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Cultivating Transdisciplinary and Transnational Imaginations: Art, Nature, and Education in Study Tours to Finland
No full textThis 60-minute workshop explores how international study tours can foster transdisciplinary and transnational ways of thinking in undergraduate students. Drawing on recent experiences with students from education, visual communication, architecture, creative writing, and industrial design programs, we examine how immersive, project-based learning in Finland enabled students to expand their disciplinary boundaries and develop new modes of creative inquiry. In collaboration with key cultural and educational institutions—including the Kuopio Art Museum (2024), the Jyväskylä Art Museum (2025), the University of Applied Sciences in Kuopio, and the University of Jyväskylä—we co-designed learning experiences that integrated local landscapes, artistic practices, and academic dialogue. These partnerships allowed students to engage with the unique sociocultural and environmental context of Finland, reflecting on the intersections of art, nature, and pedagogy. Through site-specific projects, students navigated complex global and local issues while working across disciplines and national perspectives. This workshop will share pedagogical strategies, challenges, and insights from these tours, inviting discussion on how educators might meaningfully embed transdisciplinary and transnational learning in experiential education. <br/
Outcomes of pharmacist interventions as part of EAHOP – Enhancing allied health for older people in residential care
No full textThe EAHOP trial (Enhancing Allied Health for Older People in Residential Care) Outcomes of pharmacist interventions. Background The pharmacist has a critical role in the multidisciplinary team (MDT) when contributing to the care of older people living in residential aged care. The EAHOP study is a clinical trial that embedded a pharmacist within an MDT in a residential aged care home. This abstract reports on the pharmacy results of the study. Method This study used a mixed method to describe key pharmacy outcome measures of direct and indirect time per resident, number of recommendations accepted and to describe the thoughts, opinions and experience of key stakeholders. Results There were 124 recommendations made by the pharmacist for 34 residents, an average of 3.65 per resident, higher than the usual 2.7 recommendations per RMMR. At the GP case conferences 70 % were accepted, 9 % were declined and 21 % were not discussed. An average of 61 min direct time and 246 min of indirect time was spent per resident. Qualitative findings showed the pharmacy role improved care for residents by enhancing communication between health professionals, staff, residents and families. Conclusion The EAHOP model can supplement existing models of pharmacy intervention in residential care by providing organised multidisciplinary collaboration between the General Practitioner, nursing, pharmacist and allied health disciplines.</p
Examining Technology Perspectives of Older Adults With Mild Cognitive Impairment: Scoping Review
No full textBackground: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) affects up to 20% of people older than the age of 65 years. The global incidence of MCI is increasing, and technology is being explored for early intervention. Theories of technology adoption predict that useful and easy-to-use solutions will have higher rates of adoption; however, these models do not specifically consider older adults with cognitive impairments or the unique human-computer interaction challenges posed by MCI. There are gaps in understanding the combined impacts of aging and cognitive impairment on factors affecting technology adoption for older adults with MCI, and it is not clear how MCI impacts human-computer interaction and device and interaction modality preferences in this population. Objective: This study aimed to collate perspectives from older adults with MCI about technology solutions proposed for them, to understand whether solutions are perceived as useful, easy to use, and what changes are suggested. It also identifies which devices and interaction modalities are preferred, and other factors that may affect usage and adoption. Methods: This scoping review was completed according to the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews) guidelines. A consistent search was performed across 9 electronic databases (ACM Digital Library, EBSCOhost CINAHL Plus with Full Text, EBSCOhost Computers and Applied Sciences Complete, Google Scholar, JMIR Publications, IEEE Xplore, EBSCOhost MEDLINE, Scopus, and Web of Science Core Collection) for studies published between January 1, 2014, and May 1, 2024. Extracted data were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. Results: We identified 4271 studies, and after the removal of duplicates and screening, 83 studies were included for data extraction. Inductive thematic analysis of feedback from older adults with MCI about technology solutions proposed for them identified five themes: (1) purpose and need, (2) solution design and ease of use, (3) self-impression, (4) lifestyle, and (5) interaction modality. Solutions were perceived as useful, even though gaps in functional support exist; however, they were not perceived as entirely easy to use due to issues related to usability and user experience. Devices that are lightweight, portable, familiar, and have large screens are preferred, as is multimodal interaction—particularly speech, visual or text, and touch. Conclusions: Using technology can create feelings that positively or negatively affect a user’s comfort, confidence, and overall well-being. Older adults with MCI value independence and autonomy, and solution designs should support these. Usefulness, ease of use, security, privacy, cost, physical comfort, and convenience are important considerations for technology use. Reliable technology creates trust, confidence, and feelings of empowerment. This review recommends future work to (1) improve usability and user experience, (2) enhance personalization, (3) better understand interaction preferences and effectiveness, (4) enable options for multimodal interaction, and (5) more seamlessly integrate solutions into users’ lifestyles.</p
“And we feel success” – Participant reflections of a multi-component group reablement program for people with dementia and their care partners
No full textBackground Australia's National Dementia Action Plan 2024-2034 highlights the challenging post-diagnostic journey often faced by people with dementia and care partners. A novel multidisciplinary, multicomponent program was designed to address this gap as an outpatient clinic at a rehabilitation hospital. The ?SPICE Program? (Sustainable Personalised Interventions for Cognition, Care, and Engagement) is delivered in small groups and individual appointments by allied health professionals over twelve-weeks. Program components include Cognitive Stimulation Therapy, the Care Of People with Dementia (COPE?) Program, care partner education, exercise and dietetics. This study presents analysis of the experiences and perspectives of participants who completed SPICE during 2022-2024. Method Semi-structured interviews were audio-recorded after program completion. Transcripts were grouped and underwent content analysis by four researchers to identify codes and themes driven from a line of enquiry that prompted for self-reported changes and program feedback. Result Participants for each of the first ten SPICE Programs included up to seven people with dementia (n = 60, M=79yrs; 42% female) and their care partners (n = 58; M=75yrs; 67%female) living in the community. People with dementia shared themes of SPICE being ?stimulating and useful? with social ?connections?, ?enjoyment? and increased ?confidence? through new friendships with peers and staff. Care partners reported positive changes in their loved one with similar themes of ?connection?, ?enjoyment?, ?being understood?, as well as enhancements in physical and social capacity. Self-reflection by care partners involved themes of ?belonging?, ?sharing and learning together', increased ?understanding? and caring ?breakthroughs?. Conclusion Self-reported and proxy-reflections on the SPICE program highlight the positive experiences and wellbeing impacts for a majority of participants. The group context offered important opportunities for social connection for participants, acting as a catalyst that enhanced potential benefits in other domains of well-being. Findings extend the evidence for wider availability of early post-diagnostic care in Australia with further research needed to develop implementation guidelines for comparable programs
Psychologists’ Perspectives on Behavioral Versus Attachment- and Emotion-Focused Parenting Interventions
No full textAttachment- and emotion-focused parenting interventions (AE) and behavioral parenting training (BPT) are evidence-based approaches for reducing child mental health problems and have been widely disseminated across many countries. Notwithstanding this, popular media suggests a potential implementation drift from BPT, though there is a lack of empirical research supporting this claim. Given that providers are often gatekeepers to the quality and types of programs available to parents, this study aimed to provide an updated account of psychologists’ perspectives and attitudes regarding AE and BPT. Twenty-four psychologists, with various levels of training in parenting interventions, participated in semi-structured interviews. Interviews explored psychologists’ use and acceptability of AE and BPT for treating child mental health problems, including potential factors that may influence their acceptability. Through reflexive thematic analysis, we identified six main themes influencing psychologists’ implementation of parenting interventions. These included their professional training; affective experiences; values of safety and parent–child connection; societal parenting trends; beliefs about research and treatment tailoring; and systemic barriers. These findings provide a contemporary understanding on psychologists’ perceptions of AE and BPT. Although participants described an awareness of a perceived polarization between AE and BPT amongst psychologists in practice, many participants did not personally hold this view. Our results highlight the importance of considering provider-level factors—such as attitudes, affective experiences, and values—in future research and training on parenting interventions.</p
Integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) With Workforce Solutions for Sustainable Care:A Follow Up to Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (ML) Based Decision Support Systems in Mental Health
No full textThis integrative literature review examines the evolving role of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) based clinical decision support systems (CDSS) in mental health (MH) care, expanding on findings from a prior review (Higgins et al. 2023). Using and integrative review framework, a systematic search of six databases was conducted with a focus on primary research published between 2022 and 2024. Five studies met the inclusion criteria and were analysed for key themes, methodologies, and findings. The results reaffirm AI's potential to enhance MH care delivery by improving diagnostic accuracy, alleviating clinician workloads, and addressing missed care. New evidence highlights the importance of clinician trust, system transparency, and ethical concerns, including algorithmic bias and equity, particularly for vulnerable populations. Advancements in AI model complexity, such as multimodal learning systems, demonstrate improved predictive capacity but underscore the ongoing challenge of balancing interpretability with innovation. Workforce challenges, including clinician burnout and staffing shortages, persist as fundamental barriers that AI alone cannot resolve. The review not only confirms the findings from the first review but also adds new layers of complexity and understanding to the discourse on AI-based CDSS in MH care. While AI-driven CDSS holds significant promise for optimising MH care, sustainable improvements require the integration of AI solutions with systemic workforce enhancements. Future research should prioritise large-scale, longitudinal studies to ensure equitable, transparent, and effective implementation of AI in diverse clinical contexts. A balanced approach addressing both technological and workforce challenges remain critical for advancing mental health care delivery.</p
Conceptualising Technology Threat Avoidance Theory (TTAT) to Examine Cognitive Risks of Generative AI in Higher Education
No full textThis research-in-progress presents a conceptual framework examining how students perceive and respond to cognitive risks from Generative AI (GenAI) use in higher education (HE), where undergraduate usage reached 92% by 225. The study adapts Technology Threat Avoidance Theory (TTAT) beyond traditional IT security threats to understand risks from beneficial technologies that threaten students' intellectual development through cognitive offloading and reduced critical thinking. The proposed framework extends TTAT by incorporating demographic and experiential factors as antecedents to the threat perception and coping appraisal and including expected institutional measures as outcomes. A quantitative survey will test hypotheses exploring relationships between antecedents, threat perception, coping appraisal, and student behavioural responses. This study addresses critical knowledge gaps in student perceptions of GenAI cognitive risks in HE, contributing to understanding the dark side of AI in education and offering theoretical advances and practical contributions for developing student-centred policies and differentiated interventions
Estimating the longitudinal association between pain characteristics and clinical outcomes in young people with mental ill-health
No full textBackground. Mental ill-health has a major impact on young people, with pain often co-occurring. We estimated the prevalence and impact of pain in young people with mental ill-health. Methods. Longitudinal data (baseline and three-month follow-up) of 1,107 Australian young people (aged 12–25 years) attending one of five youth mental health services. Multi-level linear mixed models estimated associations between pain characteristics (frequency, intensity, and limitations) and outcomes with false discovery rate (FDR) adjustment. Pain characteristics were baseline-centered to estimate if the baseline score (between-participant effect) and/or change from baseline (within-participant effect) was associated with outcomes. Results. At baseline, 16% reported serious pain more than 3 days, 51% reported at least moderate pain, and 25% reported pain-related activity limitations in the last week. Between participants, higher serious pain frequency was associated with greater anxiety symptoms (β[95%CI]: 0.90 [0.45, 1.35], FDR-p=0.001), higher pain intensity was associated with greater symptoms of depression (1.50 [0.71, 2.28], FDR-p=0.001), anxiety (1.22 [0.56, 1.89], FDR-p=0.002), and suicidal ideation (3.47 [0.98, 5.96], FDR-p=0.020), and higher pain limitations were associated with greater depressive symptoms (1.13 [0.63, 1.63], FDR-p<0.001). Within participants, increases in pain intensity were associated with increases in tobacco use risk (1.09 [0.48, 1.70], FDR-p=0.002), and increases in pain limitations were associated with increases in depressive symptoms (0.99 [0.54, 1.43], FDR-p<0.001) and decreases in social and occupational functioning (1.08 [1.78, 0.38], FDR-p=0.009). Conclusions. One-in-two young people seeking support for mental ill-health report pain. Youth mental health services should consider integrating pain management.</p
Overshadowed voices in media reporting on truth-telling commissions
Get PDFOver the past decades, truth-telling commissions aimed at uncovering, confronting and providing justice for the past treatment of children have been established in many countries, including the Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse (RCIRCSA 2013-2017) and the Norwegian Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) (2018-2023). Journalism plays important roles both in triggering commissions of inquiry and in attracting public attention to their work and findings. This paper investigates media reporting on the RCIRCSA and the TRC. The Commissions were not similar in scale, scope or legal powers, however, they both generated spaces for public listening to stories about the consequences of past policies and present practices of child removal, abuse and racism that potentially could change the grand narratives of each nation. Our findings suggest that future commissions should pay particular attention to the structural power of news logics and mediation. We find, despite the widely different cases, consistent patterns of uneven and hierarchical media reporting and overshadowing of First Nations voices and aspirations.</p
A new exceptionally preserved sawfly fossil (Hymenoptera: Pergidae) and an evaluation of its utility for divergence time estimation and biogeography
No full textWe report the discovery of the first fossil of an Australian species of Pergidae, Baladi warru gen. et sp. n., found at McGraths Flat, a newly discovered Miocene Konservat-Lagerstätte in central New South Wales. Using morphological data from the well-preserved fossil, along with a previously published molecular dataset of 59 taxa and a newly generated molecular dataset for 8 taxa, we constructed a data matrix and generated the first chronogram for Pergidae that incorporates internal calibration points. Our data reveal that Baladi warru belongs to the subfamily Perginae and is closely related to the Australian genera Cerealces and Xyloperga (tribe Cerealcini). According to our analysis, the origin of Pergidae appears slightly younger than previously hypothesised; however, additional calibration points are needed for a more detailed age constraint. Furthermore, ancestral character reconstruction indicates four independent adaptations to toxic Myrtaceae as host plants, while biogeographic analyses suggest that sympatry followed by founder events were the primary processes shaping the current disjunct distribution of pergids. Two significant founder events correspond with transitions to utilising Myrtaceae as host plants. With the approval of the Mudgee Local Aboriginal Land Council, Wiradjuri words were used to name the newly described species. ‘Baladi’ means ‘saw’ and ‘warru’ means ‘wasp’. This name honours the Traditional Owners of the lands on which the fossil was collected