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"I just get scared it's going to happen again": a qualitative study of the psychosocial impact of pediatric burns from the child's perspectiveAdvances in medicine have improved the chances of survival following burn injuries, however, psychosocial outcomes have not seen the same improvement, and burn injuries can be distressing for both the child or young person, negatively affecting their wellbeing. Pediatric burn patients are at a higher risk of developing psychopathology compared to the general population.
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Fellowship paves way for world-first LGBTQA+ suicide prevention initiativeDr Penelope Strauss will use a prestigious Post-Doctoral Fellowship from Suicide Prevention Australia to develop and trial a world-first intervention.
News & Events
Trans Pathways researcher recognised as one of Australia’s Tomorrow MakersYouth mental health researcher Penelope Strauss has been named an AMP Tomorrow Maker – the first researcher from The Kids Research Institute Australia to win one of the annual AMP Foundation grants.
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Building a culturally safe mental health system for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young peopleThe impact of colonisation, genocide, and continuing discriminatory policies have created a context for ongoing disadvantage, trauma, and high rates of mental health issues for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people.
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Complex Experiences of Gender AffirmationThis project explores the mental health and support needs of Australians with complex experiences of gender-affirmation.
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Psychosocial functioning in the balance between autism and psychosis: evidence from three populationsFunctional impairment is a core feature of both autism and schizophrenia spectrum disorders. While diagnostically independent, they can co-occur in the same individual at both the trait and diagnostic levels. The effect of such co-occurrence is hypothesized to worsen functional impairment. The diametric model, however, suggests that the disorders are etiologically and phenotypically diametrical, representing the extreme of a unidimensional continuum of cognition and behavior.
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A rural ecosystem of recovery: Lessons from substance users' experiences of accessing services in Western Australia's South WestSubstance use is a public health issue with a greater burden in rural areas. Barriers to accessing services are exacerbated for rural substance users, with confidentiality concerns, longer travel distances, workforce issues and limited availability of services. This paper presents results from a study exploring substance users' experiences of accessing services in Western Australia's South West.
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Comparing Web-Based Mindfulness With Loving-Kindness and Compassion Training for Promoting Well-Being in Pregnancy: Protocol for a Three-Arm Pilot Randomized Controlled TrialPromoting psychological well-being and preventing distress among pregnant women is an important public health goal. In addition to adversely impacting the mother's health and well-being, psychological distress in pregnancy increases the risk of poor pregnancy outcomes, compromises infant socioemotional development and bonding, and heightens maternal and child vulnerability in the postpartum period. Mindfulness and compassion-based interventions show potential for prevention and early intervention for perinatal distress.
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Validation of the Dutch version of the Multidimensional Adolescent Functioning Scale (MAFS)The Multidimensional Adolescent Functioning Scale (MAFS) is a 23-item, self-report questionnaire assessing psychosocial functioning in adolescents aged 12-17 years. It captures three domains of functioning: 'general functioning', 'family-related functioning', and 'peer-related functioning'. The original English version has good psychometric properties. The aim of the current paper was to translate the MAFS to Dutch and to investigate the psychometric properties of this translation.
Research
Mind the distance: experiences of non-face-to-face child and youth mental health services during COVID-19 social distancing restrictions in Western AustraliaFollowing the outbreak of COVID-19, social distancing restrictions limited access to face-to-face mental health services in Western Australia (WA), necessitating a rapid transition to non-face-to-face alternatives, including telehealth. The current study investigated barriers and facilitators to telehealth access and engagement, and preferences for child and youth mental health service delivery during and beyond COVID-19.