Civil applications in the Magistrates Court are often set down for hearing by a judicial registrar, but there is now some uncertainty on the limitation of this practice

The decision of the District Court of Queensland in Mark Treherne & Associates -v- Murray David Hopkins [2010] QDC 36 will have particular relevance for early career lawyers. This decision raises questions about the limits of the jurisdiction of judicial registrars in the Magistrates Court.

Practice and procedure : an application under r367 of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules may be of use in obtaining copies of otherwise unavailable documents held by government agencies.

In Bowenbrae Pty Ltd v Flying Fighters Maintenance and Restoration [2010] QDC 347 Reid DCJ made orders requiring the plaintiffs to make application under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) (“the FOI Act”) for documents sought by the defendant.

Foresight practice in Australia: a meta-scan of practitioners and organisations

This critical review of foresight professionals seeks to analyse their social interests, methodology, epistemological focal domains, capacitating focus, geography and organisational type. The call for a deeper understanding of the practice in the Australian context is made in order for the foundations for a National Foresight Strategy to be laid.

The philosophy and practice of water sensitive urban design : is it consistent with a whole system approach

This paper provides a critique of the Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) paradigm by discussing its congruence with an established sustainable design principle called 'whole system design'. It was found that WSUD is congruent with the whole system design approach as a philosophy, but not in practice. Future improvement of WSUD practice may depend on the adoption of a front-loaded, teamwork-based design and planning process that is embedded in the principle of whole system design.

Predicting psychologists’ intentions to integrate complementary and alternative therapies (CAT) into their practice.

This study assessed the validity of a scale measuring psychologists' attitudes towards complementary and alternative therapies and compared the attitudes of psychologists with a previous sample of psychology students. The scale, derived from existing measures for medical professionals and previously tested on a sample of psychology students, was completed by practising psychologists (N = 122). The data were factor analysed, and three correlated subscales were identified, assessing the perceived importance of knowledge about available therapies, attitudes towards integration with psychological practice, and concerns about associated risks of use. This structure was similar, but not identical, to that found in a previous sample of psychology students; however, psychologists expressed more concern for risks associated with integration and were less likely to hold a positive attitude towards integration. This scale will be useful in gauging changes in psychologists' attitudes towards integrative practice over time.

Integrating complementary and alternative therapies into psychological practice : A qualitative analysis

Although complementary and alternative therapies (CATs) are utilised widely for treating psychological disorders, little research has examined psychologists' beliefs about integrating CAT into psychological practice. Six practicing psychologists and six psychology students were interviewed about their CAT integration beliefs, in particular integrating CAT into clinical practice via recommending CATs, offering referrals to CAT practitioners, or undertaking training to utilise CATs within psychological practice. Guided broadly from a theory of planned behaviour perspective, participants raised a number of costs and benefits, discussed referent groups who would influence their decisions, and suggested motivators and barriers for integration. A number of additional themes were raised, including risks, such as the possibility of litigation and the need for clear Society guidelines, as most participants were unclear about what constitutes appropriate practice. Identifying these themes serves as an important initial step to informing discussion and policy for this emerging practice issue within psychology.

The'dream'of multi-agency crime prevention : pitfalls in policy and practice

During the 1980s, terms such as interagency or multi-agency cooperation, collaboration, coordination, and interaction have became permanent features of both crime prevention rhetoric and government crime policy. The concept of having the government, local authorities, and the community working in partnership has characterized both left and right politics for over a decade. The U.S. National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals in the U.S.. Circulars 8/84 and 44/90 released by the U.K. Home Office, and the British Morgan Report-coupled with the launch of government strategies in France, the Netherlands, England and Wales, Australia, and, more recently, in Belgium, New Zealand, and Canada-have all emphasized the importance of agencies working together to prevent or reduce crime. This paper draws upon recent Australian research and critically analyzes multi-agency crime prevention. It suggests that agency conflicts and power struggles may be exacerbated by neo-liberal economic theory, by the politics of crime prevention management, and by policies that aim to combine situational and social prevention endeavors. Furthermore, it concludes that indigenous peoples are excluded by crime prevention strategies that fail to define and interpret crime and its prevention in culturally appropriate ways.

The diagnostic accuracy of telegeriatrics for the diagnosis of dementia via video conferencing

Introduction The suitability of video conferencing (VC) technology for clinical purposes relevant to geriatric medicine is still being established. This project aimed to determine the validity of the diagnosis of dementia via VC. Methods This was a multisite, noninferiority, prospective cohort study. Patients, aged 50 years and older, referred by their primary care physician for cognitive assessment, were assessed at 4 memory disorder clinics. All patients were assessed independently by 2 specialist physicians. They were allocated one face-to-face (FTF) assessment (Reference standard – usual clinical practice) and an additional assessment (either usual FTF assessment or a VC assessment) on the same day. Each specialist physician had access to the patient chart and the results of a battery of standardized cognitive assessments administered FTF by the clinic nurse. Percentage agreement (P0) and the weighted kappa statistic with linear weight (Kw) were used to assess inter-rater reliability across the 2 study groups on the diagnosis of dementia (cognition normal, impaired, or demented). Results The 205 patients were allocated to group: Videoconference (n = 100) or Standard practice (n = 105); 106 were men. The average age was 76 (SD 9, 51–95) and the average Standardized Mini-Mental State Examination Score was 23.9 (SD 4.7, 9–30). Agreement for the Videoconference group (P0= 0.71; Kw = 0.52; P < .0001) and agreement for the Standard Practice group (P0= 0.70; Kw = 0.50; P < .0001) were both statistically significant (P < .05). The summary kappa statistic of 0.51 (P = .84) indicated that VC was not inferior to FTF assessment. Conclusions Previous studies have shown that preliminary standardized assessment tools can be reliably administered and scored via VC. This study focused on the geriatric assessment component of the interview (interpretation of standardized assessments, taking a history and formulating a diagnosis by medical specialist) and identified high levels of agreement for diagnosing dementia. A model of service incorporating either local or remote administered standardized assessments, and remote specialist assessment, is a reliable process for enabling the diagnosis of dementia for isolated older adults.

Child welfare policy and practice on children’s exposure to domestic violence

There are emerging movements in several countries to improve policy and practice to protect children from exposure to domestic violence. These movements have resulted in the collection of new data on EDV and the design and implementation of new child welfare policies and practices. To assist with the development of child welfare practice, this article summarizes current knowledge on the prevalence of EDV, and on child welfare services policies and practices that may hold promise for reducing the frequency and impact of EDV on children. We focus on Australia, Canada, and the United States, as these countries share a similar socio-legal context, a long history of enacting and expanding legislation about reporting of maltreatment, debates regarding the application of reporting laws to EDV, and new child welfare practices that show promise for responding more effectively to EDV.

Restrung new chamber festival : an exploration of contemporary string practice

The Restrung New Chamber Festival was a practice-led research project which explored the intricacies of musical relationships. Specifically, it investigated the nature of contemporary string practice, with "New music" at its core. For the purposes of this project, "New music" will be defined in terms of representing a "global sonorous space" (Nancy 2007:12), which Hulse describes as "a spectacular comingling of styles and an unprecedented explosion of creative possibilities" (Hulse n.d.:2). Approaches to staging such an event are contextualised through a comparative analysis with relevant Australian and European festivals. The Restrung model derived inspiration from both art music and popular music festival models, in several aspects. One strategy was to engage audiences through combinations of musical, visual and spatial features. Another strategy was to encourage interaction by audiences with installations, workshops and forums. Restrung represents a new and distinctive model which presented art music within an immersive environment. This exegesis presents an evaluation framework which investigates the relationship between curatorial input and the experiential qualities of the festival. The context of an overview of trends in arts festival curation informs the discussion, as well as approaches to identifying new and receptive audiences. It is expected that the evaluation framework will provide a useful and practical guide for curators working in contemporary string practice, hybrid arts, experimental and cross-art form festival design.

Occupational therapy students’ contribution to occasions of service during practice placements in health settings

Currently in the Australian higher education sector, the productivity benefits of occupational therapy clinical education placements are a contested issue. This article will report results of a study that developed a methodology for documenting time use during placements and investigated the productivity changes associated with occupational therapy clinical education placements in Queensland, Australia. Supervisors’ and students’ time use during placements and how this changed for supervisors compared to pre- and post-placement is also presented. Methods: Using a cohort survey design, participants were students from two Queensland universities, and their supervisors employed by Queensland Health. Time use was recorded in 30 minute blocks according to particular categories. Results: There was a significant increase in supervisors’ time spent in patient care activities (F = 94.0112,12.37 df, P < 0.001) between pre- and during placement (P < 0.001) and decrease between during and post-placement (P < 0.001). Supervisors’ time spent in all non-patient care activities was also significant (F = 4.5802,16 df, P = 0.027) increasing between pre- and during placement (P = 0.028). There was a significant decrease in supervisors’ time spent in placement activities (F = 5.1332,19.18 df, P = 0.016) from during to post-placement. Students spent more time than supervisors in patient care activities while on placement. Discussion: A novel method for reporting productivity and time-use changes during clinical education programs for occupational therapy has been applied. Supervisors spent considerable time in assessing and managing students and their clinical education role should be seen as core business in standard occupational therapy practice. This paper will contribute to future assessments of the economic.

Youth alcohol and drug good practice guide 1 : a framework for youth alcohol and other drug practice

This Guide outlines a framework for working with young people whose AOD use creates significant vulnerability to current or future harm. The target audience is practitioners who work with young people who have problematic AOD use and the managers of these practitioners. Areas of content include the elements of a framework for AOD practice, an appreciation of the developmental, social and institutional location of young people, key concepts and understandings regarding good youth centered context responsive practice, and key policy constructs and directions.

Redland city youth and public space report : provisions for good practice

Written for Redland City Council in collaboration with the Capalaba Stakeholders Group. The provisions detailed in this report constitute a protocol agreement developed through the Capalaba Stakeholders Group between 2009 and 2011 around young people and public spaces in Redland City, Queensland. These provisions include agreed principles, standards and responses to tensions or unacceptable behaviour, how various tensions and problems can be resolved in constructive ways and how people, including young people can work together to make a public or community accessed space safe and accessible. It is based on the recognition that young people are part of the community and that strategies to resolve tensions that arise should be inclusive and employ a mixed methods approach.

Identifying effective re-engagement practice : Brisbane North and West Youth Connections Consortium Action Research Project

This report summarises the participatory action research (PAR) undertaken by the Brisbane North and West (BNW) Youth Connections Consortium service during 2010 and 2011. The objective of the service, which is funded by the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR), is to re-engage young people who have disengaged from education and are at risk of not achieving Year 12 attainment.The PAR element is facilitated by Queensland University of Technology, School of Public Health and Social Work (QUT). The PAR identifies key elements of the model of service as well as provides summary narratives of the PAR inquiries undertaken by Youth Connections staff and their co-participants during this period.

Development of a good practice guide to safeguard student learning engagement

This paper reports on the development of a good practice guide that will offer the higher education sector a framework for safeguarding student learning engagement. The good practice guide and framework are underpinned by a set of principles initially identified as themes in the social justice literature which were refined following the consolidation of data collected from eight selected “good practice” Australasian universities and feedback gathered at various forums and presentations. The good practice guide will provide the sector with examples of institutional wide efforts which respond to national priorities for student retention and will also provide exemplars of institutional practices for each principle to facilitate the uptake of sector-wide good practice. Participants will be provided with the opportunity to discuss the social justice principles, the draft good practice guide and identify the practical applications of the guide within individual institutions.