News and Updates
Pro Vice Chancellor Health Sciences, Professor Jill Downie, with Hockeyroos players Kate
Hollywood and Casey Eastham, modeling the Hockeyroo Pink Ladies Day Uniform.
See also the Campus News article.
The Hockeyroos will be pretty in pink at the Samsung Hockey Champions Trophy – Women 2009 Sydney tournament, thanks to a partnership with the Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute (CHIRI) and the National Breast Cancer Foundation.
With the Champions Trophy running from 11-19 July, the Hockeyroos will celebrate ‘Pink Ladies Day’ on Sunday 12th July during their match against Argentina by wearing full pink bodysuits. This will be the first time any Australian national team has completely altered their official Australian team colours for charity.
Pro Vice-Chancellor of the Faculty of Health Sciences at Curtin University, Professor Jill Downie, said she was very pleased to be able to support the Hockeyroos and the National Breast Cancer Foundation in Pink Ladies Day.
“Research into cancer treatments and prevention is a key portfolio of the Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute (CHIRI). Chronic diseases such as cancer pose the greatest challenge to the wellbeing of Australians and we are delighted to be able to join with the Hockeyroos and NBCF to promote awareness,” Professor Downie said.
In addition to the Hockeyroos wearing pink uniforms, Pink Ladies Day will also provide the NBCF with fundraising opportunities via NBCF merchandise being available for purchase during the tournament and a signed pink body suit will be auctioned by the NBCF. The International Hockey Federation will also be providing pink shirts for the umpires to wear in support of the day.
The purpose of Pink Ladies Day is to create awareness of the tireless work undertaken by the NBCF, with Hockey Australia Chief Executive Mark Anderson saying he is proud to be aligned with such a worthy organisation.
“This is the first time that the Hockeyroos have worn an outfit that is not the official Australian team colours. As such, it’s a very important decision that we have not taken lightly as an organisation and as a team. We spoke to the Hockeyroos to ensure that they were comfortable with this decision. The Hockeyroos have supported the position fully as they are aware of the importance of breast cancer as a health issue for all Australian women. We are delighted to partner NBCF and hope that our association assists in some way to raise awareness and fight this disease,” Mr Anderson said.
“More often than not, the Hockeyroos are associated with winning and success due to our remarkable history. On this occasion we are pleased to be associated with something beyond the hockey pitch. Breast cancer can affect women and families at all levels of the community, including elite athletes,” said Anderson.
The Champions Trophy is the most prestigious annual hockey event on the 2009 international calendar.
Australia finds itself in the unique position of hosting both the Samsung Hockey Champions Trophy Women 2009 in Sydney (July 11-19) and the ABN AMRO Hockey Champions Trophy Men 2009 in Melbourne (November 28 – December 6) within six months of each other.
Curtin OT graduate is the master of Masters
Curtin University of Technology graduate, Sean Ashton, was awarded the Dux Prize for the Master of Occupational Therapy course at the School of Occupational Therapy and Social Work’s Prize Giving ceremony last week.
View full media release on Curtin OT graduate is the master of Masters [.pdf - 29Kb]
[Posted: 27/02/09]
Suzanne's knowledge of nutrition pays off
Curtin University of Technology dietetic graduate Suzanne White has won the Western Australian Branch of the Dietitians Association of Australia’s Underwood Award for the most outstanding student.
View full media release on Suzanne's knowledge of nutrition pays off [.pdf - 27Kb]
[Posted: 27/02/09]
Curtin researchers to focus on indigenous health
View full media release on Indigenous health as a PDF.
[Posted: 15/02/09]
$5 Million to study role of exercise in spinal cord repair
View full media statement on exercise in spinal cord repair as a PDF.
[Posted: 15/02/09]
Curtin Professor awarded international fellowship
Curtin University of Technology academic, Professor Peter Howat, has been awarded an American Academy of Health Behavior (AAHB) Fellowship.
View full article on Prof Howat as PDF
[Posted: 16/12/08]
Curtin Biomed student wins top science award
Curtin University of Technology Biomedical Sciences PhD student Melissa Corbett has won a top science award for her work on a strain of bacteria that is used to solubilise mineral deposits. The second year PhD student, of Como, has won the WA competition of the 2008 AusBiotech-GSK Student Excellence Award.
She received a trip to Melbourne to attend the Australian Biotechnology Conference where she presented her research.
Ms Corbett was excited about winning the award and the networking opportunities offered by the conference. "Biomining, the area of biotechnology I am studying, is in its infancy so making contacts with others who are studying and working in this area is very important," she said. "There is a large scope for research in the biomining area, so hopefully I will be able to meet some people that I may work collaboratively with in the future. I am really looking forward to learning more about where my research can take me in the future after attending the conference."
The AusBiotech-GSK Student Excellence Award are open to first and second year PhD students at Australian universities who are working on projects that potentially have a commercial application. Winners are chosen from each of the states in Australia and then invited to present at the Australian Biotechnology Conference.
Ms Corbett's research focuses on the metabolic functions of a particular strain of bacteria and how this information can be used to advance biomining technologies, having implications for the way in which minerals will be extracted in the future. This research is especially important for WA with its wealth of mineral deposits in the north of the State to allow easier methods of mining in the future.
After completing her Bachelor of Science (Molecular Genetics) with honours at Curtin University in 2001, Ms Corbett worked in Sydney for two years before working at Kings College, London doing research for two years. She returned to WA in 2007 to start her PhD which she hopes to complete in 2010. Ms Corbett is also undertaking a Graduate Certificate in Research Commercialisation through the Australian Technology Network, of which Curtin is a member.
[Posted: 6/11/08]
Gold medal recognition for Assoc Prof Paola Ferroni
Congratulations to Associate Professor Paola Ferroni, who has been awarded the Gold Medal for outstanding services by the Tuscan Chamber of Commerce and the Lucchese nel Mondo (World Association of Lucchese).
Dr Ferroni was born in Lucca, Tuscany and has been recognised by the Lucca association for her contribution to the development of health care in developing communities and for her contribution to graduate education in international health.
She was invited to set up the Centre for International Health (CIH) at Curtin nine years ago and initially worked on her own to establish the feasibility of such a Centre and how funding might be generated. Through her hard work and leadership, the CIH is currently thriving with 300 graduate students and extensive research and consulting activities.
The Gold Medal was presented at an award ceremony held in Lucca, Tuscany, on 13 September. Also recognised were 14 other Lucca-born recipients, all of whom had made a major and significant contribution within their respective professions in various countries including Brazil, Argentina, Canada, Belgium, South Africa, North America and Switzerland.
[Posted: 6/11/08]
Image of nurses is changing on the big screen
A study by Dr David Stanley, from Curtin's School of Nursing and Midwifery, has found that fictional nurses on the big screen are going through an image change.
Studying more than 280 English or subtitled films made between 1900 and 2007 and reviewing 36,000 film synopses, his research was published in the latest issue of the UK based Journal of Advanced Nursing.
According to the report, earlier portrayals of nurses were inaccurate and negative, often depicting them as sex objects or self-sacrificing caregivers who were extremely dependent and submissive.
In recent years, however, Dr Stanley observed that these stereotypical and misconceived images of the past have faded away.
'Movie nurses today are very different from the nurses seen in the early black and white silent movies. They are now portrayed as intelligent, independent and self assertive characters. Nurses are shown in a wide range of roles from murderer, investigator, and lover to heroine. In later years nurses are also seen in darker roles exploiting others or caring but in more detached and less sacrificial ways,' he said.
The media plays a pivotal role in how our society views the nursing profession, and its projection of a more accurate image of nurses has been the concern for some time.
'There is a need for a positive media portrayal of nurses in films as negative images could stall the development of nursing as a profession,' he added.
'I felt that potential nurses should be made aware of what the nursing profession actually entails; it is important that they are prepared for the realities of thispractice.'
[Posted: 5/11/08]
Excellence in Teaching Awards 2008 announced
The Faculty of Health Sciences Excellence in Teaching Awards for 2008 were recently announced. Sue Jones, Dean of Teaching and Learning said that she was delighted with the quality of the nominations. "We had some excellent nominations representing the cross-section of the Faculty. I extend my congratulations to all of the winners on their achievements and for their wonderful contributions to student learning. It is clear that across the Faculty we have exceptional staff who are highly committed to facilitating student learning and this is something that we all can be very proud of," Ms Jones said.
Faculty of Health Sciences Excellence in Teaching Awards for 2008:
Early Career Academic Award
Winner - Dr Lynne Roberts - School of Psychology (for her teaching in research methods with excellent student feedback)
Highly Commended - Ms Nikki DiCosta - School of Pharmacy (for her work in improving assessment and feedback in final year units)
Interprofessional Education Award
Ms Leanne Stafford and Dr Victor Chuang (School of Pharmacy)
Dr Ravani Chetty (School of Nursing and Midwifery)
Ms Beatrice Tucker (Office of Teaching and Learning)
Dr Luke Torre (School of Medicine - University of Notre Dame) and
Mr Peter Gardner (School of Physiotherapy). The team have led an innovative pilot interprofessional education program with excellent student feedback and which has proceeded to shape interprofessional case based learning within the Faculty.
Programs that Enhance Learning
Dr Will Gibson (School of Physiotherapy) for the Virtual Anatomy Laboratory. The Virtual Anatomy Laboratory is an online anatomy laboratory resource which enables students to access the anatomy laboratory anytime and anywhere for both learning and assessment purposes.
[Posted: 4/11/08]