News & Events
Further Grant Success - 2008
NHMRC Project Grant
Prof Janet E Hiller, Dr Adam G Elshaug, A/Pr Annette J Braunack-Mayer, A/Pr John R Moss and others
Changing policy and practice in health care
ARC – Linkage Grant
Dr P Bi; A/Prof DL Pisaniello and others
Heatwaves, population health, and emergency management in Australia - a qualitative study
RECENT TEACHING
Occupational and Environmental Health for Military Health Personnel
A two week intensive course (14-29 July) in occupational and environmental health was recently run by the Discipline of Public Health at the RAAF Base Edinburgh, as part of its involvement with the Centre for Military and Veterans' Health.
Also contributing to the course were staff from the Malaria Research Institute (Brisbane) and the Defence Centre for Occupational Health (Canberra).
Students from all over Australia participated in this event which has been held since 2004.
Dux of the course was Dr Csongor Oltvolgi.
Grant Success - 2008
Staff of the Discipline of Public Health are chief investigators on several new research grants in 2008.
ARC Linkage - A/Prof. Jon Karnon and others
http://www.adelaide.edu.au/news/news26701.html
SafeWork SA - A/Prof. Dino Pisaniello and others
http://www.safework.sa.gov.au/
Fluviews research
FluViews: Enabling effective influenza pandemic policy through engagement with the community
The FluViews project has already carried out four focus groups to ask citizens what they think about the National and State plans should we experience an influenza pandemic. Two of these were held at schools in the Adelaide area to ask young people what they think about the plans which include school closure and voluntary home quarantine. Information modules suitable for a lay audience are being developed for use in two citizens' juries in 2008. Details are here.
Please contact Dr Jackie Street for more information.
RECENT APPOINTMENTS TO COMMITTEES
Prof. C. Gericke Member, 2020 Summit
Award Success - 2007
Professor Janet Hiller and Associate Professor John Moss have received the Adelaide Research and Innovation Impact Award (ARIIA) for the greatest impact in terms of growth in contract research for 2007 .
Grant Success - 2007
Staff of the Discipline of Public Health are chief investigators on five nationally competitive grants : two NHMRC project grants, one ARC Discovery project grant and two ARC linkage grants.
Details are at
http://www.adelaide.edu.au/news/news21881.html
RECENT TEACHING
Public Health Ethics
Public Health Ethics is taught jointly by the Ethics Centre of South Australia, the Disciplines of Public Health and Philosophy at the University of Adelaide, the Department of Medical Education at Flinders University, and the School of Health Sciences at the University of South Australia.
A week-long intensive course was recently taught to students from Health Sciences at UniSA, Public Health at University of Adelaide, and staff of the SA Department of Health. The course included a open workshop on the Ethics of Research with Refugees.
Occupational and Environmental Health for Military Health Personnel
A two week intensive course (9-24 July) in occupational and environmental health was recently run by the Discipline of Public Health at the RAAF Base Edinburgh, as part of its involvement with the Centre for Military and Veterans' Health.
Also contributing to the course were staff from the Malaria Research Institute (Brisbane) and the Defence Centre for Occupational Health (Canberra).
Students from all over Australia participated in this event which has been held since 2004.
Dux of the course was Major Greg Canning.
AWARDS
Safety Institute of Australia Award
Each year the Safety Institute of Australia awards a prize for the best student completing the Graduate Diploma in OHS Management. The winner for 2006 was Peter Collins.
The SIA Medal was presented to Peter at the Annual OHS Program Dinner in February by Mr Stepen Thomas FSIA, President of the Safety Institute of Australia (SA Division).
Kerry Kirke Student Award
The Public Health Association of Australia has awarded the Kerry Kirke Stdent Award for 2006 to Public Health's PhD student, Emma Miller. The work Emma undertook for her thesis entitled "HCV infection in South Australian Prisoners: Prevalence, Transmission, Risk Factors and Prospects for Harm Reduction" was judged against the following criteria:
- Public health benefit of the student's work
- Quality of the student's work
- Originality of the student's work
- Difficulty of the student's work.
The judges were extremely impressed with the quality and scope of the work and the Executive of the PHAA warmly congratulates Emma on her award.
ERGO Best Presentation Award
Congratulations to Adam Elshaug on being the first Emerging Researcher Group for Health Services Researchers (ERGO) Best Presentation Award Winner at 2005 Conference. The Award was presented at the 2006 HSRAANZ Conference in Canberra to Adam, a PhD student from the Discipline of Public Health. Adam's presentation entitled "When clinical practices vary, best practice is only one of multiple variations: Need for a formal mechanism to monitor effectiveness" was judged the best of the presentations and posters delivered by emerging researchers at the conference.
Adam's work concerned the question: How much mainstream medical care is based on the best available scientific knowledge about what does or doesnt work? Using the example of Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA), Adam's paper reported on the results from a multi-centre project currently underway to examine the effectiveness of surgery as a treatment for OSA. Interim results demonstrate that significant limitations exist in the effectiveness of these procedures, particularly when compared to an alternate, non-surgical therapy. This demonstration of limited effectiveness has significant implications for the health outcomes of OSA positive individuals. Questions arise regarding the ability of the modern health care system to ensure currently implemented interventions produce outcomes of effectiveness (as may have been demonstrated in trials leading up to their approval and wide-spread implementation).
Young Australian of the Year
Friday, 2 December 2005
A University of Adelaide student has been announced as the Young Australian of the Year for South Australia for the third consecutive year.
PhD student and men’s health researcher James Smith, 24, was announced as the 2006 State winner of the award at a Government House ceremony earlier this morning. He will now represent South Australia at the national finals, to be awarded in Canberra on Australia Day next year. University of Adelaide medical student Matthew Hutchinson previously won the State award in 2004 and 2005.
James, who is about to start the third and final year of his PhD with theDisciplines of Public Health and Medicine, and also works part-time at the Royal Adelaide Hospital as a Health Promotion Officer, says he was delighted to receive his award.
“It came as a surprise and I’m honoured to be recognised,” he says. “I’m very appreciative of the support that the University of Adelaide as given me as a PhD candidate. I’m also thankful for the opportunity to be able to study across the two different departments of Public Health and Medicine, and for the support I’ve received from my supervisors, Dr Megan Warin and Dr Annette Braunack-Mayer, and Professor Gary Wittert.”
For his PhD, which has received financial support from the Florey Medical Research Fund, James is researching how and why men seek help from health professionals and services. This research also forms part of the large-scale Florey Adelaide Male Ageing Study led by Professor Wittert, that focuses on the health of some 1000 men from Adelaide’s northwestern suburbs.
“Basically I’m looking at why more men don’t go to the doctor,” he said. “It’s a simple question but what I’ve discovered is that the answers are much more complex.”
University of Adelaide Vice-Chancellor Professor James McWha congratulated James on his success.
“I am delighted for James and I am delighted that for the third consecutive year, a University of Adelaide student has been recognised in this way,” Professor McWha says. “James is a leading example of the type of student the University of Adelaide produces: a student who is equipped with the skills and knowledge to make a positive impact on the world around them.“
AusAID Youth Ambassador for Development
Congratulations go to Emily Steele, one of our current PhD students (and MPH graduate) who appears in the Jan 2006 edition of the AusAID magazine "focus" for her work in China as an AusAID Youth Ambassador for Development. The article can be viewed online at: AusAID magazine.
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