Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Exploring Leadership And Research In Nurse Practitioner Roles Across Australia And Ireland: A Mixed-Methods Study, Mary Ryder

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Introduction

The Nurse Practitioner role is recognised as the highest level of clinical nursing. Leadership and research are identified as core attributes for Nurse Practitioners in the regulatory frameworks. There is an expectation that as clinical leaders, Nurse Practitioners have the ability to transform healthcare delivery within their specialist area of practice.

Background

The voice of Nurse Practitioners is limited in the current literature related to how they view their leadership contribution to Nursing. There has been some criticism in the evidence to date related to volume, consistency and transferability of Nurse Practitioner research. However, there is a shortage of …

The Perceived Influence Of Grandparents’ Beliefs And Attitudes On Parents’ Breastfeeding Behaviour And Paediatric Vaccination Decisions, Shantha Premila Karthigesu

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Human infants are highly dependent on their parents for a prolonged period of time. The resources required to raise a child cannot be provided by biological parents alone and requires the assistance of others, usually relatives. Grandparents among them, have played the most significant role. With increased life expectancy in Western, educated, industrialised, rich and democratic (WEIRD) societies, grandparents have come to the forefront as informal childcare providers. Although the influence of a child’s social environment on health has been well-studied, the influence of grandparents, specifically in regard to breastfeeding remains inconclusive, while grandparental influence on paediatric vaccinations has not …

Gait Entrainment In Coupled Oscillator Systems: Clarifying The Role Of Energy Optimization In Human Walking, Ryan T. Schroeder

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Empirical evidence suggests that parameters of human gait (e.g. step frequency, step length) tend to minimize energy expenditure. However, it is unclear if individuals can adapt to dynamic environments in real time, i.e. continuously optimize energy expenditure, and to what extent. Two coupled oscillator systems were used to test the learned interactions of individuals within dynamic environments: (1) experienced farmworkers carrying oscillating loads on a flexible bamboo pole and (2) individuals walking on a treadmill while strapped to a mechatronics oscillator system providing periodic forces to the body. Reductionist trajectory optimization models predicted energy-minimizing gait interactions within the coupled oscillator …

Appraisal Of Free Online Symptom Checkers And Applications For Self-Diagnosis And Triage: An Australian Evaluation, Michella Gaye Hill

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The internet has impacted society and changed the way companies and individuals operate on a daily basis. Seeking information online via computer or mobile device is common practice. The phrase ‘Google it’ is now part of modern vernacular and is a resource increasingly utilised by young and old alike. Around 80% of Australian’s search health-related information online as it is convenient, cheap, and available 24/7. Symptom checkers are one tool used by consumers to investigate their health issues. Symptom checkers are automated online programs which use computerised algorithms, asking a series of questions to help determine a potential diagnosis and/or …

Nutrition, Body Composition And Physical Activity In Malignant Pleural Disease: Associations With Patient Outcomes And Response To An Exercise Intervention, Emily Jeffery

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Background: Patients with malignant pleural disease (MPD) have advanced cancer and high symptom burden. Goals of patient care are to optimise health-related quality-of-life (HR-QoL) and participation in daily physical activities. Supportive care interventions such as nutrition and exercise could offer benefit to patients. However, there is a lack of information on the prevalence of low muscle mass (i.e., pre-sarcopenia), malnutrition, inactivity and poor physical functioning in patients with MPD. Additionally, little is known about the factors associated with development of pre-sarcopenia and malnutrition or their associations with patient outcomes.

Purpose: The objectives were to: 1) characterise physical activity levels and …

Improving Sprint Performance In Road Cycling: The Forward Standing Sprint Position, Paul Franciscus Johannes Merkes

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The majority of road cycling races finish with a sprint and as such sprints are a key determinant of success. Surprisingly, the scientific literature on this specific topic is scarce, with limited to few studies describing the characteristics of road cycling sprinters and the demands of road sprinting. Cyclists’ sprinting velocity, which is mostly influenced by power output and aerodynamic drag (CdA) is critical to performance outcomes. However, to date, there is very limited research specifically examining how to maximise road sprint velocity. Thus, the overall objective of the four studies outlined in this thesis was to manipulate CdA, physiology, …

Determining Ground-Level Composition And Concentration Of Particulate Matter Across Regional Areas Using The Himawari-8 Satellite, Miles Sowden

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Speciated ground-level aerosol concentrations are required to understand and mitigate health impacts from dust storms, wildfires and other aerosol emissions. Globally, surface monitoring is limited due to cost and infrastructure demands. While remote sensing can help estimate respirable (i.e. ground level) concentrations, current observations are restricted by inadequate spatiotemporal resolution, uncertainty in aerosol type, particle size, and vertical profile. One key issue with current remote sensing datasets is that they are derived from reflectances observed by polar orbiting imagers, which means that aerosol is only derived during the daytime, and only once or twice per day.

Sub-hourly, infrared (IR), geostationary …

Quantifying The Heterogeneity Of The Immunoglobulin G N-Glycome In An Ageing Australian Population: The Busselton Healthy Ageing Study, Alyce Russell

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The use of immunoglobulin G N-glycomics to study chronic non-communicable disorders and other complex phenotypes emerged following the Human Genome Project. The consortium discovered that most phenotypes were too complex to be explained by genetics alone. Thus, the biological importance of epigenetics was recognised; heritable modifications to gene expression rather than the genome itself. Nglycosylation is a form of epigenetic regulation known as a post-translational modification. It stabilises the immunoglobulin G structure and alters downstream responses elicited by the antibody and is extensively studied as a candidate biomarker in the post-genomic era.

The N-glycosylation of immunoglobulin G itself is complex, …

Injury Surveillance In Community Cricket And The Exploration Of Insurance Claims Systems, Geordie Mcleod

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The aims of this industry funded PhD thesis were 1) To understand the injury causes, trends and burden in community cricket and 2) To examine the Cricket Australia National Club Risk Protection Program (NCRPP) insurance scheme for suitability as an injury surveillance tool for community cricket.

This thesis sought to identify and understand the injury profile of community cricketers through existing literature and injury datasets, being, Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit (VISU) hospital data, Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) and NCRPP insurance claims data. This thesis also undertook a novel assessment of data validity and completeness from various sources, against industry standards …

Barriers To Ghanaian Midwives’ Ability To Provide Quality Care: A Glaserian Grounded Theory Study, Yakubu Ismaila

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The midwifery model of care that promotes the employment of trained and regulated midwives for the provision of maternal and neonatal care has been found to be beneficial, especially in Low and Middle-Income Countries that have high maternal and neonatal mortalities. Midwives in those setting are however, facing a myriad of barriers which negatively affect their ability to provide optimal care. Although Ghana is implementing the midwifery model of care, maternal and neonatal mortality remains high in the country. Little is known from the point of view of midwives, who are the primary providers of maternal and neonatal care, about …

Exercise And Nutrition Induced Weight Loss For Prostate Cancer Patients, Rebekah Louise Wilson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This thesis encompasses six main chapters - two reviews and four experimental chapters, in addition to a general introduction and discussion.

Review 1 (Chapter 2) is a discussion of the negative impact of obesity on prostate cancer prognosis and common prostate cancer treatments.

Review 2 (Chapter 3) is an evaluation of the current literature examining prostate cancer patients receiving androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and how exercise and nutrition interventions can be used to induce fat loss, while preserving or improving lean mass.

Study 1 (Chapter 4) is an examination of the efficacy of a weight loss program in altering body …

The Importance Of Telehealth In The Implementation Of Best Practice In Paediatric Burn Management By Non-Burn Specialist Clinicians, Tania Mcwilliams

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Introduction: Burns are a leading cause of injury worldwide, yet the initial assessment and management of patients following burn injury is often performed by non-burn specialist clinicians. Using the Gilbert Behaviour Engineering Model as a framework, strategies were introduced to support these clinicians. A better understanding was needed, however, of the effectiveness of these strategies, and the experiences of clinicians who provide this initial care.

Aims: This study aims to contribute new knowledge related to paediatric burn care through the evaluation of a state-wide burns telehealth program in Western Australia; specifically, develop a deeper and more relevant understanding of a …

Improving Processes For Implementing Evidence-Based Practice In Midwifery: Development Of An Etool(Kit) For Midwives, Annemarie June De Leo

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Evidence-based practice (EBP) is well-established as the gold standard for service delivery of quality healthcare around the world, yet there remains a significant gap between best available evidence and its everyday use in maternity services. The numerous benefits of EBP are therefore never realised and although a considerable body of knowledge has evolved on how to promote the uptake of new EBPs, little is known about midwives’ experience of implementing EBP or leading practice change projects in clinical areas.

The aim of this study was to work collaboratively with midwives towards the co-development of an evidence implementation resource, designed to …

Mechanisms Underpinning An Improvement In Dynamic Muscle Force Production Following A High-Intensity Warm-Up, Cody J. Wilson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The present research explored the mechanisms underpinning the enhancement of voluntary knee extensor torque after (1) extensive task-specific practice, and then (2) brief, intense warm-up exercise (conditioning activity; CA) as part of a complete warm-up routine. The same warm-up was completed in two Experiments (detailed below). In Experiment 1, voluntary (180⁰·s-1; T180) and electrically-evoked (isometric) knee extensor torques and electromyogram (EMG) and muscle temperature (Tm) data were recorded before and after (1) extensive task-specific practice where peak voluntary knee extensor performance was achieved, and (2) two isokinetic CAs matched for total concentric contraction time (CA60: 5 repetitions at 60⁰·s-1 vs. …

Development, Assessment And Application Of A Novel Algorithm To Automatically Detect Change Of Direction Movement And Quantify Its Associated Mechanical Load In Elite Australian Football, Aaron Balloch

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The ability to change direction rapidly and efficiently is critical to team-sport performance, including Australian football (AF), where a player’s capacity to rapidly decelerate, move laterally and re-accelerate is critical when evading opponents, tackling, or reacting to the unpredictable bounce of the ball or movement of another player. The biomechanical loading requirements of change of direction (COD) movement are angle and velocity dependant. Cumulative COD movement can impart high levels of neuromuscular and metabolic fatigue which can adversely affect the efficiency of subsequent movement efforts. Despite widespread use of microtechnology devices (the vast majority containing a global navigation satellite system …

Effects Of High-Intensity Position-Specific Drills On Physical And Technical-Skill Performance In Young Soccer Players, Cao Cuong Le

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Soccer is the most widely played sport in the world, and physical preparation for soccer players has been extensively researched over the years. As the average intensity of a soccer match is close to 80-90% of maximal heart rate (HRmax), it is necessary to train at or above this intensity. Thus, high-intensity interval running and small-sided games are often used to improve aerobic capacity and repeated sprint ability (RSA). However, neither of these approaches consider positional variations in the frequency and type of specific technical skills required in real match situations. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate …

The Effects Of Environmental Temperature On High-Intensity Interval Training, Jason R. Boynton

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Endurance athletes typically spend the large majority of training (> 70%) at low intensities (i.e. below lactate threshold) coupled with short and intermittent bouts of high-intensity exercise or interval training (HIIT). Despite HIIT being a relatively small part of training in terms of duration, it has a substantial effect on the adaptations to endurance training. While it is well-established endurance exercise performance is affected in both hot and cold environmental conditions, the effect ambient temperature (TA; frequently referred to as environmental temperature) has on HIIT as performed by an endurance athlete population is not well understood. Therefore, the overall purpose …

Drug Users’ Experiences Of A Residential Rehabilitation Program In Western Australia: A Thematic Analysis Of Drug Users Lived Experiences, Michelle Fullam

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In the last decade, there has been a marked increase in the awareness of drug use and drug-related crime in Australia. As a result, the demand for drug treatment services has increased and 14 recognised government-funded services are now available in Western Australia (WA). The goal of these services is to reduce drug use through full-time intensive programs that are usually residential. This type of drug treatment has been shown to be effective in reducing drug use and promoting pro-social lives post-treatment. However, little is known of the experiences of participants in this type of treatment in WA. As such, …