Workshop Descriptions
Workshop 1- Games for learning: the rural social determinants of health board game.
9.30 am – 10.30 am (60 mins)
Presented by Dr Heather Russell & Ms Lisa Hampshire
Aim and intended outcome: There is increasing understanding that tackling the rural social determinants of health (SDoH) is fundamental to providing comprehensive patient care and addressing rural health inequities, however evidence of the most effective methodologies in SDoH education is lacking. Game-based learning offers a powerful approach to improve learner engagement and motivation in a safe learning environment. Workshop participants will engage with an interactive board game developed by a team of educators and clinicians exploring the rural SDoH.
Educational objectives:
- Explore the relationship between the rural SDoH and health inequities.
- Describe the roles, benefits, and pitfalls of game-based learning in health professional education.
- Implement game-based learning strategies for use in rural health professional education.
Intended audience: Rural health educators, researchers, and clinicians of all career stages (max 30-50 participants).
Workshop 2 – An Introduction to Program Evaluation
9.30 am – 10.30 am 60 mins)
Presented by Dr Matt Thomas, Marathon Health
This workshop aims to provide an overview of key issues and considerations in planning and completing evaluation of health and wellbeing programs. Participants will be introduced to a simple step-by-step approach that can be applied successfully in many health program contexts. The workshop will draw on case studies of Marathon Health programs that have recently completed this evaluation process
Workshop 3: Aboriginal communities leading research (Mob only)
9.30 am – 12.30 pm
Hosted by Ms Amy Davidson & Debbie Beahan
(3 hours- informal yarning circles, easy access to tea/coffee and food included)
Aboriginal community members from across western and far western NSW are cordially invited to join a conversation about Aboriginal community leadership in research. How can Aboriginal communities lead, govern, undertake and benefit from research?
Topics to be covered during the yarn (you can suggest additional topics on the day):
- How would you describe Aboriginal community-led research?
- How can we make research practices and outcomes more accessible to Mob?
- How can we bring Aboriginal ways of knowledge generation and sharing into research?
- How do we develop pathways for Aboriginal communities and people to work in research (which includes people valued and respected for cultural knowledges).
- What are future research priorities for your communities? How can we develop research to meet these interests?
Workshop 4 – Consultation towards a national and international statement on rural mental health research standards, values and policy.
11.00 am – 12.30 pm (90 mins)
Presented by Dr Hazel Dalton and Dr Russell Roberts
About this workshop
Join us at the WHRN meeting to share your experiences and insights on rural mental health research practice, values, and policy. Together, we can work towards improving mental health outcomes in rural areas through collaborative efforts in research, service design, and policy support. This session will contribute the Western NSW perspective to the national and international papers in development. The initiative is a collaboration between Charles Sturt University, the Manna Institute, and the University of Canberra Mental Health Policy Unit, in partnership with the International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership (IIMHL) – Rural Behavioural Health Collaborative.
Workshop 5 – Demystifying Rural PhD’s – How to navigate the way.
11.00 am – 12.30 pm (90 mins)
Presented by WHRN Team
Workshop 6 – Clinical Trials Networking – This workshop has been withdrawn
1.30pm – 3.30pm (2 hrs)
WNSWLHD Clinical Trials Unit & Office of Health and Medical Research (OHMR)
Workshop 7 – Writing for publication: Practical tips and tricks to see your work in print
1.30 pm – 4.00 pm
Presented by Mr David Schmidt
The aim of this workshop is to provide an overview of the processes involved in writing for publication in an academic journal. This interactive workshop will explore finding the right journal or journals for your work, structuring your manuscript, tips on academic writing and how to involve co-authors in the writing process. Drawing from experiences as an author, journal manager and editorial board member of an academic journal, David Schmidt will take you behind the publishing curtain and share ideas that can help you see your ideas in print.
Workshop 8 – How can we make research more culturally responsive?
1.30 pm – 4.00 pm (2.5 hrs)
Presented by Dr Emma Webster & Amy Davidson
(3 hours- informal yarning circles, easy access to tea/coffee and food included)
This workshop is for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people with an interest in research which delivers good outcomes for Aboriginal communities. You should come along if you would like to improve cultural responsiveness for research. Respectful discussion will be invited on how research should change to follow cultural protocols in decision making and how research practices can be done differently to improve cultural safety.
Topics to be covered during the yarn (you can suggest additional topics on the day):
- How can research be a more culturally safe practice?
- What are the research practices you would like to adapt to support cultural ways of knowing, being and doing?
- How can we challenge dominant research practices, and create space for cultural ways of researching?
- How can non-Aboriginal peoples be better allies in research and academia?
Workshop Host Biographies
Workshop 1 – Dr Heather Russell
Heather Russell is a GP and lecturer at the School of Rural Health, The University of Sydney, based in Orange. The School of Rural Health is a multi-professional academic unit which undertakes rural health research, builds rural research capacity, and supports medical students on extended rural placement. Heather has particular interests in primary health research, rural health and preventative care.
Workshop 1 – Ms Lisa Hampshire
Lisa Hampshire is an Educational Designer at the School of Rural Health, The University of Sydney, based in Orange and Dubbo. Lisa designs and develops programmes for medical students and is interested in serious games for learning as well as how digital innovation in medical teaching can enhance the rural student experience. Lisa supports students, academics and researchers at the University’s rural clinical school.
Workshop 2 – Matt Thomas
Dr Matt Thomas is the Principal Practice Lead at Marathon Health, where he supports quality practice and is leading implementation of program evaluation with leaders across the organisation. Matt earned his PhD in Clinical Psychology from the University of Tasmania and has over 25 years clinical, academic and research experience. He has specialized in brain injury rehabilitation and cognitive remediation therapy with people with schizophrenia, published over 25 research articles in peer reviewed journals and is an Editorial Board member for the journal Brain Impairment. He is an Adjunct Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology at Charles Sturt University and the School of Psychiatry and Mental Health at the University of New South Wales, where he provides clinical and research supervision to Honours, Masters and Doctoral students.
Workshop 3 & 8 – Ms Amy Davidson
Amy Davidson is a proud Wiradjuri woman who is also of mixed European heritage. Amy completed a Bachelor of Arts in 2018 at the University of Sydney, majoring in Government & International Relations and Indigenous studies. Following her undergraduate degree in 2019 Amy undertook a Master of Education (by Research) at the University of Sydney on ‘What is Aboriginal Community-Led Research?’ supervised by Associate Professor Lynette Riley and Professor Valerie Harwood. At the end of 2021 Amy was offered a DVC-R PhD Scholarship and a letter of offer for PhD upgrade from her Masters Research project. Amy began her PhD research project in 2022 and is eager to continue working with communities to improve the outcomes of Aboriginal research by shifting power to the community in the research process whilst keeping cultural knowledges safe.
Amy’s research interests include Aboriginal Community-Led research, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander recognition, rights, Indigenous cultural and Intellectual cultural property, social and emotional wellbeing. And the relationships between Aboriginal communities and Aboriginal public policy making.
Workshop 4 – Dr Hazel Dalton & Professor Russell Roberts
Hazel is a Senior Research Fellow of Rural Public Health at Charles Sturt University’s Rural Health Research Institute. She’s also Co-Chair of the Rural Behavioural Health Collaborative special interest group of the International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership and an Adjunct Associate Professor, at the University of Canberra’s Mental Health Policy Unit. Hazel has extensive experience in managing research on health service provision innovations, mental health promotion, and rural suicide prevention. She’s particularly interested in translating and communicating research to support programs and inform policy. Hazel has a diverse research background, including conceptual modelling, quantitative, and qualitative research approaches.
Workshop 5 – Professor Julian Grant
Julian Grant is Professor of Nursing and Associate Dean of Research, in the Faculty of Science and Health at Charles Sturt University. Julian’s research focusses on understanding and changing the individual and systemic barriers that impact the interdisciplinary workforce tasked with promoting the wellbeing of children. To achieve this Julian’s work focusses on children in the first 2000 days of life who experience health inequities due to the intersections of race, gender and class and those at risk of, or exposed to abuse or neglect. Her aim is to rebalance the health inequities experienced by children and families living in regional Australia.
Julian is currently supervising 5 HDR candidates, and has supervised 6 candidates through to completion. She is currently supervising 3 candidates completing minor theses (Honours and Masters) and has supervised 18 through to completion.
Workshop 5 – Professor Catherine Hawke
Professor Catherine Hawke is Head of the Rural Clinical School (Dubbo/Orange) of the University of Sydney. She is a public health physician committed to improving rural health through health workforce development, education, and research. She is the founding chair of the Western NSW Health Research Network (WHRN) formed in 2013. WHRN’s vision is to improve the health and wellbeing of all people living, working, and studying in Western NSW through rigorous research.
Workshop 7 – Mr David Schmidt
David is a researcher educator for the Health Education and Training Institute with experience in qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods research. David recently submitted his PhD thesis entitled “Research capacity building in the rural health workplace” to the University of Sydney. A previous manager and current editorial board member of HETI’s journal Health Education in Practice: Journal of Research for Professional Learning, David has a passion for seeing rural clinicians explore important local issues and share those ideas so that others can learn. A physiotherapist by background David, finds writing about himself in the third person really uncomfortable and would much rather talk to you about his other passions (cartooning, music and poetry) than bore you with his work history
Workshop 8 – Dr Emma Webster
Emma is a Senior Lecturer in Rural Research with the University of Sydney, School of Rural Health. Emma is
recognised for her pragmatic and collaborative approach to research and her genuine desire to
engage academia to serve community interests. Emma is a non-Aboriginal woman with a settler
history in Australia. In her work with Aboriginal people and communities, she acknowledges
Aboriginal values, ways of knowing and doing research. She has experience applying decolonising
approaches to enhance participation of Aboriginal people in research design and conduct. Emma also
has an interest in exploring bicultural models of care which give proper recognition to the value of
Aboriginal cultural protocols and practices in healthcare.
Western NSW Health Research Network Inc 