Aborigines and the criminal law in South Australia : the first twenty five years

After considering relevant events and cases the conclusion is reached that South Australian Aborigines were not in any practical sense equal before the law at any time during the period 1836-1862, despite considerable efforts by individual government and court officials.

Caring for mentally ill relatives in rural Australia : a hermeneutic study

Ten people from an area of rural Australia recalled how they viewed caring for a mentally ill relative. Hermeneutic analysis of this material highlighted these carers' roles and learning experiences, interactions with health professionals, the stigma they experienced, their stories and language they used, and their perspectives on the future.

Implementation of clinical practice guidelines using simulation in education

Background: Underpinning the Department of Human Services (DHS) “Future directions for Victoria’s maternity services” strategy in Victoria, are the principles of achieving the right balance between primary level care and access to appropriate levels of medical care by making the best use of the complementary skills of midwives, GPs and obstetricians. Planning new models of care have exposed a need to upskill many clinicians in providing evidence based pregnancy care. A statewide education program conducts 1 day workshops to multidisciplinary forums in Victoria. The program content is developed with each service and simulation activities are incorporated in the workshop to provide a realistic environment for practising skills related to the implementation of clinical practice guidelines.

Method: Post workshop surveys are completed anonymously by participants using a five point Likert scale to evaluate their experiences in peer learning, the use of simulation, reflective practice and communication skills training. Open ended responses were analysed thematically.

Results: In 2007, 14 workshops were conducted with 254 clinicians attending. The survey response rate was 80%. Participants responded ‘strongly agree’ or ‘agree’ that the workshop: enhanced their ability to access current pregnancy care research and information 193/ 204(95%), challenged them to think more broadly 192/204(94%), provided an opportunity to reflect on their communication skills during the simulation actives 197/201 (96%) and provided a valuable opportunity for observing the communication skills of their peers 197/ 201(98%).

Conclusion: Providing opportunities for peer learning in pregnancy education is valuable and the use of simulation can play an important role in overcoming barriers to implementing guidelines.

Globalizing policy sociology in education : working with Bourdieu

This paper uses Bourdieu to develop theorizing about policy processes in education and to extend the policy cycle approach in a time of globalization. Use is made of Bourdieu's concept of social field and the argument is sustained that in the context of globalization the field of educational policy has reduced autonomy, with enhanced cross-field effects in educational policy production, particularly from the fields of the economy and journalism. Given the social rather than geographical character of Bourdieu's concept of social fields, it is also argued that the concept can be, and indeed has to be, stretched beyond the nation to take account of the emergent global policy field in education. Utilizing Bourdieu's late work on the globalization of the economy through neo-liberal politics, we argue that a non-reified account of the emergent global educational policy field can be provided.

From the barracks to the burrup : The National Trust in Western Australia

Published to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the National Trust in Western Australia, this beautifully designed book contains never-before-published images and draws from a new oral history archive with testimonies from many of the founders, staff and volunteers of the organisation. Heritage battles for the Barracks Arch, the Palace Hotel, the Swan River and the Swan Brewery are covered, as well as the integral role played by grassroots heritage groups. Relations between the Trust, developers and the State Government and changing practices of interpretation and conservation are also discussed. What emerges is not only a history of the National Trust in Western Australia but also the people that shaped it. It is also a history of the ways in which heritage has been understood and practised across Australia.--Publisher description

The use of alcohol by Vietnamese living in Melbourne, Australia

Background: The size of the Vietnamese community residing in Melbourne, Australia has continued to grow steadily over the past decades; however, little is known about their level of alcohol consumption.

Aims: To collect data on alcohol consumption and consider the impact of demographic variables such as age and gender.

Method: A questionnaire was administered to 1080 people recruited through Vietnamese organizations and the media. The survey questions were drawn from existing and validated instruments and demographic questions such as age and gender.

Results: The findings suggest that Vietnamese Australians in Melbourne consume alcohol at a lower rate than the general population, but higher than the Vietnamese community in Sydney and Western Australia.

Conclusions: Due to the limited research in this field, these findings make an important contribution to understanding the alcohol consumption patterns of Vietnamese Australians.

Enlistment and non-enlistment in wartime Australia : responses to the 1916 call to arms appeal

This article examines men’s responses to the 1916 ‘Call to Arms’ appeal, in which Australia’s federal government questioned military-aged male citizens on their willingness to enlist voluntarily in the armed forces for service at the front. It argues that the appeal illuminated men’s difficult negotiation of choice, in which they weighed their personal sense of obligation to the state at war, to their families, and to themselves. It shows how men not only confronted their decision, but measured their responsibilities against others’, producing a subjective order of sacrifice that paralysed recruiting. In the absence of conscription, that private decision-making was critical to the nature of Australia’s commitment to the war, as men assessed and re-assessed the limits of obligation for themselves.

The prevalence of work-related deaths associated with alcohol and drugs in Victoria, Australia, 2001 - 6

To describe the presence of alcohol, cannabis and amphetamines in work-related injury deaths in Victoria, 2001–6, an observational study of work-related deaths reported to the State Coroner's Office, Victoria, Australia was conducted. Case and postmortem forensic toxicology data were obtained from the National Coroner's Information System for work-related injury deaths with positive toxicology screens. Over 6 years there were 43 worker deaths in a total of 355 unintentional work-related injury deaths. The coroner mentioned the presence of alcohol/drugs in 22 of the 43 worker deaths with positive toxicology screens. Toxicology screens were positive for alcohol and/or drugs in 79 work-related deaths overall. Overall, alcohol was present in 26 (7%) work-related deaths and cannabis or amphetamines in 20 (6%). Incidents were mainly transport related. Alcohol and/or drugs were present in a significant portion of work-related deaths. Research is needed to determine the relative contribution of alcohol and drugs compared with other contributing factors to work-related deaths.