Medicine & Health

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Now showing 1 - 10 of 1581
  • (2012) Richmond, Robyn; Butler, Tony; Wodak, Alex; Wilhelm, Kay; Indig, Devon
    Book
    The UNSW Prison Research Team conducted a randomised controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of a behavioural intervention for smoking cessation among prisoners. Male inmates who were current smokers were randomly assigned to placebo or active nortriptyline. All inmates received brief cognitive behavioural therapy, active patch, a prison specific stress package and referral to the Quitline. Assessments were at baseline, and at 3, 6 and 12 months following treatment.

  • (2012) Poulos, Roslyn; Hatfield, Julie; Rissel, Chris; Grzebieta, Raphael; McIntosh, Andrew S
    Journal Article
    Introduction: There are clear personal, social and environmental benefits of cycling. However, safety concerns are among the frequently cited barriers to cycling. In Australia, there are no exposure-based measures of the rates of crash or ‘near miss’ experienced by cyclists. Design and setting: A prospective cohort study over 12 months, with all data collected via web-based online data entry. Participants: Two thousand adults aged 18 years and older, living in New South Wales (Australia), who usually bicycle at least once a month, will be recruited from March to November 2011. Methods: In the 12 months following enrolment, cyclists will be surveyed on 6 occasions (weeks 8, 16, 24, 32, 40, and 48 from the week of the enrolment survey). In these survey weeks, cyclists will be asked to provide daily reports of distance travelled; time, location and duration of trips; infrastructure used; crashes, near misses and crash-related injuries. Information on crashes and injuries will also be sought for the intervening period between the last and current survey. A subsample of participants will receive bicycle trip computers to provide objective measurement of distance travelled. Discussion: This study protocol describes the prospective cohort study developed to assess near misses, crashes and injuries among cyclists by time and distance travelled and by type of infrastructure used, with recruited participants entering data remotely using the internet. We expect to be able to calculate event rate according to exposure overall and for different infrastructure types and to report in-depth information about event causation.

  • (2012) Poulos, Roslyn; Donaldson, Alex
    Journal Article
    Aim To investigate the level of translation of the Australian Rugby Union “Mayday” safety procedure into practice among community rugby union coaches in New South Wales (Australia). Methods All registered coaches of senior community rugby union teams in five zones/associations in the north eastern region of the state were invited to complete a short online questionnaire at the end of the 2010 rugby season. The questionnaire was designed around the five RE-AIM dimensions and assessed: Reach, perceived Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance of the Mayday procedure. Results Seventy (39%) coaches participated. There was a high level of awareness of the Mayday procedure, and most coaches believed it was effective in preventing injuries. The majority reported training their players in the procedure, although training was generally infrequent. Coaches were confident that their own players could implement the procedure appropriately if required to do so, but less confident that other teams or referees could do so. Barriers to providing training included: not enough players at training; players not taking training seriously; and technical difficulties (e.g. verbalisation of instructions for physical tasks). Conclusion The findings suggest that the translation of the Mayday ‘policy’ could be improved by building individual coach, and club or zone organisational capacity by: ensuring coaches have the resources and skills in ‘how’ to train their players to complement their existing knowledge on ‘what’ to train them; setting expectations that encourage coaches to provide regular training for players; and regular monitoring of player competency to perform the procedure appropriately.

  • (2012) Olivier, Jake; Walter, Scott; Grzebieta, Raphael
    Journal Article
    Since the 1991 enactment of mandatory helmet legislation (MHL) for cyclists in New South Wales (NSW), Australia, there has been extensive debate as to its effect on head injury rates at a population level. Many previous studies have focused on the impact of MHL around the time of enactment, while little has been done to examine the ongoing effects. We aimed to extend prior work by investigating long-term trends in cyclist head and arm injuries over the period 1991–2010. The counts of cyclists hospitalised with head or arm injuries were jointly modelled with log-linear regression. The simultaneous modelling of related injury mechanisms avoids the need for actual exposure data and accounts for the effects of changes in the cycling environment, cycling behaviour and general safety improvements. Models were run separately with population counts, bicycle imports, the average weekday counts of cyclists in Sydney CBD and cycling estimates from survey data as proxy exposures. Overall, arm injuries were higher than head injuries throughout the study period, consistent with previous post-MHL observations. The trends in the two injury groups also significantly diverged, such that the gap between rates increased with time. The results suggest that the initial observed benefit of MHL has been maintained over the ensuing decades. There is a notable additional safety benefit after 2006 that is associated with an increase in cycling infrastructure spending. This implies that the effect of MHL is ongoing and progress in cycling safety in NSW has and will continue to benefit from focusing on broader issues such as increasing cycling infrastructure.

  • (2012) Bunde-Birouste, Anne; Nathan, Sally; McCarroll, Brad; Kemp, Lynn; Shwe, Tun; Gran Ortega, Marcia
    Report
    Australia accepts more than 13,000 refugee and humanitarian immigrants annually and young people account for a large overall percentage of the refugee population in New South Wales (NSW). There is evidence that refugee families are highly vulnerable to social isolation in their countries of resettlement. The difficulties of refugee settlement are well documented, including the need to learn new languages, negotiate differing cultural and societal values and address past emotional trauma. Development through sport refers to the use of sporting activities to provide opportunities for personal and community development with effects that go well beyond the sphere of physical activity and [elite] player and game development. In recent years there has been an increase in programs that use sport to foster social development and engagement, however little robust research has been performed to evaluate these efforts. Football United ® was developed from a vision that people’s love for Football (soccer) can be used to build opportunities for belonging, racial harmony and community cohesion. Football United ®’s six years of operations confirms the Crawford report findings, and highlights other effects of inequity in participation: • Gaps in equity of participation in both community and public education sector sport which can contribute to general disaffection within society, including leaving school, aggressive behaviour and unemployment as examples. • Lack of opportunity to interact across cultural groups which can translate to racism and the ensuing problems it provokes. Football United ® addresses these issues basing its foundations on the premise that structural variables and social processes act at multiple levels to impact on health and social behaviour. Results of the study underline Football United ®’s positive impact on participating young people’s sense of self, and appreciation for and engagement with peers from diverse backgrounds. Learning from interviews found unanticipated connections between participating in Football United ® and learning English, positive engagement with school, and building self confidence.

  • (2012) Georgiou, Andrew; Vecellio, Elia; Toouli, George; Eigenstetter, Alex; Li, Ling; Wilson, Roger; Westbrook, Johanna
    Report
    This project aimed to assess the impact of electronic ordering systems, on the quality use of pathology services across six hospital sites and different pathology departments, for the following areas:- the legibility and completeness of laboratory test orders and the impact on Central Specimen Reception work processes (Quality of test orders). - the volume and mix of tests ordered examined by such factors as Diagnosis-related Groups (DRGs), adjusted for clinical activity where appropriate, and the prevalence of add-on and repeat testing (Effectiveness). - the timeliness of the pathology laboratory process (Turnaround time). - the impact of pathology performance (e.g., laboratory test turnaround times) on the duration of patient stay in the emergency department (Patient outcome).The project also produced a benefits realisation framework, made up of performance indicators, that can be used to guide the assessment of electronic ordering in a pathology service and to monitor what works (or doesn’t work), where, and in what circumstances. The project was funded by an Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, Quality Use of Pathology Program grant.

  • (2012) Lee, Evelyn; Holt, Martin; Mao, Limin; Wanganeen, Kym; Dinnison, Shane; Williams, Samantha; Prestage, Garrett; Zablotska, Iryna; de Wit, John
    Report
    The Adelaide Gay Community Periodic Survey is a cross-sectional survey of gay and homosexually active men recruited through a range of gay community sites in Adelaide. The project was funded by the South Australian Department of Health and implemented in collaboration with the AIDS Council of South Australia. The major aim of the survey is to provide data on sexual, drug use and testing practices related to the transmission of HIV and other sexually transmissible infections (STIs) among gay men.

  • (2012) Hull, Peter; Mao, Limin; Rossteuscher, Keiran; Prestage, Garrett; Zablotska, Iryna; de Wit, John; Holt, Martin
    Report
    The Canberra Gay Community Periodic Survey is a cross-sectional survey of gay and homosexually active men recruited from gay venues and community events. The aim of the survey is to provide data on sexual, drug use and testing practices related to the transmission of HIV and other sexually transmissible infections (STIs) among gay men.

  • (2011) Lee, Evelyn; Holt, Martin; Mao, Limin; Prestage, Garrett; Zablotska, Iryna; Spratling, Tim; Norton, Graham; Watts, Peter; de Wit, John
    Report
    The Queensland Community Periodic Survey is a cross-sectional survey of gay and homosexually active men recruited at a range of gay community sites around Queensland. The project was funded by Queensland Health. The major aim of the survey was to provide data on sexual, drug use, and testing practices related to the transmission of HIV and other sexually transmissible infections (STIs) among gay men.

  • (2012) Lee, Evelyn; Mao, Limin; McKenzie, Tex; Batrouney, Colin; West, Michael; Prestage, Garrett; Zablotska, Iryna; de Wit, John; Holt, Martin
    Report
    The Melbourne Gay Community Periodic Survey is a cross-sectional survey of gay and homosexually active men recruited at a range of gay community sites in Melbourne. The project has was funded by the Victorian Department of Health and supported by the Victorian AIDS Council and PLWHA Victoria. The major aim of the survey was to provide data on sexual, drug use and testing practices related to the transmission of HIV and other sexually transmissible infections (STIs) among gay men.