Promoting physical activity and wellbeing of rural- and regional-living girls. This research will attempt to improve the physical activity levels and the physical and mental wellbeing of girls who live in disadvantaged and isolated rural and regional areas. This will be achieved by working with the girls to find ways to improve their involvement in sport and active recreation. This information will be used to develop, implement and evaluate a year-long sport and active recreation program that ....Promoting physical activity and wellbeing of rural- and regional-living girls. This research will attempt to improve the physical activity levels and the physical and mental wellbeing of girls who live in disadvantaged and isolated rural and regional areas. This will be achieved by working with the girls to find ways to improve their involvement in sport and active recreation. This information will be used to develop, implement and evaluate a year-long sport and active recreation program that is offered in both schools and the community. The research will occur in Victoria and will involve girls in years 7-9 of secondary school. It will involve the sports of tennis and football (soccer) as well as the active recreation opportunities offered by the YMCA.Read moreRead less
A randomised trial of an intervention to maintain alcohol management practices in community sporting clubs. Despite significant investment in implementation, many public health initiatives fail to persist when program funding and resources are reduced, limiting the benefits to the community. This project will investigate the effectiveness of a web-based intervention in sustaining the impact of an alcohol management intervention in community sports clubs.
Both Smart and Healthy: Learning Communities as a Settings-based Approaches to Health Promotion. This project will use a collaborative learning model to build health promotion capacity. The project brings together two innovative approaches to develop new knowledge about how setting-based approaches to health can be implemented in future. This approach could potentially address chronic disease at a national and international level by promoting healthy communities that can effectively manage chr ....Both Smart and Healthy: Learning Communities as a Settings-based Approaches to Health Promotion. This project will use a collaborative learning model to build health promotion capacity. The project brings together two innovative approaches to develop new knowledge about how setting-based approaches to health can be implemented in future. This approach could potentially address chronic disease at a national and international level by promoting healthy communities that can effectively manage chronic disease through collaborative learning and knowledge-building. The project represents an important collaboration between a university and its community with a view to improving health capacity.Read moreRead less
E-health communication strategy and design: evaluating the influence of new media interventions on the health of patients from vulnerable populations. We must learn how to make better use of new communication technologies to assist in preventative health care, especially to help those who are most vulnerable to poor health in our society. This project will design, implement and evaluate the impact of new communication interventions that can be used to improve the overall health of Australians.
Understanding and preventing mental health difficulties in young Australian men using the Internet. Mental health is a major public health problem in Australia. Young men are particularly vulnerable to suicide, drug and alcohol problems and yet fail to seek appropriate help. The Internet is currently accessed by 85% of Australia's youth and yet very little evidence exists which examines the capacity of the Internet to engage young men and promote help seeking. This project will build an evidence ....Understanding and preventing mental health difficulties in young Australian men using the Internet. Mental health is a major public health problem in Australia. Young men are particularly vulnerable to suicide, drug and alcohol problems and yet fail to seek appropriate help. The Internet is currently accessed by 85% of Australia's youth and yet very little evidence exists which examines the capacity of the Internet to engage young men and promote help seeking. This project will build an evidence base which explores how innovative on-line strategies and social marketing can effectively promote help seeking behaviour and improve mental health outcomes for young men. Read moreRead less
Reducing alcohol misuse: The efficacy of a comprehensive accreditation intervention in community sports clubs. The prevention of alcohol misuse is increasingly recognised as a priority by State and Commonwealth governments, and the community alike. A similar increasing recognition of the role of sport in the occurrence of such misuse has resulted in a call for action in this community setting. Very limited data are available regarding effective intervention strategies in sports clubs. The propos ....Reducing alcohol misuse: The efficacy of a comprehensive accreditation intervention in community sports clubs. The prevention of alcohol misuse is increasingly recognised as a priority by State and Commonwealth governments, and the community alike. A similar increasing recognition of the role of sport in the occurrence of such misuse has resulted in a call for action in this community setting. Very limited data are available regarding effective intervention strategies in sports clubs. The proposed intervention directly addresses this knowledge deficit. In addressing the culture of excessive alcohol consumption in sports clubs, the intervention, should it be effective, has the potential to contribute to a reduction in both short and long term alcohol harms in Australia.Read moreRead less
The efficacy of a referral and physical activity program for survivors of prostate cancer. Although survival rates of prostate cancer are approximately 83 per cent with earlier detection and improved treatment modalities, prostate cancer survivors are at an increased risk of dying from co-morbidities, which may be prevented or ameliorated through participation in physical activity. This project aims to establish an effective and sustainable referral and physical activity program to improve the ....The efficacy of a referral and physical activity program for survivors of prostate cancer. Although survival rates of prostate cancer are approximately 83 per cent with earlier detection and improved treatment modalities, prostate cancer survivors are at an increased risk of dying from co-morbidities, which may be prevented or ameliorated through participation in physical activity. This project aims to establish an effective and sustainable referral and physical activity program to improve the health outcomes of prostate cancer survivors by utilising the influence of clinicians in their delivery of information to patients. This concept of a referral and physical activity program has the potential to translate across all cancer tumour streams to reduce the physiological and psychological burden associated with living with cancer.Read moreRead less
Geelong Healthy Eating and Active Play for Under Fives. Helping children achieve a healthier weight is a major national health priority. About 30% of 4 and 5 year old children are already overweight or obese. Action is urgently needed to prevent further increases yet there have been very few studies in the area. The Geelong Under-5s project in will measure the impact of a comprehensive intervention designed to reduce the prevalence of overweight and obesity by modifying day care and kindergarte ....Geelong Healthy Eating and Active Play for Under Fives. Helping children achieve a healthier weight is a major national health priority. About 30% of 4 and 5 year old children are already overweight or obese. Action is urgently needed to prevent further increases yet there have been very few studies in the area. The Geelong Under-5s project in will measure the impact of a comprehensive intervention designed to reduce the prevalence of overweight and obesity by modifying day care and kindergarten settings, by increasing the capacity of staff to teach and model healthy eating and physical activity patterns, and by educating parents at receptive moments in their child's life.Read moreRead less
Improving the physical and oral health of people with severe mental illness: using Normalisation Process Theory to support new practices. The physical health of people with severe mental illness is extremely poor, often due to inadequate attention to their health needs by health professionals in primary care and the public mental health system. This project will focus on how practices can be changed to improve the health of this population and increase their access to preventative healthcare.
Global Corporate Challenge Evaluation: The evaluation of a low-cost, low-impact physical-activity workplace intervention. Societal increases in obesity and physical inactivity have led to consideration of workplace interventions as a potential for improving health. However, long-term evaluations of such interventions are rare. Here we will evaluate the Global Corporate Challenge (GCC), which engages employees to participate in a four month pedometer-based program aimed at increasing their physic ....Global Corporate Challenge Evaluation: The evaluation of a low-cost, low-impact physical-activity workplace intervention. Societal increases in obesity and physical inactivity have led to consideration of workplace interventions as a potential for improving health. However, long-term evaluations of such interventions are rare. Here we will evaluate the Global Corporate Challenge (GCC), which engages employees to participate in a four month pedometer-based program aimed at increasing their physical activity levels. We will follow 1000 participants for two years to determine the short and long-term health benefits of the program and to provide insight into factors that may improve the success of such programs. Such findings are essential for appropriate government and industry policy decisions in this area of chronic disease prevention. Read moreRead less