Centre for Health, Wellbeing and Disability Research

The aims of the Centre for Health, Wellbeing and Disability Research reflect the Cairnmillar Institute’s overarching research strategy. It aims to:

  1. Formulate and produce globally influential research with a local impact
  2. Prioritise research that has a scientist–practitioner focus
  3. Produce research that is meaningful to the community and translatable into measurable health outcomes
  4. Use diverse research methods and approaches to enquiry
  5. Promote student research and develop their collaborations both within the Institute and externally.
  6. Achieve high-quality research and scientific outputs
  7. Collaboratively develop research projects with internal and external stakeholders

The centre will bring together a team of student, HDR, national and international researchers and collaborate with influential stakeholders. We will actively contribute to the evidence needed to guide health, wellbeing and disability reform with the explicit intent of improving the health outcomes for all Australians. We will nurture the development of an applied research workforce equipped to make large-scale, ongoing contributions to the field of wellbeing, disability and health.

Membership

Staff: Dr Joanne Brooker, Dr Catherine Connaughton, Dr Jon Mason, Associate Professor RoseAnne Misajon, Dr Steve Trawley

HDR students: Erin Kubilay (DPsych), Lauren Matotek (DPsych), David Whittingham (PhD), Clare Wilson (DPsych)

Masters Students: Sarah Fitt, Carley Fraser, Takeo Kameoka, Sach le Roux, Jason Eid, Jordan Morgan, Hannah Rhodes, Amber Stocco

Honours Students: Sam Barta, Miranda Woodward, Lefteri Thomopoulos, Ellen Richardson, Ashley Randall, Isabella Simantov, Sebastian Bentley

Alumni: Selam Ahmed, Freddie Wright

External Collaborators: Jacquie Mills (Deakin University), Andrew Allen (University Sunshine Coast), Janine Cody (University of Texas), Aislinn Lalor (Monash University), Sybil McAuley (University of Melbourne) 

Current Projects

Health

  • Psychologists’ use of measurement-based care (Mason / Allen)
  • Predictors of depression and demoralisation in adults diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (Brooker / Burney / Fitt)
  • The lived experiences of people diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome: A qualitative evidence synthesis (Brooker / Lalor / Fraser)
  • Attachment, self-compassion, health-related quality of life and depression in adults with endometriosis (Brooker / Misajon)
  • Healthcare workers’ attitudes towards the use of psychedelics in healthcare: A systematic review (Brooker / Barta)
  • Endometriosis within LGBTQ+ communities: Understanding support within healthcare and relationship contexts (Misajon / Mills / Rhodes)
  • The relationship between fertility stress and psychological distress in people with endometriosis (Misajon / Morgan)
  • Lived experience of adults with type 1 diabetes using a tubeless insulin pump for the first time (Trawley / Stocco)
  • Exploring the relationship between sleep, glucose and cognitive functioning among older adults (Trawley / Kubilay / McAuley) and adults (Simantov / Bentley) with type 1 diabetes
  • Supporting adults with type 1 diabetes who drive (Trawley / McAuley).
  • Endometriosis and experiences of unsupportive social interactions (Misajon / Mills / Joffe / Argitis)

Wellbeing:      

  • Effect of telehealth on psychologist wellbeing (Mason /Woodward / Thomopoulos)
  • Relationship between significant life events and wellbeing (Mason / Allen)
  • Predicting and managing workplace bullying and harassment (Mason / Whittingham)
  • Measures of sexual wellbeing (Mason /Allen)
  • Anxiety in Muslim women living in Australia: Associations with perceived religious discrimination, religiosity and self-compassion (Brooker / Misajon / Ahmed / Wilson)
  • Transgender and/or gender diverse individuals’ experiences of accessing and maintaining employment in Australia (Brooker / Wright)
  • Australian people of colour and microaggressions in dating (Misajon / Matotek / Brooker)
  • Migration experiences and perspectives of self-compassion and self-coldness among Hazaras in Australia (Misajon / Wilson / Brooker)
  • COVID-19 impact and experiences of exclusion in Hazara communities in Australia (Misajon / Wilson / Brooker / Miller / Nguyen)
  • Racial/cultural microaggressions at work in the Australian Public Service: Experiences of culturally and linguistically diverse workers (Misajon / Richardson)
  • The wellbeing and mental health of Karen refugees in Australia (Misajon / Brooker / Wilson / Randall / Eid / Kameoka / le Roux)
  • Racial microaggressions in culturally and linguistically diverse people in the Australian context (Misajon / Trinh / Kabir / Sanmugan)

Disability:                   

  • Sexual support services for people with spinal cord injury (Mason / Allen)
  • Diagnostic overshadowing amongst Australian health professionals (Mason)
  • Diagnostic overshadowing in developing nations (Mason)
  • Effects of Chromosome 18 disorders on sleep, behaviour and wellbeing (Mason / Cody)                           

Key Outputs (last two years)  

Peer-reviewed articles

  • Anderson, R., Warren, N., Misajon, R., & Lee, S. (2020). You need the relaxed side, but you also need the adrenaline: Promoting physical health as perceived by youth with vision impairment. Disability and Rehabilitation, 42(6), 841-848.
  • Chakrabarti, A., Trawley, S., Kubilay, E., Alipoor, A. M., Vogrin, S., Fourlanos, S., ... & McAuley, S. A. (2022). Closed-Loop Insulin Delivery Effects on Glycemia During Sleep and Sleep Quality in Older Adults with Type 1 Diabetes: Results from the ORACL Trial. Diabetes Technology & Technology.  Online ahead of print. http://doi.org/10.1089/dia.2022.0110
  • Glencross, S., Mason, J., Katsikitis, M., & Greenwood, K. M. (2021). Internet Use By People with Intellectual Disability: Exploring Digital Inequality-A Systematic Review. Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, 24(8), 503–520. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2020.0499
  • Hinde, K, Mason, J., Kannis-Dymand, L., Millear, P. & Sultana, R. (2022). Bangladeshi Health Practitioner Knowledge, Confidence in Diagnosis, and Treatment of Mental Health Disorders in People with Intellectual Disabilities, Journal of Mental Health Research in Intellectual Disabilities, DOI: 10.1080/19315864.2022.2098432
  • Hinde, K. and Mason, J. (2020.) Health practitioner knowledge and confidence in diagnosis and treatment of mental health issues in people with intellectual disabilities. Journal of Intellectual & Developmental Disability 45, 45:3, 269 278, DOI: 10.3109/13668250.2020.1730075
  • Hinde, K., Mason, J., Kannis-Dymand, L., Millear, P., & Sultana, R. (2021). Investigating the Diagnostic Overshadowing Bias in Bangladeshi Health Professionals. Journal of Mental Health Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 14(1), 89–106. https://doi.org/10.1080/19315864.2020.1856244
  • Lalor, A. F., Brooker, J. E., Rozbroj, T., Whittle, S. L., Hill, C. L., Rowett, D., Buchbinder, R., & O'Connor, D. A. (2022). Factors influencing clinician prescribing of disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs for inflammatory arthritis: A systematic review and thematic synthesis of qualitative studies. Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism, 55, 151988. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.semarthrit.2022.151988
  • Mason, J, Kirkman, B., Hall, A.&, Cody, J. (2021). Pitt-Hopkins Syndrome, Challenging Behaviour and Family Functioning: Ac Matched Control Pilot Study. Glob J Intellect Dev Disabil, 2021; 8(2): 555734. DOI:10.19080/GJIDD.2021.08.555734
  • Mason, J., (2020). Commentary on “An evaluation of the social validity of the Aberrant Behavior Checklist – Community. Tizard Learning Disability Review, 25, 63-66. https://doi.org/10.1108/TLDR-03-2020-0003
  • McAuley, S. A., & Trawley, S. (2022). Closed-loop therapy in older adults with type 1 diabetes: hypoglycaemia benefits and risk stratification. The Lancet Healthy Longevity, 3(6), e378. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2666-7568(22)00092-7
  • McAuley, S. A., Trawley, S., Vogrin, S., Ward, G. M., Fourlanos, S., Grills, C. A., ... & MacIsaac, R. J. (2022). Closed-loop insulin delivery versus sensor-augmented pump therapy in older adults with type 1 diabetes (ORACL): a randomized, crossover trial. Diabetes care, 45(2), 381-390. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc21-1667
  • Olsen, J.A. & Misajon, R. (2020). A conceptual framework of health related quality of life dimensions: Key lessons for a new instrument. Quality of Life Research, 29(3), 733-743.
  • Raith, L., Bignill, J., Stavropoulos, V., Millear, P., Allen, A., Stallman, H. M., Mason, J., De Regt, T., Wood, A., & Kannis-Dymand, L. (2021). Massively Multiplayer Online Games and Well-Being: A Systematic Literature Review. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.698799
  • Trawley, S., Stephens, A. N., McAuley, S. A., Speight, J., Hendrieckx, C., Vogrin, S., ... & Australian JDRF Closed-Loop Research Group. (2022). Driving with Type 1 Diabetes: Real-World Evidence to Support Starting Glucose Level and Frequency of Monitoring During Journeys. Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics, 24(5), 350-356.    http://doi.org/10.1089/dia.2021.0460
  • Tully-Wilson, C., Bojack, R., Millear, P. M., Stallman, H. M., Allen, A., & Mason, J. (2021). Self-perceptions of aging: A systematic review of longitudinal studies. Psychology and Aging, 36(7), 773–789. https://doi.org/10.1037/pag0000638
  • Published Conference Abstracts
  • Kubilay, E., Trawley, S., Fourlanos, S., Grills, C. A., Ward, G. M., Colman, P.G., & McAuley, S. A. (2022, August 9th).  Benefits and Burdens of Real-World Automated Insulin Delivery among Older Adults Post-Trial [Poster presentation]. Australasian Diabetes Congress, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. https://diabetescongress.com.au/
  • Lalor, A. F., Brooker, J. E., Rozbroj, T., Whittle, S., Hill, C., Rowett, D., O’Connor, D., & Buchbinder, R. (2020).  Factors influencing prescribing and use of disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs in inflammatory rheumatic disorders from the perspectives of clinicians:  A qualitative evidence synthesis.  ARA Abstracts. Internal Medicine Journal, 50 Suppl 2, 37. https://doi.org/10.1111/imj.14932 

Conference Presentations

  • Wilson, C., Misajon, R., Brooker, J. E.  Migration Experiences of Self-Compassion and Self-Coldness among Hazaras in Australia. International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies (ISQOLS); 2021 August 24; Australia 
  • Misajon, R. & Kabir, R. (2020). Migrant experiences of cultural microaggressions in the Australian workplace: A qualitative study. Advancing Community Cohesion Conference; 2020;  Paramatta, Australia. 
  • Trawley, S., Stephens, A. N., McAuley, S. A., Speight, J., Hendrieckx, C., Vogrin, S., ... & Australian JDRF Closed-Loop Research Group. Driving with Type 1 Diabetes: Real-   World Evidence to Support Starting Glucose Level and Frequency of Monitoring               During Journeys. 2022 Australian Road Safety Conference, Christchurch, New Zealand. Sept 27 2022. https://tinyurl.com/3xu7u5hk