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This paper summarises results from an evaluation of the adequacy and utility of the Australian Competency Standards for Entry-Level Occupational Therapists © (OT AUSTRALIA, 1994a). It comprised a two-part study, incorporating an online survey of key national stakeholders (n = 26), and 13 focus groups (n = 152) conducted throughout Australia with occupational therapy clinicians, academics, OT AUSTRALIA association and Occupational Therapy Registration Board representatives, as well as university program accreditors. The key recommendations were that: (i) urgent revision to reflect contemporary practice, paradigms, approaches and frameworks is required; (ii) the standards should exemplify basic competence at graduation (not within two years following); (iii) a revision cycle of five years is required; (iv) the Australian Qualifications Framework should be retained, preceded by an introduction describing the scope and nature of occupational therapy practice in the national context; (v) access to the standards should be free and unrestricted to occupational therapists, students and the public via the OT AUSTRALIA (national) website; (vi) the standards should incorporate a succinct executive summary and additional tools or templates formatted to enable occupational therapists to develop professional portfolios and create working documents specific to their workplace; and (vii) language must accommodate contextual variation while striking an appropriate balance between providing instruction and encouraging innovation in practice.
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This chapter describes physical and environmental determinants of the health of Australians, providing a background to the development of successful public health activity. Health determinants are the biomedical, genetic, behavioural, socio-economic and environmental factors that impact on health and wellbeing. These determinants can be influenced by interventions and by resources and systems (AIHW 2006). Many factors combine to affect the health of individuals and communities. People’s circumstances and the environment determine whether the population is healthy or not. Factors such as where people live, the state of their environment, genetics, their education level and income, and their relationships with friends and family, all are likely to impact on their health. The determinants of population health reflect the context of people’s lives; however, people are very unlikely to be able to control many of these determinants (WHO 2007). This chapter and Chapter 6 illustrate how various determinants can relate to, and influence other determinants, as well as health and wellbeing. We believe it is particularly important to provide an understanding of determinants and their relationship to health and illness in order to provide a structure in which a broader conceptualisation of health can be placed. Determinants of health do not exist in isolation from one another. More frequently they work together in a complex system. What is clear to anyone who works in public health is that many factors impact on the health and wellbeing of people. For example, in the next chapter we discuss factors such as living and working conditions, social support, ethnicity and class, income, housing, work stress and the impact of education on the length and quality of people’s lives. In 1974, the influential ‘Lalonde Report’ (Lalonde 1974) described key factors that impact on health status. These factors included lifestyle, environment, human biology and health services. Taking a population health approach builds on the Lalonde Report, and recognises that a range of factors, such as living and working conditions and the distribution of wealth in society, interact to determine the health status of a population. Tackling health determinants has great potential to reduce the burden of disease and promote the health of the general population. In summary, we understand very clearly now that health is determined by the complex interactions between individual characteristics, social and economic factors and physical environments; the entire range of factors that impact on health must be addressed if we are to make significant gains in population health, and focussing interventions on the health of the population or significant sub-populations can achieve important health gains. In 2007, the Australian Government included in the list of National Health Priority Areas the following health issues: cancer control, injury prevention and control, cardiovascular health, diabetes mellitus, mental health, asthma, and arthritis and musculoskeletal conditions. The National Health Priority Areas set the agenda for the Commonwealth, States and Territories, Local Governments and not-for-profit organisations to place attention on those areas considered to be the major foci for action. Many of these health issues are discussed in this chapter and the following chapter.
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Globally, the main contributors to morbidity and mortality are chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Chronic diseases are costly and partially avoidable, with around sixty percent of deaths and nearly fifty percent of the global disease burden attributable to these conditions. By 2020, chronic illnesses will likely be the leading cause of disability worldwide. Existing health care systems, both national and international, that focus on acute episodic health conditions, cannot address the worldwide transition to chronic illness; nor are they appropriate for the ongoing care and management of those already afflicted with chronic diseases. International and Australian strategic planning documents articulate similar elements to manage chronic disease; including the need for aligning sectoral policies for health, forming partnerships and engaging communities in decision-making. The Australian National Chronic Disease Strategy focuses on four core areas for managing chronic disease; prevention across the continuum, early detection and treatment, integrated and coordinated care, and self-management. Such a comprehensive approach incorporates the entire population continuum, from the ‘healthy’, to those with risk factors, through to people suffering from chronic conditions and their sequelae. This chapter examines comprehensive approach to the prevention, management and care of the population with non-communicable, chronic diseases and communicable diseases. It analyses models of care in the context of need, service delivery options and the potential to prevent or manage early intervention for chronic and communicable diseases. Approaches to chronic diseases require integrated approaches that incorporate interventions targeted at both individuals and populations, and emphasise the shared risk factors of different conditions. Communicable diseases are a common and significant contributor to ill health throughout the world. In many countries, this impact has been minimised by the combined efforts of preventative health measures and improved treatment of infectious diseases. However in underdeveloped nations, communicable diseases continue to contribute significantly to the burden of disease. The aim of this chapter is to outline the impact that chronic and communicable diseases have on the health of the community, the public health strategies that are used to reduce the burden of those diseases and the old and emerging risks to public health from infectious diseases.
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To promote and support informed discussion, we look here at the experiences of some services in the national trial of the draft Early Years Learning Framework, and the more recent trial of the supporting draft Educator's Guide. Reflecting on these experiences, the paper offers some examples of how a service can 'get started' with the EYLF.
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The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Health Strategy was launched at the Australian Women’s Health Network (AWHN) National Conference in Hobart on the 19 May 2010. It is important to note that this Strategy does not replace other national or State and Territory documents which identify priorities and needs. The aim is to supplement existing work and contribute to the new National Women's Health Policy (NWHP) being developed. This article will outline the process of the Strategy’s development and its uses for the future.
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Home-based palliative care services are facing increasing challenges in servicing the needs of clients who live alone and without a primary caregiver. The findings from the analysis of 721 services’ records from three Australian states, and feedback from health professionals in interviews and postal surveys, demonstrated that there were aspects of being on one’s own with a terminal illness and living at home that require a specialised approach and support. This study explored the issues of palliative care patients living alone, from a service provider perspective, and provided evidence-based information to assist with service planning. The study made recommendations to the Australian Department of Health and Ageing about services considered important in developing support structures for this growing population.
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Radio Program. Talkin with Tiga Bayles, 98.9 AM National Indigenous Radio Service (NIRS), 9.00-10.00am, Wednesday 21 July 2010. (1 hour program).----- Bronwyn Fredericks discssed the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Health Strategy was launched at the Australian Women’s Health Network (AWHN) National Conference in Hobart on the 19 May 2010. Within this radio interview the background of the Strategy is discussed, funding, who did the consultations and the writing. In the interview Bronwyn Fredericks outlines the process of the Strategy’s development and its uses for the future.----- It is important to note that this Strategy does not replace other national or State and Territory documents which identify priorities and needs. The aim is to supplement existing work.
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How does a digitally mediated environment work towards the ongoing support of the Hip Hop landscape present in the work of Jonzi D productions UK National Tour of "Markus the Sadist"
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This article reports the details of a research on novel design in the field of semitrailer sector and discuss design by hazard prevention techniques. The novel design made addresses occupational health and safety (OHS)concerns of fall from heights. The research includes a detailed survey of national data sources to examine the fatalities caused due to fall from heights in car carriers. The study investigates OHS recommendations in Australia for semitrailer sector. Often injuries are caused due to drivers working above the 1.5 meter height for loading, unloading of the cars, moving the decks up, down, strapping the cars, and slipperly. The new design is developed using latest computer aided design and engineeing (CAD, CAE), product data management (PDM), virtual design process (VDP). The new car carrier design excels in reducing the risks of injuries to drivers and new bench mark for OHS standards. The new design has all the decks operated with hydraulics and uses unique ratchet lock mechanism (fool proof design) and loading happens at a safe working height (below 1.5 meter). All the cars are strapped on the safe working height, and then car desks operated hydraulically to transfer them to the required position. This also includes the car on the prime mover, which shuttles across from one deck to other using hydraulic and rack-pinion mechanisms. The novel design car carrier solves the problem of falls from height: next step would be to transfer this technology across other similar effected sectors.
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In this chapter, we are particularly concerned with making visible the general principles underlying the transmission of Social Studies curriculum knowledge, and considering it in light of a high-stakes mandated national assessment task. Specifically, we draw on Bernstein’s theoretical concept of pedagogic models as a tool for analysing orientations to teaching and learning. We introduce a case in point from the Australian context: one state Social Studies curriculum vis-a-vis one part of the Year Three national assessment measure for reading. We use our findings to consider the implications for the disciplinary knowledge of Social Studies in the communities in which we are undertaking our respective Australian Research Council Linkage project work (Glasswell et al.; Woods et al.). We propose that Social Studies disciplinary knowledge is being constituted, in part, through power struggles between different agencies responsible for the production and relay of official forms of state curriculum and national literacy assessment. This is particularly the case when assessment instruments are used to compare and contrast school results in highly visible web based league tables (see, for example, http://myschoolaustralia.ning.com/).
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Aims: To develop clinical protocols for acquiring PET images, performing CT-PET registration and tumour volume definition based on the PET image data, for radiotherapy for lung cancer patients and then to test these protocols with respect to levels of accuracy and reproducibility. Method: A phantom-based quality assurance study of the processes associated with using registered CT and PET scans for tumour volume definition was conducted to: (1) investigate image acquisition and manipulation techniques for registering and contouring CT and PET images in a radiotherapy treatment planning system, and (2) determine technology-based errors in the registration and contouring processes. The outcomes of the phantom image based quality assurance study were used to determine clinical protocols. Protocols were developed for (1) acquiring patient PET image data for incorporation into the 3DCRT process, particularly for ensuring that the patient is positioned in their treatment position; (2) CT-PET image registration techniques and (3) GTV definition using the PET image data. The developed clinical protocols were tested using retrospective clinical trials to assess levels of inter-user variability which may be attributed to the use of these protocols. A Siemens Somatom Open Sensation 20 slice CT scanner and a Philips Allegro stand-alone PET scanner were used to acquire the images for this research. The Philips Pinnacle3 treatment planning system was used to perform the image registration and contouring of the CT and PET images. Results: Both the attenuation-corrected and transmission images obtained from standard whole-body PET staging clinical scanning protocols were acquired and imported into the treatment planning system for the phantom-based quality assurance study. Protocols for manipulating the PET images in the treatment planning system, particularly for quantifying uptake in volumes of interest and window levels for accurate geometric visualisation were determined. The automatic registration algorithms were found to have sub-voxel levels of accuracy, with transmission scan-based CT-PET registration more accurate than emission scan-based registration of the phantom images. Respiration induced image artifacts were not found to influence registration accuracy while inadequate pre-registration over-lap of the CT and PET images was found to result in large registration errors. A threshold value based on a percentage of the maximum uptake within a volume of interest was found to accurately contour the different features of the phantom despite the lower spatial resolution of the PET images. Appropriate selection of the threshold value is dependant on target-to-background ratios and the presence of respiratory motion. The results from the phantom-based study were used to design, implement and test clinical CT-PET fusion protocols. The patient PET image acquisition protocols enabled patients to be successfully identified and positioned in their radiotherapy treatment position during the acquisition of their whole-body PET staging scan. While automatic registration techniques were found to reduce inter-user variation compared to manual techniques, there was no significant difference in the registration outcomes for transmission or emission scan-based registration of the patient images, using the protocol. Tumour volumes contoured on registered patient CT-PET images using the tested threshold values and viewing windows determined from the phantom study, demonstrated less inter-user variation for the primary tumour volume contours than those contoured using only the patient’s planning CT scans. Conclusions: The developed clinical protocols allow a patient’s whole-body PET staging scan to be incorporated, manipulated and quantified in the treatment planning process to improve the accuracy of gross tumour volume localisation in 3D conformal radiotherapy for lung cancer. Image registration protocols which factor in potential software-based errors combined with adequate user training are recommended to increase the accuracy and reproducibility of registration outcomes. A semi-automated adaptive threshold contouring technique incorporating a PET windowing protocol, accurately defines the geometric edge of a tumour volume using PET image data from a stand alone PET scanner, including 4D target volumes.
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Product placement is a fast growing multi-billion dollar industry yet measures of its effectiveness, which influence the critical area of pricing, have been problematic. Past attempts to measure the effect of a placement, and therefore provide a basis for pricing of placements, have been confounded by the effect on consumers of multiple prior exposures of a brand name in all marketing communications. Virtual product placement offers certain advantages: as a tool to measure the effectiveness of product placements; assistance with the problem of lack of audience selectivity in traditional product placement; testing different audiences for brands and addressing a gap in the existing academic literature by focusing on the impact of product placement on recall and recognition of new brands.