RHAC Newsletter: Healthy Bites June-Sept 2011 - School of Rural ...

Volume 8, Issue 2
June— Sept 2011
Rural Health Academic Centre
The University of Melbourne
Start your day with some healthy bites from the
Rural Health Academic Centre’s Internal Newsletter..
Special points of
interest:
A bright spark from our Editor...
Expanding Nurses
Horizons -
Professional
Development
Seminars
„Won‟t lie to ya
but...” forum
RHM students in
the spotlight
Student Open Day,
Retreat and ERC
Tour
Inside this issue:
Spring is in the air, the
flowers are starting to
bloom, there is bright colour
emerging here and there
and of course the dreaded
allergies are also upon us.
Its been a tough winter this
year with all the cold and
flues we have had to suffer.
Blocked or runny noses,
hacking coughs and
continuing general winter
malaise. Just as we start to
get over those, it starts all
over again in the form of
Sinus or Hay fever. Talk
about a vicious circle.
On a brighter note, we
have had some beautiful
warm days, (what I call
gardening days, despite the
allergies) with the exception
of the wet and stormy few
lately. I believe its been a
strange summer gone in the
overseas countries, so I
wonder what kind of
weather we are up for this
summer. No doubt it will
continue to be
unpredictable.
There has been a bit
happening over the last few
months at the RHAC. The
CERSH team have been
quite busy conducting
successful seminars and
embracing respectful
relationship projects.
The RCS has been actively
engaged in University Open
days, student retreats and
ERC tours.
This quarter we again
welcome new staff and say
goodbye to others, as well
as declare the odd surprise
announcement or two. (See
page 8)
So a bit to keep you
updated on the
happenings at the RHAC.
Until the next issue… Happy
Reading!
~Cheers Lucia
If you have any interesting
stories or articles you would like
to have published, please
email me at
luciar@unimelb.edu.au
BY NEXT DEADLINE:
18 NOV 2011
New Staff Profiles 2—
3
CERSH -
Professional
Development
Seminars
Lovin ‗ that Respect
4—
5
UoM Open Day 5
RHM students learn
about community
safety
2011 Student Retreat
ERC Tour
Announcements 8
Social News
Sharing Recipes
A Big Thumbs Up
Contact Details
6
7
9
10
Embracing Change
Advice often given, but
hard to reconcile with the
uncertainties inherent in
change.
Dawn‘s departure creates
uncertainty. How will we
replace her capacity for
visionary leadership,
enthusiasm and hard work
that has seen this Centre
perform at levels far better
than that required by our
funding contracts:
Performing at a level that
has built us a national and
international reputation for
excellence. We will miss her.
One thing is certain, the
next Chair of the Centre will
be different from Dawn. We
do anticipate that the next
Chair of the Centre will
have the necessary
qualities of leadership for
the position. And we know
that the contractual
requirements of our funding,
our relationship to the
Melbourne Medical School
and the continuity of other
staff at the Centre will
substantially limit the
options for visionary
change.
But the next
Chair of the
Centre will
almost
certainly have
different
visions and priorities, and a
different style of leadership.
Our response to the
leadership change must
include the acceptance of
its inevitability (sooner or
later) and that new leaders
must be given support as
they come to grips with
their new complex
(Continued on page 2)

Rural Health Academic Centre
(Continued from page 1)
responsibilities and build relationships with their staff and
the broader University.
Accepting that the new Chair will be different, helping
them understand the way we work and responding to
their priorities gives us the best chance of success.
There is no obligation to physically embrace the new
Chair, but we must embrace the change that follows
their appointment.
The Melbourne Medical School is currently considering
the best recruitment strategy and plans to advertise the
position by 1/11/2011.
~Bill Adam
Deputy Head of School
New Staff Profile: Lou Bush
Lou Bush
Lou Bush commenced
working for the Rural health
Academic Centre in May
2011 in the role of
Receptionist.
Lou worked at the GV
Community Health for 7
years in an administration
role supporting the Drink
Drive Education program
and the Quality
Improvement Committee.
She was formerly a
member of the QI
Committee working on
development and
implementation of policies
and procedures.
Lou also worked with the
Quality Co-ordinator to
achieve accreditation for
the organisation. Then
worked directly for the
Business Manager and
CEO.
She later began working
for the GV Division of GPs
in 2006 for about 8 months,
in which her role included
working for Bogong
Regional Training Network
with Dr Mary-Lou
Loughnan and Dr Peter
Keppel, the Diabetes
Prevention Program and
the After Hours GP Medical
Centre.
Lou returned to work for
the GV Community Health
to take up the role of
Consumer Liaison Officer
working on consumer,
carer and community
participation. In which time
she developed a
consumer register and set
up a Consumer Advisory
Committee to provide
community feedback to
GVCHC.
She was also responsible
for the development and
distribution of the Annual
Quality of Care Report and
a Member of the Cultural
Diversity Committee
developing policies and
procedure to ensure a
culturally safe workplace.
Lou has also worked on
projects such as the Taste
of Harmony Morning Tea
and NAIDOC Celebrations.
Lou has four beautiful
children, Daniel 21, Jordan
19, Chandler 17 and Noah
15.
She is a Life member at
Congupna Netball Club
and still plays indoor
netball. She has also
recently taken up rowing.
Lou says she ―loves her
position (of Receptionist at
the RHAC) and interacting
with the students and
enjoys being part of such a
professional team.‖
New Staff Profile: Vivien Hicks
Vivien Hicks
Page 2
Vivien Hicks lived and
worked in Gippsland until
1997 when she moved to
the Mitta Valley and then
again moved to the
Shepparton area in 2006.
Married for 26 years to a
Dairy farmer. Neither
Vivien nor her husband
come from a farming
background but she
pursued her husband‘s
dream to be a farmer.
Vivien previously worked at
Monash University, Clayton
for many years in various
departments including:
Student Records, Grants &
Scholarships, Faculty of
Law and University
Solicitor.
Other than milking cows in
the Mitta Valley Vivien has
primarily worked in
administration as a
Personal Assistant.
Vivien has a ―try/give it a
go‖ type attitude when it
comes to any work. It is
one of the reasons she
tried working in Logistics
(coordinating grain trucks)
but she didn‘t quite enjoy
it.
Vivien has worked as a
volunteer Treasurer/
Secretary and editor/
desktop publisher for a
(Continued on page 3)

Volume 8, Issue 2
(Continued from page 2)
cattle breed society for 7
years.
She commenced working
for CERSH in July 2011 and
has found everyone at
RHAC to be ―very friendly
and helpful.‖
―It‘s a great place to work
and look forward to
hopefully having a long
stay,‖ she said.
Vivien also breeds Welsh
Cobs. She currently has
about 10 Cobs and 2 Arabs
with 5 foals due this
season.
Vivien says ―that in-hand
showing ponies is a
necessity‖, but find this a
bit boring and is keen to
get into pony dressage
and navigation rides
although she hasn‘t had
the opportunity yet.
Vivien and her husband
are currently developing
their ―retirement‖ block of
70 acres with one of their
major projects being tree
planting.
Vivien and her hubby have
planted over 850 trees in
the last 2 years.
―To finish off the property
we estimate that we will
need to plant about 2000
natives,‖ Vivien said.
New Staff Profile: Dr Sue Wilson
We also welcome to the
Rural Health Academic
Centre, Dr. Sue Wilson who
joined the RHAN program
in July 2011.
As well as her role as RHAN
Coordinator at Benalla
Health ; Sue is Manager of
the Education Units at both
Benalla Health and
Northeast Health
Wangaratta.
She is a Registered Nurse
with specialist
qualifications in General
Paediatrics and Psychiatric
Nursing.
After 15 years as a clinical
nurse she moved into
education first in schools
before returning to Health
through Nurse Education.
Sue successfully
completed an award
winning PhD thesis last year
with research into the
relationship between
learning and our mental
health.
Sue lives on a bush block
with her menagerie of 10
dogs, 3 pet sheep, 2 cats,
2 guinea pigs and a horse.
Sue‘s particular research
interests are various but
they include: etiological
methodologies,
biomimicry, health
workforce development
and capability; and infant,
child and adolescent
mental health.
Dr Sue Wilson
Please save the Date!
The University of Melbourne Rural Health Academic Centre
Rural Health Research Showcase
will be held at the Shepparton Campus on
Tuesday December 6 th 2011
All staff are welcome to attend and to present their work.
More information to follow
Page 3

Rural Health Academic Centre
CERSH Professional Development Seminars
Expanding Nurses Horizon’s in
Sexual Health – STI Contact
Tracing Workshops
CERSH has now delivered six
professional development seminars
for nurses and community workers in
Northeast Victoria, covering a wide
range of sexual health issues.
In the evaluation of these seminars
participants have reported feeling
more confident in their practical skills
and that they are willing to build their
sexual health skills into the future.
Contact tracing is an area where
clinicians want more training and
practical support.
Contact Tracing, is the process of
notifying the sexual partner of a
person who is diagnosed with an STI,
and works on the presumption that
―it takes two to tango!‖
Contact tracing can also include
notifying the needle sharing partner/
s of a person diagnosed with a blood
borne virus (including HIV).
As a result, CERSH has organized
three contact tracing workshops in
conjunction with the Department of
Health‘s Senior Contact Tracer
during 2011.
These three workshops have been
held in different locations throughout
Northeast Victoria, including
Wodonga, Shepparton and Echuca.
Contact Tracing is an important
public health strategy in the control
of STI‘s and as such, nurses working in
General Practice, Community Health
Services and Hospitals have been
our target audience.
Contact Tracing is an important
public health strategy in the control
of STI‟s and as such, nurses working
in General Practice, Community
Health Services and Hospitals have
been our target audience.
Numbers for each of the workshops
were limited to 15 participants to
ensure an open, interactive and
problem solving environment. It also
allowed the participants to gain trust
and feel more confident as an
active member of the small learning
group. In all, twenty four participants
attended.
The workshops began with an
overview of the recent epidemiology
of commonly notified STI‘s, and
moved into the ―why, what and
how‖ to contact trace sexual and
needle sharing partners.
These small groups were certainly
filled with noise, laughter, concern,
and trepidation, but most
importantly, interactive participation.
The case studies were designed to
test the participant‘s belief systems,
identify obstacles and barriers for
rural practitioners, and to provide
practical strategies that participants
could take back to each workplace.
The issues of confidentiality and
privacy certainly challenged some
of the participants and the
complexities of human nature
became evident in all of the
discussions.
The feedback from participants has
been overwhelmingly positive and
CERSH plans to continue this work
into the future! Look out for more
contact tracing workshops in 2012….
~Beth Hatch, CERSH,
Senior Project
Coordinator
Lovin’ That Respect
Page 4
Respectful relationships, sexual
health and feeling proud to be a
Koori teenager were the topics
for discussion and laughter at the
„Won‟t lie to ya but...” forum held
last month at Hume Weir Resort.
Over eighty Koori secondary
school students from the Albury
Wodonga region gathered
together to be entertained by
comedy, drama and dance
performed by Nelly Thomas,
Isaac Drandich and Nikki Ashby
from Melbourne. Humour and lots
of laughter helped make the
serious topics such as ethical
relationships, sexually
transmissible infections,
negotiating consent and
respectful relationships easier to
talk about.
Local Elders and workers then
joined a Q&A session where
students could ask questions, find
out about local services and be
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Volume 8, Issue 2
(Continued from page 4)
assured that the Aboriginal
community is there to
support them. The fun
continued in the afternoon
with drama, film making,
and dance and art
workshops.
But it wasn‘t only the
young ones that had a
chance to laugh a lot with
Nelly and Isaac. A ―Deadly
Carer‟s Day Out”, held the
day before the youth
forum, attracted over 35
community members,
Elders and workers.
Topics during yarning
circles and Q&A included
why it is important to talk
with teenagers about
sexual health, healthy and
safe relationships; the
challenges we face as
parents and carers; our
hopes and dreams for our
young ones; and how our
local Aboriginal culture
and community can
support carers and
parents.
The project continues with
a series of workshops. Koori
youth have chosen drama,
dance or film production
workshops starting currently
running for around eight
weeks.
It combines learning more
about relationships and
sexual health and making
DVDs and you tube clips.
A Facebook page http://
www.facebook.com/
smartanddeadlykoori is
established to
communicate with
everyone and highlight the
work in progress.
This project was
coordinated and funded
by the Centre for
Excellence in Rural Sexual
Health (CERSH), at the
Rural Health Academic
Centre and funded by the
Department of Health,
Victoria.
CERSH worked in
partnership with 16 local
and state-wide Aboriginal
organisations, health and
community services and
educational institutions
using the principles of
community development
and Aboriginal health
promotion practice.
It is part of our
commitment to strive to
develop health promotion
programs sensitively with
the community itself to
build detailed knowledge
of the community, and
trust to work collaboratively
and respectfully.
We acknowledge that
health promotion practice
in the rural context,
encapsulates partnerships,
service integration, holistic
and multi-strategic
approaches and strengthsbased
participation.
~Kylie Stephens, CERSH Health
Promotion Coordinator.
Facebook page
http://
www.facebook.com/
smartanddeadlykoori
is established to
communicate with
everyone and highlight
the work in progress.
University of Melbourne Open Day
Nicole van Riet and Jenni Goodwin
attended the University of
Melbourne Open Day on Sunday
August 21 st , to man the Melbourne
Medical School booth, for the Rural
Clinical School.
Both the Medical School and
Clinical School booths were
inundated early in the day by
interested students and parents,
and the flow of people continued
until the end. There was great
interest in the new MD and also
what studying medicine in a rural
area would be like.
Many were interested in what we
have to offer at the Rural Clinical
School and with the expert
assistance of students Matt Shears,
Karissa Ludwig, Toma Mogilevski,
Alex Gin, Xiuzhi Pham and Raymun
Ghumman, the day was very
successful. Show bags containing
information on the Rural Clinical
School as well as local produce
were handed out to students and
parents, and information flowed
freely to all.
The beautiful weather saw record
numbers attend, so that explained
our sore throats and aching feet!
Now for next year…
~Jenni Goodwin
RUSC Coordinator & Events Officer and
Nicole van Riet, RCS, Shepparton
L-R: Nicole van Riet, Katrina
Trigg, and Sharon Marsionis
Interested students with Nicole van Riet (right)
Page 5

Rural Health Academic Centre
RHM Students learn about community safety
In the spotlight: Melanie Chang and
Davina Buntsma are two rural health
module students who were part of
the August 2011 Rural Health Module
Rotation in Rushworth.
Both students were invited by the
CFA in Rushworth to visit their fire
station and
to ‗gear up‘ in firefighter attire while
the brigade set up a demonstration
of various fire extinguishers and
explained their effectiveness in the
different environments, as well as
hospitals.
The invitation is due to the
collaboration between Rushworth
CFA and the University of Melbourne
final-year medical students on rural
rotation.
The brigade also went bush to try
―some draughting and high-pressure
pumping with the students holding
the hose.‖
―They tend to be city dwellers
experiencing country life for the first
time,‖ says Captain Graeme Wall.
―Learning about the range of people
and issues in country towns can
come as a bit of a shock to some of
them. It‘s not just learning about CFA
but learning about the way that
country Victoria runs on volunteers.
We so often get questions about
how much we get paid but, of
course, volunteers don‘t get paid.
There‘s a knowledge gap and an
experience gap and we try to reach
across.‖
Maxene Hughes the Goulburn Valley
Health Nurse Educator says, ―The
students‘ time here isn‘t so much a
medical placement but very much
learning how to deal with rural issues.
They have to think about the
resources we don‘t have. An
ambulance might not arrive for 45
minutes so we have to be
resourceful. Who might we have to
draw on?
―I can‘t speak highly enough about
what the brigade does with the
students; the time they put in. It‘s so
great of them to take this on and I
get rave review from the students.
―The students become aware
of the support, mutual respect,
interactions and camaraderie
between many of the essential
services in these country towns
due to time spent with CFA. It
creates that spark of interest
that might make them
enthusiastic about a country
posting once they‘re
qualified.‖
The students thoroughly
enjoyed their experience and
the evening was a real highlight.
Melanie Chang said ―Other students
told us the brigade rotation
was fun but we had no idea
just how much fun it would be.
It‘s been a real highlight.‖
While Davina Buntsma added
―They‘re a really warm, friendly
group of people who obviously
love doing what they do.
Teamwork seems so important
and the members know exactly
what to do and rely on each
other. The sense of
camaraderie is amazing and so is
[brigade captain] Graeme.
―What he said about brigade
membership being 95 per cent fun,
four per cent hard work and one per
cent heartbreak sounds about right.‖
Comments taken from the Rushworth CFA
Media Release:“Medical students taught rural
realities”, Wednesday 24 August 2011
See article:
Students learn country ways, Shepparton News,
26.08.11, p29
Above and Below: RHM medical students
Melanie Chang and Davina Buntma in action
Medical Quotes:
Did God who gave us flowers and trees,
Also provide the allergies?
~E.Y. Harburg, "A Nose Is a Nose Is a Nose," 1965
Page 6

Volume 8, Issue 2
2011 Student Retreat...
The 2011 Retreat held at Grange
Cleveland Winery, Lancefield was
held on 9-11 September
with a fantastic turnout of over 80
students and Academics.
The Retreat is aimed at enhancing
the communication between the
students and academics from all
RCS sites and year levels, providing
invaluable advice and guidance.
The event commenced with a dinner
on the Friday evening, with
Associate Professor Jane Tomnay the
guest speaker discussing the Centre
for Excellence in Rural Sexual Health.
We kicked off Saturday‘s program
with Osler
Bingo, followed by a Taekwondo self
defense session led by Associate
Professor Jane Tomnay.
Due to the massive turnout, we were
fortunate enough to have Lynda
Chin, a Semester 8 Ballarat student
volunteer to assist using her
Taekwondo training.
Semester 12‘s Matthew Shears, Jane
Lovell and Amir Zayegh then
presented their elective
placement experience with
interesting tales from their trips to
the Solomon Islands, New York
and the United Arab Emirates,
opening up the eyes
of those starting to consider
where they would like to
complete their elective in the
future.
Dr John Robertson who currently
resides in New Mexico, USA
gave an interesting synopsis on
being a doctor, or a patient, in
the ―corrections‖ system.
2009 RCS Graduate, Dr Joshua
Crase, spoke about junior doctoring
and gave a ‗light bulb moment‘,
saying to students they should not
feel restricted to a certain medical
path as there are always other
opportunities which arise.
It was then free time to explore the
Macedon Ranges with a few people
venturing to Hanging Rock and the
Holgate Brewhouse in Woodend,
while others relaxed in the grounds of
the Winery.
Saturday night was very entertaining
Ryan Newbold and Anton Lambers entertaining the
students, staff and guests of the Retreat.
beginning with Dr ―Buzz‖ Burrell
visiting from the Marlborough region
of New Zealand‘s South Island, as our
guest speaker. He gave a great
insight into the more unusual aspects
of rural general practice.
This was followed by an open
microphone session where we had
students singing, playing guitars and
even a bagpipe solo.
We received positive feedback from
the students and will likely hold the
Retreat again for the MD students in
May 2011.
~ Nicole van Riet,
RCS Shepparton.
ERC Tour
Recently the semester 8 ERC
students visited all sites for their
'Community Based Year' in
semester 10 which is due to
commence semester 2 2012.
The trip took 3 full days and we
visited every GP practice,
hospital and accommodation
at each site, so students were
comfortable and had a better
understanding of the course.
On Friday 23rd September - we
visited Echuca and Shepparton,
on Saturday 24th September -
Cobram, Yarrawonga, Corowa
and Wangaratta and finally on
Sunday 25th September - we
visited Mt Beauty, Benalla and
Mansfield.
Feedback from students was
very positive and they were
comfortable with the practices
available where previously they
had limited or no knowledge.
We were able to include the
current ERC students in the tour
which gave the semester 8
students valuable insight.
The students were looking
forward to a challenging and
hands on year which lays
ahead.
~ Di Doyle, ERC
Program Coordinator
ERC Tour: students standing in front of the Yarrawonga GP
Practice on the 24/09/11
Page 7

Rural Health Academic Centre
Announcements...
Surprise Nuptials
Congratulations to our staff member Melissa Dobson and her fiancé
James Seymour who surprised us with news that they had tied the
knot on Saturday 17th September 2011.
Melissa and James spent a few glorious weeks in Italy in July, where
they had a fabulous time and little did we know, James had
proposed in Rome. Melissa and James chose a private ceremony
for their marriage at their friends‘ property near Broadford.
Melissa looked lovely in a beautiful floral dress pictured left with her
new husband James and her son Hamish Dobson. Melissa will be
taking on her married name Seymour in due course.
Melissa Dobson and James Seymour
Impending Births
Congratulations to staff member Nicole Van Riet and husband Greg who are expecting their second child in January
2012. A beautiful sibling for Annika aged 2 years old.
Congratulations are also extended to Sath Saranathan (Lecturer In Dental Sciences) and his wife Raathika who are
expecting their first child in December 2011
Birth
Congratulations to Denisa Selagea (the other Lecturer In Dental Sciences) and her hubby whose first child a beautiful
baby boy named Ethan, was born in mid September. All the very best to the family.
Welcome
We would like to make welcome some more new staff to the Rural Health Academic Centre, Mrs Vivien Hicks who
began working for CERSH as Administration Officer in July (see profile at front) of newsletter and Ms Amanda
Hammond who commenced in the position of Receptionist / Administration Officer on Monday 22 nd August 2011 at
RHAC Ballarat.
In Wangaratta we welcome Dr Steven Bismire, who has taken up the role of Acting Deputy Director of Medical Student
Education. While in Benalla, we welcome back to the RHAC Meredith Tolliday (previously our Temp Receptionist in
Shepparton) and now as Administration Officer ERC (Casual).
We would also like to welcome to the Rural Health Academic Network (RHAN) team, Dr Sue Wilson who is the
Research Coordinator for Benalla.
Goodbye
It is with much sadness that after 8 1/2 years of working at the University of Melbourne Rural Health Academic Centre
we say goodbye to Dawn DeWitt (Head of the RHAC) (See Bill‘s editorial on front page of newsletter). Dawn will be
finishing up on 31 st December 2011, and taking up a position at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver,
Canada as the Associate Dean responsible for the Regional Vancouver and Fraser program (s) and the entire MD
Curriculum. We would like to thank Dawn for her great work and dedication, and wish her and her family all the very
best in their new endeavours.
Please ensure you get your articles for the next edition to me
by deadline date (see front and back page)
luciar@unimelb.edu.au
Page 8

Volume 8, Issue 2
Social News...
Multicultural Day
On Tuesday 27th September the RHAC staff and students
united to enjoy our second Multicultural Dinner for the
year. Sadly as mentioned already it will be the last with
Dawn. The evening was a great success with lots of
beautiful food and great company.
Med students Anton Lambers and Ryan Newbold
performed a couple of their new ditties, whose lyrics
thankfully my three year old who danced along to them
did not pick up on. They were funny and very
entertaining. Good job boys!
Awards were given out as per the following:
Most Outstanding Main: was won by Lou Bush for her Thai
Chicken Curry and Smita Deb and Emily Bonett for their
Indian Pilau Rice
Most Outstanding Dessert: Shirley Bekirofski for her
delicious Baklava,
Most Outstanding Presentation: Kathy Franklin for her
beautiful Mars Bars Cheesecake,
Most Creative Meal: Elaine Chilcott for her Almondine
Gelatin
Footy Tipping Competition
This year‘s Footy tipping competition was won by
1st—Lucia Rossi
2nd—Di Doyle
3rd—Tony Rossi
and no it was not rigged…. I won fair and
square!
~ Lucia Rossi
Sharing Recipes...
No Bowl Slice
90g butter
1 cup biscuit crumbs – nice or marie biscuits
1 1/2 cup choc chips
1 cup mixed chopped nuts – almonds, peanuts, walnuts
1 cup coconut – shredded
1 tin of condensed milk
Method:
1 – Preheat oven to 180C
2 - Melt butter and pour into lined slice tin pan, evenly sprinkle biscuit crumbs over the melted butter.
3 – Sprinkle over biscuit crumbs, a layer of nuts, a layer of coconut, a layer of choc chips.
4 – Evenly pour over tin of condensed milk.
5 – Bake for 30 mins or until set and golden.
The Rural Clinical School Class of 2011
Graduation Dinner
to be held on
Friday 18 th
November
at the Park Lake Hotel Shepparton.
Page 9

Healthy Bites...
Rural Health Academic Centre
A Big Thumbs Up...
If you know of anyone who deserves a big thumbs up, let Lucia
know so that we can make them suitably embarrassed!
Ph: 5823 4503, or send an email to luciar@unimelb.edu.au
Congratulations to our Liz Williams, Coordinator Paediatrics, Physiotherapy,
School of Health Sciences and Lecturer in Rural Physiotherapy at the Rural
Health Academic Centre who has been awarded the Medal of the Order
of Australia.
RURAL
HEALTH
ACADEMIC
CENTRE
Ballarat Office
University of Melbourne
Rural Health Academic Centre
”Dunvegan”
806 Mair Street
BALLARAT VIC 3353
Congratulations to Lisa Bourke, Associate Professor Social Science, at the
Rural Health Academic Centre, who had an article entitled The Higher
Hurdle — Being Young and Rural published online in July in The University of
Melbourne‘s Staff / Student E-news (Musse). You can read the article at
http://www.musse.unimelb.edu.au/july-11-64/lisa-bourke
Congratulations also to Kaye Irvine who was successful in publishing a
paper entitled ―Responding to rural health needs through community
participation: addressing the concerns of children and young adults‖ in the
Australian Journal of Primary Health, 2011. (Australian Journal of Primary Health, 2011,
17, 125–130; www.publish.csiro.au/journals/py)
Congratulations to the Nish Street Medical Practice in Echuca for winning
two Department of General Practice awards in relation to teaching and
research:
Excellence as a teaching practice – Nish Street Medical Practice,
Echuca (Dr Suzanne Harrison and team)
Two students from different rotations independently nominated the Nish
Street Medical Practice for this award. One student noted the “incredible
team atmosphere amongst the staff at Nish Street, which translated into
an exceptional, welcoming and open working environment, where
mutual respect for co-workers and patients was of utmost concern.” The
practice as a whole demonstrated a genuine enthusiasm for teaching.
One student also provided evidence of the community engagement of
the practice citing the active involvement of practice staff in calls to
improve funding for the local hospital.
Excellent contribution to research by a primary health care
professional-Ms Sharon Briscoe, Practice Manager – Nish Street
Medical Practice, Echuca
Sharon is recognised for her contribution to the i-CCAaN study– improving
community co-ordination, access and networks: primary care for patients
with depression, anxiety and co-morbid chronic physical illnesses. Sharon
demonstrated total commitment to this project from the outset. She
undertook to audit the GP lists to identify all suitable patients, devised a
reminder process that alerted the GPs to the fact that patients were
elgible for the study and kept track of all interventions for the project.
Sharon liaised with the research staff at a level that was not expected,
taking ownership and responsibility for ensuring that the study protocols
within her practice were met. The I-CCAaN project would not have been
completed or succeeded in this practice without Sharon‟s facilitation.
Phone: 03 5332 3190
Fax: 03 5332 4519
Email: rhac-info@unimelb.edu.au
Shepparton Office
University of Melbourne
Rural Health Academic Centre
49 Graham Street
PO Box 6500
SHEPPARTON VIC 3632
Ph: 03 5823 4500
Fax: 03 5823 4555
Email: rhac-info@unimelb.edu.au
Wangaratta Office
University of Melbourne
Rural Health Academic Centre
C/- Northeast Health
Green Street
PO Box 386
WANGARATTA Vic 3676
Phone: 03 5722 0498
Fax: 03 5721 9184
Email: rhac-info@unimelb.edu.au
Web Address:
http://
www.ruralhealth.unimelb.
edu.au/
HEALTHY BITES DEADLINE—
18 November 2011
Please ensure you get
your articles to
luciar@unimelb.edu.au