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ISSUE NO. 23 AUGUST 2009

Welcome to the Winter edition of our newsletter. Onemda staff have been busy across a range of areas during the past weeks and months.

Ian Anderson’s work with Pat Anderson and Mick Gooda, respectively the Chair and CEO of the Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal Health (CRCAH), and a host of other CRCAH researchers and staff on the re-bid submission to the Commonwealth Government to extend the life and work of the CRCAH has been successful. The challenge now is for the CRCAH to build on what has been learned from its current research program, and to continue to facilitate the education and training of a professional, skilled Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workforce. Ian believes it will also galvanise the sector in its efforts to establish a more permanent home for collaborative research—the proposed National Institute for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Research (NIATSIHR). Congratulations to everyone involved.

A great collaborative effort between Onemda staff and Community came to fruition in late April with the launch of the Sharing our Stories and Building on Our Strengths film and report. This project—a collaboration between Onemda, the Fitzroy Stars footy club, VAHS and VicHealth—is exactly the kind of partnership that we aspire to create within Onemda: one in which the academic activity has a built-in, community-based training and skills development component with direct benefits to our community.

Within this edition we also have photographs of our NAIDOC celebrations—another important opportunity for our Community to be welcomed onto the campus and to claim their rightful place within this public institution, the University of Melbourne.

Onemda Update

Contents Onemda Update 1LIME Network Website 2Studying @ Melbourne 2Dhungalla Kaella Oration 3Victorian Aboriginal Child Health Study 4 Research Report 5Tobacco Control Conference 5Sharing Our Stories launch 6-7NAIDOC Celebrations 8CRCAH Publications 9Wadja Health Clinic 10Community Profile 10New Staff 11

Talkin’ Strong 2

The Leaders in Indigenous Medical Education (LIME) Network is a Medical Deans Australia and New Zealand project, hosted by Onemda VicHealth Koori Health Unit. Its aim is to be a dynamic network dedicated to ensuring the quality and effectiveness of teaching and learning of Indigenous health in medical education, as well as best practice in the recruitment and retention of Indigenous medical students.

The LIME Network website is an important resource for those interested in issues to do with Indigenous health as well as for LIME Network members. The website has recently been redeveloped and launched with a new-look design and functionality. It provides LIME Network updates, information on curriculum resources, LIME membership, links to publications and other projects of relevance as well as information relating to the LIME Connection. Our News and Events page is updated regularly and includes information on available courses, conferences, scholarships, and other news relevant to Indigenous health. Take a look, become a member, contribute to and keep in touch with what is happening in the LIME Network: <www.limenetwork.net.au>.

The LIME Connection is our bi-annual conference, which will be held this year in Melbourne on 3–4 December, with a pre-conference Indigenous caucus on 2 December. This is LIME Connection III and its theme is Advancing Indigenous Health: Workforce Innovations. Abstracts can be submitted until 28 August. For further information contact the LIME team on (03) 8344 9160.

New LIME Network Website

The Centre for Indigenous Education (CIE) at the University of Melbourne constantly looks for ways to provide a safe and enriching environment for Indigenous students who come to the University. As part of the University's Open Day, on Sunday 16 August, the CIE held information sessions at its offices in the Old Physics Building near the Union.

If you missed out on the opportunity to attend Open Day, but are interested in what the University of Melbourne has to offer Indigenous students, please call the CIE on (03) 8344 7722 or visit their website at <www.services.unimelb.edu.au/cie>.

Studying @ Melbourne

Talkin’ Strong 3

The first Dhungalla Kaella Oration was delivered on 20 May to an audience of 150, who were challenged and inspired by the contributions of Mr Paul Briggs, Dr Carmen Lawrence and Ms Deborah Cheetham. The University of Melbourne’s Chancellor, the Hon. Alex Chernov, introduced the guests after a Welcome to Country by Yorta Yorta Elder Aunty Francis Matheysson, pictured below right.

The Dhungalla Kaella Oration Series, which is co-sponsored by the CRC for Aboriginal Health, is a collaboration between the University of Melbourne, the Koori Resource and Information Centre in the Goulburn Valley, Rumbalara Aboriginal Cooperative Ltd and Rumbalara Football Netball Club, the Academy of Sport, Health and Education (ASHE) in Shepparton, and a number of regional partner organisations. The purpose is to celebrate Indigenous cultural identity, to find opportunities for growth and to positively influence future generations. This five-year program of orations will have themes on health and society, culture, climate change, the economy, regional development, and legal issues.

Paul Briggs, pictured left, the Founding President and Chairman of the Rumbalara Football Netball Club and Fellow of the University’s Council, told the audience of the commitment by Aboriginal leaders in the Goulburn Valley to realise Aboriginal aspirations in the area and that, for example, the University’s new Institute for Indigenous

Partnerships—with Aboriginal leadership and values—would be a focus point for programs supporting those aspirations. Part of this work will be knowledge exchange activities that value Aboriginal knowledge as well as Western concepts. The goal is to create a new thinking that is inspirational, that is aspirational, and that has the emotional and spiritual wellbeing of Aboriginal people at its core.

Dhungalla Kaella Oration Series,

Shepparton, Victoria

Carmen Lawrence’s career has come almost full circle after her initial training as a research psychologist in Western Australia, 21 years as a State and Federal politician and now as a Professorial Fellow at the University of Western Australia. Carmen spoke on ‘The Prejudice of Good People’, dissecting the negative outcomes of covert racism and unexamined prejudices. She focused on healthcare delivery, where research shows that such attitudes undermine relationships between providers and patients, resulting in poorer care for Aboriginal people. Racism poisons not only social relationships but also health, Carmen said, and we must constantly question the assumptions and values that underpin our ideas and public policy.

Justin Mohamed, Director of ASHE and former CRCAH Program Leader, thanked Carmen Lawrence for raising these issues, which are also experienced in the Shepparton community, and for indicating ways in which prejudice can be challenged. He then introduced the next speaker, Ms Deborah Cheetham.

Deborah—soprano, actor, composer and playwright—spoke of her experience as a member of the Stolen Generations and of her reconnection with her people and Country, and described her journey from ‘White Baptist Abba fan’ to Aboriginal opera singer. Deborah told the audience of a project, supported by the Wilin Centre for Indigenous Arts and Cultural Development at the University of Melbourne, to address the under-representation of Indigenous Australians in the world of classical opera music. Part of this endeavour is the opera she has composed, Pecan Summer, about the 1939 Cummeragunja walk-off, which will be performed in 2010, with excerpt previews in Shepparton in September 2009.

A video podcast of the Oration will be available from the CRCAH website <www.crcah.org.au> and the University of Melbourne’s Knowledge Transfer website <www.knowledgetransfer.unimelb.edu.au> later in August.

L–R: Justin Mohamed, Alex Chernov, Geoff Dobson, Deborah Cheetham, Terry Nolan, Helen Hayes, Ian Anderson, Aunty Francis Matheysson, Carmen Lawrence, Paul Briggs and Field Rickards

Talkin’ Strong 4

Information describing the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal infants, children and young people in Victoria is collected by a number of State and Commonwealth government agencies. Vital statistical information is recorded in birth collections, hospitalisation patient records, and birth and death registrations, and is dependent on the self-identification of the patient, or identification by a third party of a deceased person’s Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin.

An undercount of Aboriginal people in Victorian health statistics is believed to be caused by a combination of administrative personnel failing to ask and/or record a person’s Indigenous status, and/or a decision by the person not to self-identify. Aboriginal people are therefore often ‘missed’ or not counted in health statistics in Victoria.

Such an undercount impacts on our ability to accurately report on the health of Aboriginal infants, children and young people; to track progress toward ‘closing the gap’ in Aboriginal versus non-Aboriginal child health; to celebrate the gains made towards achieving equality in health outcomes; and to identify the areas of critical need in preventable mortality and morbidity.

The Onemda VicHealth Koori Health Unit, in conjunction with the Victorian Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (VACCHO), and supported by funding from the Australian Research Council, is undertaking a Victorian Aboriginal Child Mortality Study (1988–2008). This five-year study will link data from a number of statutory and administrative datasets to produce a complete birth and mortality profile for Aboriginal (and non-Aboriginal) infants, children and young people in Victoria, born between 1988 and 2008. The aim of this study is to better identify Victorian Aboriginal births and deaths that occur before the 19th birthday; to analyse the patterns and trends in mortality and the disparities in outcomes between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal populations; and to identify the context and circumstances of these deaths.

These data will provide the accurate and complete information needed to inform effective policy, and support the provision of targeted services aimed at reducing preventable mortality among Victoria’s infants, children and young people. It will also provide valuable information for Aboriginal communities and organisations in Victoria to use in planning within their own jurisdictions.

A number of activities are being undertaken including the development of information materials describing the project, in collaboration with VACCHO and its membership, and the preparation of submissions to the relevant ethics committees.

The first output from the study is a report entitled An Overview of Statutory and Administrative Datasets: Describing the Health of Victoria’s Aboriginal Infants, Children and Young People. This report investigates the collection of data describing the health of Victorian infants,

children and young people, the reported accuracy and completeness of Indigenous status recorded, processes for requesting access and ethical clearance to use this data for research purposes, and contact details for custodians of these datasets. The report is being launched at Onemda on 17 August 2009.

For more information or a copy of the report, please contact:

Jane FreemantleT: 03 8344 9164E: <j.freemantle@unimelb.edu.au> or

Bree Heffernan T: 03 8344 9336 E: <breeh@unimelb.edu.au>

For more information on the project, go to its website at <www.vacms.net.au>.

Is Aboriginal Child Health Improving

in Victoria?

Talkin’ Strong 5

Research Report Evaluating Aboriginal

Health Programs

by Kevin Rowley, Rachel Reilly and Brad Firebrace

The holistic definition of ‘health’ that is part of the philosophical basis on which Aboriginal community-controlled organisations operate is reflected in the comprehensive nature of the services and programs they provide, by the way that such organisations bring families and community together to promote social connectedness, and as an expression of Aboriginal self-determination. These are all important facets of ‘health promotion’ and Aboriginal community organisations are clear leaders in the field.

A large part of our research activity at Onemda is concerned with evaluating community-based health promotion programs. In North America, it has been standard practice for many years now to evaluate health promotion programs by how they influence the social and physical environment in which people live, as well as by their effects on individuals’ clinical health outcomes or behaviours. This idea is now becoming accepted in Australia as well, but less widely so. Given the more holistic nature of many Aboriginal programs, this type of ‘ecological’ analysis has great potential as an evaluation tool in the Aboriginal health setting.

We have recently applied an ecological analysis to a series of health promotion activities conducted as part of the Heart Health Project collaboration in the Goulburn Valley. The analysis method involves identifying a number of characteristics of a program: the program setting (where it takes place); the program targets (individuals, groups, organisations, community, policies, wider society, and/or international society); and the program strategies (e.g. education of individuals, facilitating social or exercise groups, changing a workplace policy, changing the food supply at a sports club canteen etc.). The more targets, settings and strategies a health promotion program has, the more ‘ecological’ it is and the more likely it is to be successful. This is in contrast to the more simplistic idea of telling someone to ‘just go and do some exercise’, for example.

Our evaluation of the health promotion work of the Heart Health Project partnership (with Rumbalara Football Netball Club, Rumbalara Aboriginal Co-op and Viney Morgan AMS), which made up a Department of Human Services-funded project called 'Developing nutrition and physical activity guidelines and interventions for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities', showed that the community-designed and -run projects fitted well with an ecological model of health promotion. This was despite the fact that there was no overt emphasis on designing programs around this model at the outset of the work. The concept of an ecological framework for reporting on health promotion programs seemed to be useful in this Aboriginal health setting.

We are working on visual ways to communicate the nature and outcomes of Aboriginal health programs using the concept of 'Creating Healthy Environments'. Educating funding bodies to think more broadly about health and health program evaluation is the next challenge.

The second Oceania Tobacco Conference will be held from 7–9 October 2009 in Darwin, with an Indigenous pre-conference workshop on 6 October. This conference, hosted by the Cancer Council Northern Territory, is the peak conference for tobacco control in our region and attracts delegates from Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. The title of this year’s conference is ‘Reducing inequalities through tobacco control’, and Indigenous tobacco control will be one of the key themes.

The Centre for Excellence in Indigenous Tobacco Control (CEITC) not only encourages Indigenous delegates to attend the conference but also to present at it. All across Australia, innovative tobacco control programs are being successfully developed and run and the conference represents a great opportunity to showcase this work to a wider national audience. With this in mind, CEITC made contact in May with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers to encourage them to attend and present at the conference. CEITC also is offering support to any applicants in the abstract submission process.

Registration and program details can be found at the conference website: <www.oceaniatc2009.org>.

Oceania Tobacco Control Conference Darwin, 6–9 October 2009

Talkin’ Strong 6

Onemda recently launched, to great acclaim, a film and report entitled Sharing Our Stories and Building on Our Strengths produced in cooperation with Indigenous Community organisations.

The film and report document the way in which Onemda supported Aboriginal health workers (AHWs) to present their work at the From Margins to Mainstream: The 5th World Conference on the Promotion of Mental Health and the Prevention of Mental and Behavioural Disorders sponsored by VicHealth in Melbourne late in 2008.

Onemda staff and mentors worked with participants to refine their writing and presentation skills, so that they could confidently present to a national and international audience at the conference.

‘We wanted to demonstrate to the conference that all social, cultural and community activities can contribute to better health outcomes,’ Onemda’s Ngarra Murray, author of the report and the film’s narrator, explained. Providing a supportive space for presenters to hone their presentations was an intrinsic part of that process.

The eleven AHWs mentored by Onemda work in urban settings, such as the Maya Living Free Healing Centre and the ‘I’m an Aboriginal Dad’ program, and in regional outfits like the Koori Resource and Information Centre in Shepparton. The workshop group also included two Aboriginal mental health workers from the Top End.

The success of this project was further illustrated through the film, which was produced by Onemda and the Knowledge Transfer Group at the University of Melbourne’s Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences. The film focused on the work of two of the conference participants, Anthony Brown and Troy Austin, while at the same time acknowledging the contributions of all eleven presenters.

Anthony coordinates the Koori Kids Adolescent Unit at the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service (VAHS) in the Melbourne suburb of Northcote. The film explores

Sharing Our Stories and

Building on Our Strengths

film and report Anthony Brown and Troy Austin at the launch

Fitzroy Stars Football Club group enjoy the launch

Victorian Aboriginal Health Service staff and Ian Anderson

Sharing Our Stories and Building on Our Strengths project team

Talkin’ Strong 7

Anthony’s strategies for keeping the Community connected through his family counselling work at VAHS and as Breakfast presenter on Koori Community radio station 3KND.

Troy is the President of the Fitzroy Stars Football Club and for him football is about a lot more than the actual game. The club’s mission is to nurture a culture that promotes a healthy lifestyle aimed at improving fitness, nutrition and self-esteem, offers pathways to employment and education, and fosters reconciliation by building connections between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Communities. The film follows the team as they re-enter Melbourne’s Northern Football League after a long absence and demonstrates how the Community is enriched by the team as they ‘enjoy each other’s company, care for each other and work hard for our people’.

The ultimate achievement of Onemda’s conference presentation skills program is that the Indigenous presenters highlighted the positive work being done by Aboriginal health professionals in their Communities.

Angela Clarke, Onemda’s Deputy Director Community Programs, noted in her foreword to the report that ‘for Aboriginal people the boundaries between work and personal lives are often blurred and at times non-existent… we have in our Communities the expertise to enhance all aspects of our health, which includes our wellbeing, and we need to share this—and we should have more opportunities to do so.’

VicHealth funded the presentation skills project and subsequent report, while the University of Melbourne and Onemda’s partner organisation, the CRC for Aboriginal Health, contributed personnel, funding and resources to produce the film.

To view the film and download the report visit Onemda’s website at <www.onemda.unimelb.edu.au>.

Sharing Our Stories and Building on Our Strengths launch audience

Alan, Mary and Anthony Brown at the launch

Aunty Joan Vickery, Paul Stewart and daughter Rosie, with Aunty Joy Murphy-Wandin

Koori Youth Will Shake Spears dancing Viki Briggs, MC for the launch

Talkin’ Strong 8

Onemda and the University’s Centre for Indigenous Education celebrated NAIDOC Week 2009 by hosting a lunch on Tuesday 7 July in the Hub, level 4 at the Melbourne School of Population Health.

Aunty Diane Kerr welcomed guests to country and Darren Parker, a University of Melbourne graduate, was guest speaker.

Community members as well as University of Melbourne staff and students enjoyed an afternoon of music by a local Koori band ‘Jarrah’, led by lead singer Gavin Somers, and tasted some traditional foods including kangaroo, emu and crocodile. It was a relaxing afternoon, enjoyed by many.

NAIDOC Celebrations

Talkin’ Strong 9

Improving the Patient Journey: Achieving Positive Outcomes for Remote Aboriginal Cardiac Patients by Monica Lawrence with Zell Dodd, Shane Mohor, Sandra Dunn, Charlotte de Crespigny, Charmaine Power and Laney MacKean.

This report focuses on research conducted by Adelaide-based nurse Monica Lawrence at the cardio-thoracic ward at Flinders Medical Centre, including the trial of a pilot Remote Area Nurse Liaison Service during the first half of 2007. This research addresses the special needs that Aboriginal patients from remote areas have when interacting with health systems– needs that must be met for safe care practices and optimal health outcomes. It is the type of research that provides the quality evidence that will inform both government policy and clinical practice as Australia addresses the critical challenge of closing the gap in life expectancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.

Supporting Indigenous Researchers: A Practical Guide for Supervisors by Alison Laycock with Diane Walker, Nea Harrison and Jenny Brands

This is a practical and timely resource designed to support all researchers working in Indigenous health: those with project and personnel management responsibilities,

as well as new and emerging researchers. The Guide raises critical research issues and speaks to researchers in a way that is real and relevant. It brings together the advice and experiences of Indigenous and non-Indigenous researchers and relates their learnings to accepted practices in workforce development and management. A companion volume Researching Indigenous Health: A Practical Guide for Researchers, which will focus on the specific skills and knowledge for carrying out research in the field of Indigenous health, is due out later in 2009.

New South Wales Aboriginal Mental Health Worker Training Program: Implementation Review by Carol Watson and Nea Harrison

This Implementation Review documents and evaluates the first year of the state-wide implementation of the NSW Aboriginal Mental Health Worker Training Program. It draws out sound practices

that could guide the future implementation of the Program, which is part of the wider NSW Aboriginal Mental Health Workforce Program established under the NSW Aboriginal Mental Health and Well Being Policy 2006–2010. This is a targeted endeavour to address the mental health and social and emotional wellbeing problems in Aboriginal communities, acknowledged by governments across Australia.

This Training Program employs a unique approach to enhance the Aboriginal mental health workforce in New South Wales. It is underpinned by the principle of ’growing your own workforce’. Trainees are recruited from local communities to work within those communities. They are supported through a structured on-the-job supervision and training program as well as tertiary-based learning. While the full impact of the Program will only be demonstrated in years to come, it is already showing that it can build and sustain a strong mental health workforce.

CRCAH publications are available in pdf format or can be ordered from <www.crcah.org.au>.

Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal

Health Publications

Talkin’ Strong 10

Community ProfileLisa Thorpe

Lisa is a well-known and committed member of the Victorian Aboriginal Community. She is a proud mother to Medika Bonney (pictured below with Lisa) and is the eldest sibling of two brothers and four sisters.

Lisa’s working history within the Victorian Aboriginal Community spans far and wide. Currently at the Elizabeth Hoffman House as a Housing Support Officer, Lisa describes her position as a ‘supportive role to Aboriginal women and children who are survivors of domestic violence’. Lisa provides an outreach service that supports Aboriginal women and children to access safe and secure accommodation.

Lisa also has a strong commitment and involvement with the Fitzroy Stars Football Club in a voluntary capacity that ranges from the board room to the football field and on to the netball court. As a board member of the Fitzroy Stars, Lisa has been actively involved in the recent establishment of the Fitzroy Stars Netball teams.

The Fitzroy Stars Netballers compete in the Northern Football League (NFL) Divisions 1 & 2 every Friday night at the RMIT Sports Centre in Bundoora. With 22 registered players aged from 15–34, both Division 1 and 2 netball teams are currently sitting outside the top four. Lisa tells us that ‘all of our girls in both teams are aiming to play finals this year and I believe our girls are improving every week’.

Lisa is also a qualified NFL trainer which means you are likely to see her on Saturdays attending to the Fitzroy Stars footballers’ injury needs; she has also been spotted as a Fitzroy Stars runner and water gal.

Lisa says that if there are any netballers, footballers, volunteers and sponsors who are interested in getting involved with the Fitzroy Star, that they can learn more about the Fitzroy Stars by visiting their website at <www.fitzroystars.com>.

Wadja Health Clinic is a weekly general medical clinic for Aboriginal children which provides medical, social, cultural, and emotional assessment. It is based at the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne.

The focus of the clinic is on the management of Aboriginal patients with complex health and social issues by a team rather than one doctor. A paediatrician will see the child and family together with an Aboriginal Case Manager with the aim of enabling a family to feel supported and culturally empowered.

An Aboriginal Family Health Worker will also be available during clinic hours for further support if required by the family.

Referrals to the clinic can be made by GPs or other qualified people who have assessed that a child requires specialist paediatric medical care.

Day and time: Wednesday 1:30 – 4:30pmPlace: General Medicine, 5th floor NW buildingReferral Information: 03 9345 6111Referrals can be made by fax: 03 9345 4378or by post: Wadja Health Clinic Wadja Aboriginal Family Place The Royal Children’s HospitalFlemington RoadParkville, Vic. 3052

Wadja Health ClinicA General Medical Outpatient

Clinic for Aboriginal &Torres Strait Islander Children

Talkin’ Strong 11

New StaffErin Nicholls is the Event Project Officer for the Leaders in Indigenous Medical Education (LIME) Network. She will be responsible for the coordination of the LIME Connection III Conference to be held in Melbourne on 3–4 December 2009. Erin grew up in country Victoria and is of Torres Strait Islander descent. She has completed

studies in Event Management and Tourism. Prior to joining LIME, Erin was employed by the National Australia Bank. She has also worked in the tourism and hospitality industries both in Australia and overseas. Erin can be contacted at <erinn@unimelb.edu.au>.

Erin NichollsScott is a Wiradjiri man from Wollongong in NSW. He recently started a full time PhD at Onemda, looking at the protective and risk factors for Victorian Aboriginal children aged between 5–12 years of age related to their health and social outcomes. Dr Kevin Rowley and Associate Professor Jane Freemantle

will supervise Scott’s research.

Prior to commencing his PhD, Scott completed a Master of Applied Epidemiology (MAE) degree at the Australian National University. This involved a two-year placement with the Menzies School of Health Research undertaking various studies mainly with Indigenous communities of the Top End.

Before the MAE, Scott worked for about four years at Sydney South West Area Health Service as the Service Manager of the Aboriginal Health Unit, largely focusing on service planning and development.

In 2004, Scott spent a year working for the National Health Service in the United Kingdom as the Service Development Manager for Birmingham Dental Hospital.

He has also completed a two-year Management Training Program at the Australian College of Health Service Executives including a Graduate Diploma in Health Service Management through the University of New England. Scott can be contacted at <swinch@unimelb.edu.au>.

Scott Winch

Keagan James works as casual staff support at CEITC and has been part of the team since February. Keagan is a Yorta Yorta man and hails from Shepparton. In 2002, Keagan lived in Brazil for 12 months through a student exchange program. While there he immersed himself in Brazilian culture, spending most of his time in the favelas (slums) studying Capoeira (pronounced cup-oo-weda), a rare Brazilian martial art.

When Keagan returned to Australia he began working with local youth organisations and the Bendigo and District Aboriginal Co-op. He worked with St Luke’s Anglicare on a hip-hop program called ‘Reel to Real’, which helped kids at risk to express themselves and tell their stories through music. Keagan helped them write, compose, record and perform their own material. Working with youths at risk in Bendigo and the surrounding areas has given Keagan a passion for youth work, in particular drug and alcohol prevention.

Keagan loves to have a yarn, so please don’t hesitate to pull him up on your travels and have a chat with him. He can be contacted at <jameskr@unimelb.edu.au>.

Onemda welcomes new CEITC staff member Christine Joy. Christine’s job is two-fold as she will be working as a Researcher and a Project Officer. Christine’s background includes 20 years’ experience working within both the Department of Human Services and the Education Department of Victoria in a variety of roles including Residential Care Program Manager, Primary and Secondary Teaching, and Special Education. She is currently undertaking a Master of Education at the University of Melbourne. Although she does not have specific experience in tobacco control, her wealth of knowledge in training and education will be invaluable in developing educational tools and programs. Christine has two young teenager daughters who keep her grounded and well entertained when she is not at work. She can be contacted at <cejoy@unimelb.edu.au>.

Christine Joy

Keagan James

If you would like to receive our newsletters, and to be informed about the workshops, seminars and courses that we run at the Unit, please fill in this form and mail or fax it to the address below. All questions are optional but it would help us to know what aspects of our work you might be most interested in.

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Onemda VicHealth Koori Health UnitCentre for Health and SocietyMelbourne School of Population HealthLevel 4, 207 Bouverie StreetThe University of MelbourneVictoria 3010 AUSTRALIATel: + 61 3 8344 0813Fax: +61 3 8344 0824Web: www.onemda.unimelb.edu.auEmail: onemda-info@unimelb.edu.auMelways Map Reference: 2B D8