getting people back into their home, work and community roles. Participation is associated with improved social networks, wellbeing, independence and quality of life, so health care ....Participation following traumatic brain injury in rural, regional and remote areas. The results of this project will lead to improved rehabilitation programs and better outcomes for people with brain injury, especially in regional, rural and remote areas, by targeting the ultimate goal more directly: participation - getting people back into their home, work and community roles. Participation is associated with improved social networks, wellbeing, independence and quality of life, so health care burdens and costs are reduced, and people can lead more productive lives. The project's emphasis on country areas will benefit rural health care, and also help specialist metropolitan brain injury services to understand the specific rehabilitation issues facing people from the bush.Read moreRead less
Children with speech impairment: A population study of prevalence, severity, impact and service provision. Compared to the general community, adults who had a speech impairment as a child typically achieve lower levels of education, have greater literacy problems, experience significant social problems and discrimination, and have decreased occupational opportunities. The social and economic cost of untreated speech impairment for individuals, schools and society is large. This landmark study wi ....Children with speech impairment: A population study of prevalence, severity, impact and service provision. Compared to the general community, adults who had a speech impairment as a child typically achieve lower levels of education, have greater literacy problems, experience significant social problems and discrimination, and have decreased occupational opportunities. The social and economic cost of untreated speech impairment for individuals, schools and society is large. This landmark study will identify strengths and limitations in the health and education sectors regarding appropriate and holistic services for children with speech impairment combining identified prevalence, severity and impact data.Read moreRead less
Enhancing the independence of the severely disabled: Improving the detection rates of an EEG based brain computer interface (BCI). Severe disability costs the Australian economy and society billions of dollars each year and the population of severely disabled is steadily increasing. Also, disability results in impairments that can traumatically alter a person's life. The outcomes of this project will result in substantial national benefits by (i) optimising technology that will greatly improve t ....Enhancing the independence of the severely disabled: Improving the detection rates of an EEG based brain computer interface (BCI). Severe disability costs the Australian economy and society billions of dollars each year and the population of severely disabled is steadily increasing. Also, disability results in impairments that can traumatically alter a person's life. The outcomes of this project will result in substantial national benefits by (i) optimising technology that will greatly improve the life of the disabled by enhancing their ability to control their environment, (ii) situating Australia in the forefront of disability technology research and development, and (iii) enhancing the development of knowledge in research training students in the biomedical area. Read moreRead less
Enhancing employee safety in response to workplace violence. International and national trends indicate that workplace violence is a significant growing problem. Poorly managed, victims can suffer physical and psychological trauma, and employers risk increases in workers compensation claims, insurance premiums, employee turnover, sick leave and low morale. There is a dearth of research into the effectiveness of training employees to predict, control and defuse aggressive incidents, yet this is a ....Enhancing employee safety in response to workplace violence. International and national trends indicate that workplace violence is a significant growing problem. Poorly managed, victims can suffer physical and psychological trauma, and employers risk increases in workers compensation claims, insurance premiums, employee turnover, sick leave and low morale. There is a dearth of research into the effectiveness of training employees to predict, control and defuse aggressive incidents, yet this is a significant priority for many industries. This project will develop and evaluate a new best practice aggression minimisation training program with 200 mental health employees by an RCT assessing gains in safety, knowledge, skills and confidence in managing violence.Read moreRead less
Influence of an innovative shoe design on lower limb joint loading during walking. This project will provide new knowledge about the effects of shoe design features on lower limb loading and the influence of obesity and knee condition on the shoe-mediated biomechanical effects. This will be of relevance to researchers and clinicians. It is also likely to contribute to a marketable commercial product, a shoe designed to reduce knee loading. This shoe has the potential to contribute to reducing th ....Influence of an innovative shoe design on lower limb joint loading during walking. This project will provide new knowledge about the effects of shoe design features on lower limb loading and the influence of obesity and knee condition on the shoe-mediated biomechanical effects. This will be of relevance to researchers and clinicians. It is also likely to contribute to a marketable commercial product, a shoe designed to reduce knee loading. This shoe has the potential to contribute to reducing the societal and personal burden of knee osteoarthritis, one of the most prevalent and costly chronic conditions in the developed world. Read moreRead less
Speaking my language: International speech acquisition in Australia. It is important to differentiate between children who have communication impairment (difficulty learning all languages) from those who only have difficulty learning subsequent language(s). Communication impairment in multilingual children is both undiagnosed and over-diagnosed due to lack of culturally-sensitive measurement tools. Early intervention can ameliorate communication impairment in children and can reduce subsequent e ....Speaking my language: International speech acquisition in Australia. It is important to differentiate between children who have communication impairment (difficulty learning all languages) from those who only have difficulty learning subsequent language(s). Communication impairment in multilingual children is both undiagnosed and over-diagnosed due to lack of culturally-sensitive measurement tools. Early intervention can ameliorate communication impairment in children and can reduce subsequent educational, social and occupational outcomes of untreated communication impairment. By working with people around the world, this Fellowship will result in the development of the International Speech Assessment designed to differentially identify children and to specify holistic early intervention goals.Read moreRead less
A hands-free assistive control system for the severely disabled capable of operating under stressful and fatiguing conditions. The impact of severe disability like tetraplegia in daily living is substantial. Strategies are needed to improve their quality of life. One approach is to enhance their independence by providing 'hands free' control over their environment. However, few scientific studies have examined the efficacy of such technology. The aim of this research is to study the brain activi ....A hands-free assistive control system for the severely disabled capable of operating under stressful and fatiguing conditions. The impact of severe disability like tetraplegia in daily living is substantial. Strategies are needed to improve their quality of life. One approach is to enhance their independence by providing 'hands free' control over their environment. However, few scientific studies have examined the efficacy of such technology. The aim of this research is to study the brain activity of users of our "hands free" technology when they are operating under stressful and fatiguing conditions. The study should provide valuable data that will allow us to improve the efficacy of our existing brain signal based system (Mind Switch Assistive System). Read moreRead less
Caring for the carers: occupational health and safety in homecare. Homecare workers care for vulnerable clients but their own vulnerability to health and safety risks is seldom examined. Pilot research revealed unrecognised hazards arising from the isolated and fragmented nature of the work. This project will systematically identify hazards and develop interventions to promote healthier and safer homecare work.