Dimensions of CQUni Public Health

31/08/2018

Last week I attended two fantastic days at the Australian Health Promotion Association Symposium in Canberra which has really underlined, for me, the importance of understanding the social-ecological model of health. This was reinforced through a number of the presentations: from the first day when Prof Fran Baum encouraged health promotion practitioners to became involved in all facets of life (including economics) to help clean up the mess (a reference to Bernard Keane's new book, … [ 377 more words ]

Last week I attended two fantastic days at the Australian Health Promotion Association Symposium in Canberra which has really underlined, for me, the importance of understanding the social-ecologi…

25/06/2018

Models are representations of complex concepts. Their very purpose is to simplify and cut to the core of the concept. Extraneous details are omitted to help us remember the core ideas in our applications of the model. Visual representations of models are most effective when they illustrate the core ideas and how they relate to each other in ways that inform practice or research, but they can never include all of the details or ideas inherent in the model. [ 556 more words ]

Models are representations of complex concepts. Their very purpose is to simplify and cut to the core of the concept. Extraneous details are omitted to help us remember the core ideas in our appli…

24/05/2018

It is just over 30 years since the last 'new' wave of public health arrived. Often referred to as 'health promotion', this new public health was grounded in a social-ecological model of health and sought to address health issues across a number of levels and domains: at individual through to national levels; and across personal through to environmental domains. This has opened up space to understand public health through complexity theory and complex adaptive systems thinking; to recognise the interdependence of agency and structural influences and the power of authentic collaborative partnerships. [ 336 more words ]

It is just over 30 years since the last ‘new’ wave of public health arrived. Often referred to as ‘health promotion’, this new public health was grounded in a social-ecolog…

19/12/2017

I have a rather eclectic past that straddles across two broad disciplines: history and health. In bridging these two disciplines, I have taken the more conventional route of researching and writing about the history of health: history of nursing and more recently, the history of health promotion. However, a few years ago I was introduced to the idea of 'radical history', as espoused by the late Howard Zinn. [ 381 more words ]

I have a rather eclectic past that straddles across two broad disciplines: history and health. In bridging these two disciplines, I have taken the more conventional route of researching and writin…

23/11/2017

Most of us associate children's storybooks with feelings of comfort and security. We have images of ourselves as children listening to stories our parents or grandparents read to us; or we see ourselves reading to our own children. Stories can take us to distance places and to live different lives, through the power of our imaginations. This ability of stories to help us step outside ourselves but to gain insight into ourselves has been understood for over a century. [ 398 more words ]

Most of us associate children’s storybooks with feelings of comfort and security. We have images of ourselves as children listening to stories our parents or grandparents read to us; or we …

15/11/2017

I’m writing this blog from Canberra where I’m currently attending the 2017 Australasian Sexual Health Conference. I’ve been fortunate enough to attend quite a few of these conferences as a s*xual health promotion practitioner (many years ago), and now as a researcher. I’ve presented on a number of different areas ranging from s*xually transmitted infections (STIs) in FIFO mining communities, through to the s*xual side effects of antidepressant medication. [ 602 more words ]

  I’m writing this blog from Canberra where I’m currently attending the 2017 Australasian Sexual Health Conference. I’ve been fortunate enough to attend quite a few of these conferences as a …

03/11/2017

Most of us can identify special places in our communities that are special. They could hold particular memories, such as where our children liked to play in the local park, or where a marriage took place. Unfortunately, some of these places can be damaged through events such as natural disasters. When this happens, our connections to place can also be damaged. [ 445 more words ]

Most of us can identify special places in our communities that are special. They could hold particular memories, such as where our children liked to play in the local park, or where a marriage to…

22/10/2017

Have you have got 15 minutes to spare and would like a chance to win some money. We are conducting research on social inclusion, resilience and health. For participating in our online survey you could win $500. If you complete the survey you go into the draw for prizes from giftpay.com.au which allows you to choose gift cards from major retailers, event tickets, cinemas, travel or even donations to charity. For completing the first section you will go into the draw for one of two $250 prizes, and if you complete the second part of the survey as well you will go into the draw for one of three $500 prizes. The research has full ethical approval. For more information and to participate please click the link. goo.gl/mF61YS