Public Health Education and Promotion Commons^™

Investigating The Value Of Workplace-Endorsed Social Media For Improving Deskbound Employee Physical Activity Program Engagement And Reducing Sedentary Behaviour Health Risks, Darren Leigh Webb

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Sedentary (prolonged sitting) behaviour is now recognised as an independent health risk factor contributing to a number of preventable lifestyle related diseases (Katzmarzyk, Church, Craig, & Bouchard, 2009). The widespread integration of computers into the office environment has seen an increase in employee work time participating in technology facilitated desk-based tasks requiring them to remain physically inactive (Philipson & Posner, 2003). According to recent research, workplace sedentary behavioural practices have objectively been measured as accounting for 81.8% of employee time, with a further 15.3% categorised as light activity within office based populations (Parry & Straker, 2013). With a recorded national …

What We Know, What We Do And What We Could Do: Creating An Understanding Of The Delivery Of Health Education In Lower Secondary Government Schools In Western Australia, Donna Michelle Barwood

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Australian health data indicates that childhood is a significant time for young Australians to develop health and well-being issues. Concurrently, health advocates herald in-school delivery of skills-based participatory health education as making significant contributions to developing behaviour change and supporting health enhancing dispositions in children and young people. In Western Australia (WA), skillsbased participatory health education is characterised by linking knowledge and understandings of what it means to be safer, healthier and more physically active to skills that action these states. Skills-based is a preferred approach to teaching and learning in the Health and Physical Education Learning Area (HPE LA), …

Improving Health Professional's Knowledge Of Hepatitis B Using Cartoon Based Learning Tools: A Retrospective Analysis Of Pre And Post Tests, Moira G. Sim, Ashleigh C. Mcevoy, Toni D. Wain Ms, Eric L. Khong

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Background: Hepatitis B serology is complex and a lack of knowledge in interpretation contributes to the inadequate levels of screening and referral for highly effective hepatitis antiviral treatments. This knowledge gap needs to be addressed so that current and future healthcare professionals are more confident in the detection and assessment of hepatitis B to improve the uptake of treatment and reduce long-term complications from the disease. Cartoons have been used effectively as a teaching tool in other settings and were considered as a potentially useful teaching aid in explaining hepatitis B serology. This study examines the impact of cartoons in …

Moving Physical Activity Beyond The School Classroom: A Social-Ecological Insight For Teachers Of The Facilitators And Barriers To Students' Non-Curricular Physical Activity, Brendon Hyndman, Amanda Telford, Caroline F. Finch, Amanda C. Benson

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Non-curricular avenues such as active play during school breaks have been established as a major source for children’s physical and cognitive development, yet there is little information for teachers on the influences affecting primary and secondary school students’ non-curricular physical activity. During this study focus groups and drawing were used to explore the broader influences on primary (n=47) and secondary (n=29) school students’ physical activity behaviour beyond the classroom. Barriers and facilitators to children’s physical activity were categorised using a multi-level social-ecological framework incorporating intrapersonal, interpersonal, physical environment and policy factors. Based on the drawings, comparisons between students’ existing play …

Predictors Of Adolescents Attitudes Towards Hepatitis C, Magdalena Sotiroski

School of Psychology and Social Science Presentations

Hepatitis C is referred to as a blood borne virus and transmission is possible when there is blood to bloodcontact. In Australia one person is exposed to hepatitis C every hour of every day. Attempts to increase knowledge and change attitudes towards hepatitis C in the community have been limited, particularly among target groups such as young people. It seems the majority of hepatitis C education and prevention efforts have focused on the provision of information (cognitions) to increase awareness and reduce engagement in risk behaviours (Brown, Perlmutter & McDermott, 2000; Munoz-Plaza, Strauss, Astone, Jarlais & Hagan, 2004). In contrast, …

Knowledge Of The Uv Index Within Western Australia, David Mercovich

Theses : Honours

Australia has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world and despite the dedicated efforts of preventative campaigns since 1981; this number has increased over the past ten years (Carter & Donovan, 2007). With most skin cancer being attributed to Ultra violet radiation there is a pressing need for proper education, health promotion and preventative means. Previous Western Australian skin UV Index research has yielded findings of moderate awareness. However, there is the association between skin cancer prevalence and the UV Index but a lack of knowledge and application of the UV Index as a means of preventative measures …

The Sun Safety Attitudes Of Parents And The Effects On Their Children, Matthew Welch

Theses : Honours

Parents are seen as the most important role models in the development of health practice behaviours, including sun safety for their children. The aim of the current study is to explore the experiences and sun protection knowledge, attitudes and behaviours of a parent of a child who has seen a UV photograph of both themselves and their child. By utilising UV flash photography, parents were able to see the damage done to their face and their child’s face caused by overexposure to the sun. The study was conducted through a qualitative, phenomenological approach, with the data analysed through the process …

Conceptualising Bullying In An Aboriginal Context As Reported By The Yamaji Community, To Inform The Development Of A Bullying Prevention Program That Is Culturally Sensitive To The Needs Of Aboriginal Students, Juli Coffin

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The Solid Kids Solid Schools project aimed to capture the unheard voices of Aboriginal children and community members on the issues surrounding ‘bullying’. In an Aboriginal context bullying is different and the outcomes are different, yet mainstream programs are utilized to combat the issue. We need to know how bullying is different for Aboriginal children and young people, why it is different and what does this difference mean in terms of addressing this issue in a school and community setting? A community based steering group guided the direction of this study and the larger Solid Kids Solid Schools project. Snowball …

A Review Of The Evaluation Of Healthway Sponsorships, Michael Rosenberg, Christina Mills, Joanna Granich, Renee Ferguson, Sarah French, Lisa Wood

Research outputs pre 2011

This study reviewed the methods used by Healthway to assess sponsorship implementation/value and to explore complimentary or alternative evaluation measures...

Interview questions related to sponsorship activities, procedures, requirements and evaluation. Suggestions for practical and alternative ways of assessing sponsorship implementation and conducting evaluations were also asked. In addition, the perceived value of sponsorship investments to Healthway and satisfaction with the existing evaluation framework were also sought...

Participation In Sports, Arts And Racing And Its Relationship To Message Literacy And Health Behaviours, Christina Mills, Michael Rosenberg, Sarah French, Jenna Mitchell, Lisa Wood

Research outputs pre 2011

The purpose of this study was to assess health message awareness and health behaviours by participation/non participation in sport, arts and racing (SAR) in Western Australia. In this study a 'participant' was defined as someone who was (1) a member of a SAR organisation, group or club; and/or (2) having attended a SAR event as a spectator or audience member in the last 12 months. A 'non participant' was someone who did not participate in any SAR events as a member and/or spectator and/or audience member in the last 12 months.

Promoting Healthy Weight In The Preschool Years: A Portfolio And Planning Guide To Address Barriers In Primary Care, Margaret Miller, Renee Campbell-Pope, Lydia Hearn

Research outputs pre 2011

The rapidly rising incidence of overweight and obesity in Australia, particularly among young children has led to an urgent need for effective prevention. Recent figures indicate that 15% of preschool children in Australia are overweight, and a further 6% are obese1,2, with rates rising steadily especially among children from lower socioeconomic groups.

Family, childcare, primary health care, early childhood education and the community are influential environments for young children3-7 with the potential to engage in an integrated approach to promote healthy weight and development of healthy eating and active lifestyle habits during the pre-school years5,8,9.

In 2006, the Child Health …

Organisational Survey: Impact Of Healthway Funding On Currently Funded And Previously Funded Sar Organisations, Michael Rosenberg, Sarah French, Jenna Mitchell, Christina Mills, Lisa Wood

Research outputs pre 2011

Since 1992, organisations in receipt of Healthway funding have demonstrated consistently high levels of commitment to sponsorship requirements. In part, the high levels of commitment observed may reflect a trend towards organisations with similar values to Healthway applying for funding. Organisations with different values to Healthway may receive funding once and decide that the sponsorship does riot match the needs of their organisation. This may result in difficulties fo.r Healthway to access hard to reach organisations, or to establish longer-term partnerships with Sports, Arts or Racing (SAR) organisations that target high priority groups. To better understand how Healthway's requirements of …

Is Enough Really Enough? : Evaluation Of An Alcohol Awareness Campaign At Ecu Joondalup, Marissa Macdonald

Theses : Honours

Australian young adults aged 17-25 years old attending university are more likely to drink at levels which put themselves at risk of both short and long term alcohol-related harm. University settings are an appropriate place to target university students with alcohol education or awareness-raising campaigns. Australian research on this topic is relatively limited. This mixed methods study involved two phases. The first phase quantitatively evaluated the impact of the 'Enough is Enough' campaign, implemented by the North Metropolitan Community Drug Service Team at ECU Joondalup, on students' awareness of the consequences of excessive alcohol use and perceived acceptability of drunkenness. …

Knowledge And Perceptions About Hepatitis C Among Police Undertaking Training At The Western Australia Police Academy, Cerissa Papanastasiou

Theses : Honours

Hepatitis C (HCV) is a significant health issue in Australia with approximately 90% of new cases attributed to injecting drug use (IDU). With no vaccination for this infection it is important that preventive methods are utilised to reduce the likelihood of it being transmitted from the IDU community into the wider community. Research has suggested that people's beliefs, which are influenced by the knowledge they have, play an important role in influencing the action people take in protecting and promoting their health. While there are numerous studies which have measured the HCV-related knowledge and perceptions of other professions in the …

Evaluation Of A Community Radio Station In Tulikup, Bali: Indonesia, Dane Anthony Waters

Theses : Honours

Community-oriented radio can be a valuable tool to mobilise communities and contribute to making positive social changes throughout the world (Dagron, 2001). Heartline Bali FM is a community-oriented radio station, which since development, has sought to positively impact the people within the community it serves. Located in the rural Balinese village of Tulikup, Indonesia, the station has responded practically to the health and social needs of the community through radio and other social development strategies since its establishment in 2003. In 2004, a base-line needs assessment was conducted within the village to help inform the radio station of the health …

Maximising Parent Involvement In The Pedestrian Safety Of 4 To 6 Year Old Children: Final Report, Child Health Promotion Research Centre

Research outputs pre 2011

In Australia pedestrian injury is the leading specific cause of death among 5-9 year old children, and pedestrian injuries among 0-14 year old children in 1999-20000 were the second highest cause of hospitalisation. This mortality and morbidity can be attributed largely to unsafe road environments and under 10 year old children's significant deficits in cognitive and perceptual abilities when crossing roads. For all children under 10 years learning to cross the road needs to be taught by parents in the same way that children learn to swim i.e. under close adult supervision and in the 'real' environment where the skills …

Exploring Young People's Concepts Of Smoking Addiction: Perceived Opportunities To Try Smoking Without Becoming Addicted, Calvin Wang

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study explores how young people conceptualise addiction to smoking and, also the relationship between young people's addiction beliefs and intentions to smoke cigarettes. Addiction to smoking is a major health problem, not just for adults, but also for young smokers, up to 60% of whom are dependent on nicotine. However, anti-smoking prevention efforts targeted at young people generally emphasise ill-health effects and little attention is paid to addiction education which is generally considered relevant only to adult smoking and cessation efforts. Perhaps as a consequence, young people appear to have many misconceptions and unrealistic ideas about addiction, and these …

Process Evaluation Of A School- And Home-Based Sun Safety Education Intervention, Robyn S. Johnston

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Effective interventions that reduce children's sun exposure are likely to reduce melanoma incidence in the longer term. However, for such interventions to have an impact they must be adequately implemented. School-based sun protection programs have been evaluated to determine their effectiveness in changing behaviours, however, few studies have assessed the implementation of such programs, or the effect of their implementation on outcomes. Kidskin was a five-year intervention trial designed to assess the effectiveness of a multicomponent intervention in reducing sun exposure in children in Perth, Western Australia. This thesis describes the process evaluation of the school- and home-based educational components …

Healthcare Practitioners' Perspectives On The Use Of E-Health Applications To Support Overweight And Obese Adolescents, Rachel J. Mahncke

Theses : Honours

The aim of this research was to investigate, from an Australian healthcare practitioners' perspective, whether online and e-health applications could provide support for and be beneficial to overweight and obese adolescents. This research has investigated whether diet and exercise related environmental causes of obesity could be positively affected by using e-health applications to re-educate adolescents about healthy eating and exercise behaviours the research identified what online and electronic resources healthcare practitioners' recommended to their patients, in order to understand how information systems· solutions could better assist these patients in achieving healthier lifestyle outcomes. Additionally, the research investigated what content, features …

Impact Of Extra-Curricular Activities On Adolescents' Connectedness And Cigarette Smoking: Annual Report, Donna Cross, Greg Hamilton, Rob Mcgee, Margaret Hall

Research outputs pre 2011

Cigarette smoking is the primary cause of preventable death in Australia, killing approximately 19,000 people every year.⁸ Up to 90% of smokers begin smoking by 18 years of age.^9,10 In spite of the obvious public health burden, current approaches have led to very modest decreases in adolescent smoking in the past 10 years. ¹¹ The Smoking Cessation for Youth Project (SCYP)⁴ was a cluster randomised control trial that resulted in lower cigarette smoking among Year 10 students who received a harm minimisation intervention over two years. This project also led to the identification of connectedness as a …

Examination Of The Transtheoretical Model Of Behaviour Change To Increase Physical Activity Within An Organisational Setting, Justine L. Goldspink

Theses : Honours

This study explored the application of Prochaska and DiClemente's (1982) transtheoretical model of behaviour change (TIM) to the area of physical activity adoption and maintenance within an organisational setting. One hundred and nine employees of the Bunbury Centrelink Call Centre participated in a six-week physical activity intervention modelled on the Take Charge Challenge (TCC) (Leonard, 2000). Based on the TIM, this program attempts to increase individual physical activity through organisational change in order to counterbalance the sedentary nature of roles undertaken by staff and to maximise physical and psychological health benefits for employees. Time (in minutes/ week) engaging in physical …

Depressed Men Angry Women: Non-Stereotypical Gender Responses To Anti-Smoking Messages In Older Smokers, Debora Brown

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This qualitative study into the effective use of fear arousal in social marketing advertising, focused on exploring gender differences in smokers' attitudes towards threats in anti-smoking messages in the 40 to 50 year old age group. This age group of smokers has received relatively little attention in the fear arousal literature to date, presumably because their 'hard core' attitudes are perceived as difficult to change by social marketing and medical practitioners. The key purpose of this study was to explore the attitudinal responses of male and female smokers in the 40 to 50 year old age group to anti-smoking messages …

Smoking : An Exploration Of Message Framing And Death Anxiety, Ian James Parker

Theses : Honours

The focus of this thesis is the replication and extension of research by Tversky and Kahneman (1981) who found that how a message is worded or framed can significantly affect decisional choice. Tversky and Kahneman (1981) demonstrated that a message framed in terms of "lives saved" was favoured over one which read "lives lost" notwithstanding that the net sum of survivors was equal in both instances. The authors referred to the effects of message framing on decision making as Prospect Theory. This thesis studied Tversky and Kahneman's (1981) research applied to the issue of smoking. The preference for a positive …

Participation And The Focus Of Nutrition Education In A Rural Child Growth Monitoring Program In Kenya, Elizabeth N. Kuria

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Nutrition education is one of the strategies that addresses high levels of malnutrition in the world. Since independence in 1963. Kenya has instituted socio-economic, food security, nutrition and health policies to improve the nutrition and quality of life of it's people. In spite of these policies, one third of the Kenyan population is undernourished. This study was planned to establish how nutrition education is conducted in the Ministry of Health Thika District through a rural child growth monitoring program and to generate and reflect on women's participation in decision making in the program. Open-ended interviews were conducted with 21 women …

Young Families' Utilisation, Self-Perceived Requirements, And Satisfaction With Child Health Services In The City Of Belmont, Western Australia, Ailsa M. Munns

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The expectations of young families regarding care they would like to receive from community nurses working in the child health area is affected by the relationship between those expectations, utilisation and sociocultural factors such as family type, family composition and ethnicity. These factors influence family dynamics, needs, functioning and interactions with the wider community. A descriptive study with both quantitative and qualitative components was used to identify and analyse the self-identified requirements of young families utilising Child Health Services in the Belmont area, Western Australia, and their patterns of utilisation. Twenty five women who had a child or children under …

Breast Self Examination: A Healthy Approach: Teaching Manual, Margaret Imeson, Molly Mccartney

Research outputs pre 2011

The theme of this health teaching package is breast care with an emphasis on step-by-step instruction f0r breast self examination. The package has been designed to guide health professionals in the facilitation of workshops and discussion groups promoting breast care for women. Materials included in the manual may be adapted to suit audience requirements...

Health Care Beliefs Of Elderly Vietnamese Refugees, Gayle Watson

Theses : Honours

Since 1975, a large number of Vietnamese refugees have settled in Australia. They can be recognised as a distinct cultural group within our society. However, little research has focused upon the health practices and beliefs of these people. This is a study of elderly Vietnamese refugees who have previously been identified as maintaining a great adherence to traditional values and behaviours. The aim of the research is to describe the health practices and beliefs of elderly Vietnamese refugees. As a mini ethno-nursing study, this research sought qualitative data, guided by the Health Belief Model adapted to accommodate cultural perspectives. With …