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Issue #80 June 2009The DEPM eNews is issued monthly, in pdf format with images. Each month's feature article on research can be accessed either through the pdf or its own link below. Please send any comments and/or items for inclusion in future issues to: depmnews@med.monash.edu.au Contents
SPHPM eNews 21 June 2009SPHPM eNews 21 June 2009 features SPHPM news for March-June 2009. Download eNews pdf (766 kb) for complete, illustrated issue, attached below.Attached Files: 090621 SPHPM enews.pdf 766 KiloBytes | Contents | Bachelor of Health Science & Honours 2010i. Bachelor of Health Science 2010 The Faculty has approved redeveloped curriculum for the Bachelor of Health Science from 2010. The BHSc is intended to graduate public health practitioners ready to work in a local or global context who are critical and creative thinkers; expert within their chosen public health pathway; culturally and ethically competent; and effective communicators. The introduction of an explicit global focus into the BHSc meets the University's aspiration to establish an international focus in all coursework programs. This global focus contributes to the Monash Directions 2025 vision of Monash as both ‘a university within the world’ and an international university. Co-development and implementation of the BHSc will occur with Monash Malaysia and Monash South Africa. These future developments aim to ensure that the multi campus, international nature of Monash University is used to the greatest academic advantage of students and staff as espoused in the Academic Plan 2006-2010. The program is a ‘new generation’ degree in that it provides flexible options for students with defined career pathways drawing on sound graduate attributes and course outcomes whilst also serving as a substantial foundation program for students enrolling in graduate entry clinical programs. BHSc graduates will be at the front-line in improving health and health delivery through future workforce roles in universities and research institutes, government departments and non-government agencies, local government, hospitals, health centres and many other kinds of health and other services, nationally and internationally. The BHSc will also prepare students who wish to go onto the BHSc (Hons) degree (see below) and further postgraduate research training at Monash University or elsewhere. In addition, the BHSc program is intended to provide a platform for collaborative education and research programs between Australia and Monash’s international campuses in Malaysia and South Africa. Queries about the BHSc to healthsocialscience@med.monash.edu.au. ii. Honours degree of Bachelor of Health Science – take your learning to the edge! A new Honours degree for the Bachelor of Health Science has been approved by the Faculty to be offered from 2010. The course has an emphasis on contemporary and global health research .Graduates will be equipped with scientific understandings requisite to undertake postgraduate studies in medicine, allied health, public health, enrol in higher research degrees, or exit as work-ready health professionals. The course will provide a stream of students for HDR and research careers. At the same time, a global health stream within the Bachelor of Medical Science Program was approved by the Faculty. This Honours degree is aligned with the Hons BHSc, and will be available, like the "traditional" BMedSc, as an intercalated year for MBBS student who have completed at least 3 years of the MBBS. These Honours programs have been developed in response to student need and to capitalise on the Faculty's growing strengths in Global Health - in Australia, Malaysia and soon to be in South Africa. The Honours degrees will comprise 12 pts of course work focussing on research issues in Global Health, and 36 pts of field/project work. It is envisaged that students will be able to undertake projects in Australia and overseas, ranging from Indigenous and Refugee Health issues, to Global Health projects and policy. The degree will be run from the Department of Health Social Science in the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, working closely with the Monash Initiative in Global Health Innovations. Prof Helen Keleher will play a lead role in the degree, along with the soon to be appointed Finkel Chair in Global Health. Queries about the BHSc Honours program to healthsocialscience@med.monash.edu.au.| Contents | Help for patients with heart disease in rural and remote Australia – the CHAT studyHelp for patients with heart disease in rural and remote Australia – the CHAT study People with heart disease living in rural and remote areas of Australia are one third less likely to die or need hospital treatment when participating in a telephone-based approach to their treatment. Prof Henry Krum of Monash University’s Centre of Cardiovascular Research and Education in Therapeutics (CCRE Therapeutics) is a Principal Investigator for a study entitled “Chronic Heart failure Assistance by Telephone” (CHAT). Previous work by CCRE Therapeutics had shown that rural and remote Australian heart patients had less access to accurate diagnostic techniques and heart specialists as well as receiving fewer life-saving therapies than their city-based counterparts. The CHAT study evaluated whether supporting them via frequent telephone contact and advice provided by trained cardiac nurses was more effective than usual care for these patients. The CHAT study demonstrated significant reductions in hospitalisation for any cause and a highly significant 35% reduction in death or hospitalisation. The results were presented for the first time on 1 June in a late-breaking session of the European Heart Failure Association meeting in Nice, France. Prof Krum said that these new data offer hope for patients who have been disadvantaged by their location in rural and remote regions of Australia. “The approach used in this disease can also be potentially applied to other chronic disease states which require ongoing care of the patient”. Monash University press release 02/06/2009 at www.monash.edu.au/news/newsline/story/1450 CHAT study web page: www.med.monash.edu.au/epidemiology/cardiores/chat.html| Contents | Victorian Public Health Training Scheme (VPHTS)The VPHTS was established in the 1990s, initially as a staff development program within the Department of Human Services (DHS). It was intended to encourage public health practitioners to deepen their understanding and skills in public health in order to build public health capacity. Early on it became a two year academic program, leading to the award of a Master of Health Science (MHSc) from La Trobe University (LTU). In 2008 there was further development when the program was put to tender. SPHPM bid on behalf of Monash University and won the tender. The VPHTS program is now coordinated by Dr Robert Hall and others. The program has been reconfigured as a Doctor of Public Health, in line with developments interstate and overseas. The program consists of a mix of coursework and research. A key part of the program is student engagement with real-world public health. To this end, they undertake research placements in public health organisations such as DHS, VicHealth and the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine. We intend to expand these placements to include organisations such as the Cancer Council, the Farmers’ Health Program and the National Heart Foundation. We currently have 10 students, 5 transferring from LTU and 5 enrolling this year. A picture gallery & brief biographies of the 2009 cohort can be viewed on the DHS website, at: http://hnb.dhs.vic.gov.au/PHB/vphtb/vphtb.nsf/HeadingPagesDisplay/Cohort+2009++?OpenDocument| Contents | Awards, Prizes, Promotions2009 Victorian Neurotrauma Initiative (VNI) Fellowships recipient Dr Alistair Nichol, Senior Lecturer, Intensive Care Medicine, ANZIC-RC, will conduct a clinical trial of early hypothermia, or lowered temperature, after traumatic brain injury to minimise further brain damage. www.vni.com.au/capacitybuilding/cid/321/parent/0/pid/6/t/capacitybuilding/title/dr-alistair-nichol Jonathon Slater, a PhD student who started in 2008 supervised by John McNeil, investigating traumatic brain injury, neurotrauma and road traffic crashes, won the best presentation prize at the Australian Society for Medical Research Conference for a conference oral presentation on road trauma 2 June 2009. It was his first conference presentation. BMW in Canberra loaned him a brand new side airbag to use in his presentation. Prof Lawrence (Lawrie) Beilin has accepted an Adjunct appointment as a Professor, in DEPM and the Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, effective 1 June 2009 to 31 December 2012 Jeph Tobing was awarded the best oral presentation from the Indonesian B Med Science Committee In May. Dr Bronwyn Fredericks (pictured right) has been awarded a 2009 Endeavour Research Fellowship from the Australian Government. The Award will allow Dr Fredericks to spend 6 months in New Zealand exploring Maori chronic disease prevention approaches and management strategies and Maori advancement in health research and education. She will have placements at the CRC for Maori Development; the University of Auckland and the Te Whare Wanaga o Awanuiarangi in Whakatane. www.endeavour.deewr.gov.au/endeavour_alumni/2009_second_round_awardholders.htm| Contents | NHMRC Capacity Building Grant TeamMonCOEH was awarded a five-year NHMRC Capacity Building Grant (2009-2013). The grant brings together four of Australia’s leading population and occupational health researchers to develop much needed national research capacity to reduce the burden of the largely hidden problem of occupational disease and to improve health and wellbeing in Australian workplaces. It is designed to develop a wide range of skills in a group of post-doctoral Team Investigators to improve the link between research, policy and practice. This program will address several of the National Health Priorities such as asthma, cancer, mental health and musculoskeletal disorders. The NHMRC Capacity Building Grant team 2009: Back row L to R: Prof Michael Abramson, Dr Donna Urquhart, Prof Malcolm Sim, Ms Tessa Keegel (VicHealth Centre for the Promotion of Mental Health & Community Wellbeing, University of Melbourne), Dr Martine Dennekamp. Front row L to R: A/Prof Tony La Montagne (VicHealth Centre for the Promotion of Mental Health & Community Wellbeing, University of Melbourne), Dr Lesley Day (MUARC - Monash University Accident Research Centre), Dr Alison Reid (School of Population Health, University of Western Australia), A/Prof Lin Fritschi (Western Australian Institute for Medical Research) Missing: Dr Tim Driscoll (University of Sydney), Dr Rosemary Nixon (Occupational Dermatology Research and Education Centre - ODREC), Prof Brian Priestly (Australian Centre for Human Health Risk Assessment - ACHHRA)| Contents | VisitorsRetired High Court Justice Michael Kirby (seated, far right) visited the Bioethics Unit group on Friday 5 June. See picture in download. In the group is Back row, L-R, Deborah Zion, Christie Fullgar, Liz Bishop, Olivia Ball; Front row seated, Bebe Loff, Bridget Pratt, Brad Crammond. Cheryl Overs, Michael Kirby.| Contents | GrantsProf Sally Green, MIHSR, is CIB on a $4.4M 5 year (2009-2013) Monash administered grant from the Victorian Neurotrauma Initiative. The grant title is “Improving Evidence-Based Care and the Outcomes of Patients with Traumatic Brain Injury Through a Program to Facilitate Knowledge Transfer and Exchange”. CIA is Prof Russell Gruen, Department of Surgery, Monash University. Prof Gruen was with the University of Melbourne at the time of writing of the press release, below, but the other details are current. Quote: “This program of research (six projects within four themes spanning a range of disciplines and settings relevant to neurotrauma) will develop and test strategies to increase the uptake of research into policy and practice, so facilitating improved outcomes for people after traumatic brain injury.” http://www.vni.com.au/research/cid/171/parent/0/pid/141/t/research/title/aprogramtofacilitateknowledgetransferandexchangeintbi| Contents | PhD newsRecently started Lal Rawal, from Nepal, is being supervised by Brian Oldenburg, IPHU.Submitted Dean McKenzie (pictured, right) has submitted his thesis, ”The development, comparison and application of brief psychological diagnostic and screening tests by statistical and machine learning methods”. He is a postdoctoral fellow. The first 2 years of the postdoc is with Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, and Centre for Adolescent Health, at the Royal Children's Hospital, in Parkville, where he is looking at the development of, and interrelationships between, symptoms of depression in adolescents and young adults. He is planning a paper on symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in Australian Gulf War veterans (MonCOEH). Dean has 3 publications relating to his PhD project, 1 in press, and 1 submitted.Passed Ms Megan Su Cheng Lim has been awarded the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. The candidate’s thesis "Sex, drugs and young people: novel research and health promotion approaches" was accepted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree by the Monash Research Graduate School Steering Committee on Tuesday 26 May 2009.Graduations & early career prospects PhD students graduating on 7 May: Tsharni Zazryn (pictured, left). Thesis topic: “Improving epidemiological surveillance in Victorian boxing.” Supervisors: Professor Peter Cameron (Pre-hospital and Emergency Trauma Group) & Associate Professor Paul McCrory (University of Melbourne). Tsharni is now a Lecturer in Department of Health Social Science here at Monash. Joanne O'Toole. Thesis topic: “Exposure assessment for recycled and alternative water use.” Supervisors - John McNeil; Karin Leder; Martha Sinclair in the Infectious Diseases Epidemiology Unit. She has applied for an early career researcher grant (inclusive of fellowship application) from ARC which if successful will commence 2010. So far, Jo has eight (8) first author publications relating to her PhD project. Pradeep Wijayaratne (MPhil). Thesis topic: “Factors affecting and change in patella cartilage volume in healthy populations” Jennifer Coghlan. Thesis topic: “Efficacy of subcromial continuous ropivacaine infusion for postoperative pain management following arthroscopic rotator cuff surgery: a randomised double-blind placebo-controlled trial.” Supervisors: Profs Rachelle Buchbinder and Andrew Forbes, DEPM. Jennifer has had four (4) first author publications relating to her PhD project. She is now working at the Melbourne Shoulder and Elbow Centre as Study Coordinator for a multi centre Phase IIb drug trial for pain management following arthroscopic shoulder surgery and co-ordinating a randomised controlled trial of different suture anchors used in first time shoulder stabilisation surgery. She is also tutoring in Foundations of Health at Monash University. By coincidence, her husband, an orthopedic surgeon with the Monash University Dept. of Surgery, is graduating as a PhD the same day. Cameron Willis (pictured, right).. Thesis topic: "Measuring quality patient outcomes: the example of trauma services". Supervisors: Peter Cameron and Just Stoelwinder. Now DEPM staff. Cameron has had three (3) publications relating to his PhD project. First publication by PhD student Zanfina Ademi: Ademi Z, Liew D, Chew D, Conner G, Shiel L, Nelson M, Soman A, Steg G, Bhatt DL, Reid C. Drug treatment and cost of cardiovascular disease in Australia. Cardiovascular Therapeutics 2009, in press. News from previous PhD studentsNews from Narges Khanjani, now in the south east of Iran at the Kerman Medical University (KMU), School of Public Health, in the Dept of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. She is an assistant professor, and has also been invited to become a member of the Dept of Environmental Health at KMU. She is working in a number of research teams on the following projects: Temperature and Mortality; Organochlorine Contamination in humans (Environmental Epidemiology topics); and qualitative studies on: Addiction in infants (opium related chemicals); Nurses' educational needs in disasters; Academic Assessments (gathering information from academics and students about how they think academics’ teaching should be evaluated and what is a fair way of doing that.) Narges has a website: http://khanjani.kmu.ac.ir and an email narges.khanjani@gmail.com, and will be delighted to hear from SPHPM friends and colleagues. | Contents | Course, conference, symposium reportsWQRA Scientific Advisory Committee On 26 May DEPM hosted the inaugural meeting of the Scientific Advisory Committee for Water Quality Research Australia (WQRA). The Committee, chaired by Professor John McNeil, has been set up to advise the WQRA Board on strategic scientific issues relating to drinking water quality, recycled water and wastewater. Other members of the Committee are Professor Don Bursill (Chair of the NHMRC Water Quality Advisory Committee), Jodieann Dawe (CEO of WQRA), Professor Ian Falconer (expert on Blue-green algae and their toxins), Mr Adam Lovell (Manager - Science and Sustainability, Water Services Association of Australia), Emeritus Professor Nancy Millis (renowned microbiologist), Mr Frans Schulting (Managing Director, Global Water Research Coalition). WQRA is a not-for-profit national research centre which was established to succeed the CRC for Water Quality and Treatment. WQRA is currently developing a research portfolio focusing on urban water issues related to public health and acceptability aspects of water supply, water recycling and aspects of wastewater management. See detail at www.wqra.com.au. The Haemostasis Registry held its annual Local Investigator's meeting 27 May in the AMREP main seminar room; 75 attendees included 30 or so participants from NSW, QLD, SA, WA, and NZ. It was a successful presentation updating Local Investigators on the Haemostasis Registry, TORC - Transfusion Research Collaborative, Time to Transfuse Project. On Friday 24 April, General Medicine (PGMU) from The Alfred convened a national seminar in conjunction with the Monash University/NHMRC Centre for Research Excellence in Patient Care (CRE-PS), the Victorian Department of Human Services, and the Internal Medicine Society of Australia and New Zealand (IMSANZ) entitled: Acute Medical Assessment Units: Improving Care and Flow for Medical Patients. This highly successful seminar, held at the RCH because of the suitability of the lecture hall, attracted a wide audience of clinicians, allied health, nurses and management including 78 doctors, 45 nurses, 17 DHS staff, 14 Business analysts, 18 Allied Health and Pharmacists, 20 Research Educators, 10 College representatives and 1 GP amongst the 210 registrants (with a waiting list of approximately 30). Over 100 of the attendees travelled from interstate for the meeting, the first of its kind in Victoria. Interstate and local speakers gave presentations on their experiences gained from the introduction of acute medical assessment units in both the UK and various states within Australia. Adequate time assigned to panel discussions allowed many views on the trials and tribulations experienced during the establishment of these units to be expressed. The meeting emphasised the importance of careful planning and evaluation of newly introduced units and the need to tailor each unit to suit local circumstances and case loads. At the conclusion of the meeting it was agreed that further work should follow to help standardise data collection and evaluation of units throughout Australia. Carolina Weller presented “Chronic venous ulcers in the elderly - How can the CONSORT statement improve healing?” at the Nursing the Future: celebrating research in nursing and midwifery symposium at Monash Clayton campus 9 June 2009. Carolina undertook a sub bandage study to inform the main study- a randomised controlled trial (RCT) that will compare the healing rates of two different types of compression bandages in people with venous ulcers. In the sub bandage study, healthy volunteers participated, including DEPM staff. The two different types of bandages are a graduated three layer straight tubular bandaging system and a standard short stretch compression bandaging system. Carolina’s research findings have recently been published in the EWMA Journal, 2009; 9(2):5-13. This article is being translated into Dutch. She also has a chapter in a recently published book (see New Publications, Book chapter section below). Pictured, left, healthy DEPM staff volunteer being bandaged by Carolina. | Contents | New publicationsThis section in the pdf download (see first item in this enews) lists publication citations in alpha order by first author. The enews notification is not a complete list as the School averages about 25 publications per month. If yours is not listed here, check the website, which is up-to-date, at www.med.monash.edu.au/epidemiology/publications/pubs2009.html | Contents | In the mediaRecently, what from SPHPM has been catching the attention of the news cycle? The main themes were:• Lap banding (gastric surgery for treating very overweight people) • Cardiovascular health • Back pain • Office fitness • Obesity and joint problems • Gambling • Cancer incidence for particular occupational groups See download for complete details. | Contents | SPHPM Short Courses in Public health and clinical researchSee download for details of forthcoming courses. In summary:Jul 6-17 Australian Certificate of Civil Aviation Medicine Dr D Newman Jul 21 – Oct 6 Perioperative Medicine Dr. Joel Symons 6-9 pm Tuesdays across 12 weeks Jul 29 Drug Epidemiology and post-marketing surveillance Dr K Ronaldson Aug 13-14 Introduction to systematic reviews of interventions Miranda Cumpston http://www.med.monash.edu.au/epidemiology/shortcrs/ | Contents | Clinical Research Postgraduate OpportunitesPlease see attached flier for Graduate Certificate,Attached Files: 20090605 PG flier.pdf 353 KiloBytes | Contents | May 2009 VSTORM newsletterDownload pdf (163 kb) for the May 2009 VSTORM (Trauma Outcomes Registry) newsletterAttached Files: VSTORM Newsletter MAY 2009.pdf 163 KiloBytes | Contents | Items for the DEPM News are due The DEPM eNews is issued monthly, in pdf format with images. Each month's feature article on research can be accessed either through the pdf or its own link below.. Please send any comments and/or items for inclusion in future issues to: depmnews@med.monash.edu.au |