PAEDIATRIC MENTAL HELP FOR CHILDREN OF DEFENCE PERSONNEL, VETERANS AND FIRST RESPONDERS Psychosocial research translated into teaching resources
Filmed in Armidale, New South Wales | November 2024
Dr Marg Rogers is a Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Education at University of New England (UNE) in Armidale, New South Wales. She is a prominent figure in early childhood education New South Wales, and is also a Post Doctoral Fellow at the Manna Institute, a mental health research organisation within the regional university network across Australia, that is building place based research capacity to improve the mental health of regional, rural and remote Australia.
Dr Rogers has taught across all areas of education: early childhood, primary, secondary and tertiary. She researches marginalised voices within families and education, especially in regional, rural and remote communities.
Many Australian Defence Force (ADF) members reside in rural, regional, and remote (RRR) communities, creating significant challenges for their families regarding mental health service access. With 30% of current ADF members living in these areas, families often endure waiting lists for specialised care, which is typically located in metropolitan settings. As a result, children in these families frequently witness trauma, leading to potential mental health issues.
Australian Health Journal spoke with Dr Rogers on her research focusing on paediatric mental health, specifically developing early intervention psychosocial resources for children from veterans, defence families, and first responders.
Dr. Rogers emphasises the need for increased support and resources for these families, advocating for flexible, accessible care that moves with them, including telehealth options. Her work includes developing printed and digital storybooks based on children’s narratives to help families cope with issues like moral injury.
The impact of her work, has also garnered interest overseas, in collaborative efforts with Canadian and UK institutions who are further enhancing these resources for affected families in their own countries.
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Implementing improvements in referral management and demand
Nalani Cox joined Gold Coast Health in 2019 as a Nurse Manager focused on improving referral management processes within the outpatient environment through the implementation of the Clinical Prioritisation Criteria. This work became a focus point for the organisation in 2020 when Nalani led an organisational wide change project introducing Smart Referrals, Refer Your Patient website and HealthPathways which has culminated in her position as the ADON of the Referral Strategy and Performance Department.
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Lasers in dental treatment without needles and drills
In 2017, Dr. Omar Zuaiter and Alaa Habeb launched Dentroid, a dental technology startup with a mission to make dentistry a kinder and friendlier experience for patients and dentists using photonics (using laser technology) and robotics, as alternatives to needles, drills and sprays. The vision for the startup is to have dentistry adopt laser technology, addressing the root causes of dental pain & anxiety, and create a pain-free dental experience.
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Recognising service in health regulation
In April 2023, Professor John Skerritt retired from his position of Deputy Secretary Health Products Regulation Group, a role he has been in since 2012. During his time at the TGA he had line responsibility for over 1200 staff involved in the regulation of therapeutic goods, regulation of gene technology and industrial chemicals and control of drug import, export and production.
At this year’s ARCS 2023 Conference, ARCS Australia CEO Dr Shanny Dyer paid tribute to Professor Skerritt and his service to the Australian health industry. She led a tribute with fellow industry heads, Elizabeth de Somer, CEO, Medicines Australia, Anne Harris, Managing Director, Pfizer Australia & New Zealand, Deon Schoombie, CEO, Consumer Healthcare Products Australia, Ian Burgess, CEO, Medical Technology Association of Australia and Arthur Brandwood, President ARCS Australia.
