Future of Health and Wellbeing
This research programme focuses on the experience and design of practices, services, technologies and environments of future health, care, wellbeing and safety.
Through research and design, this programme engages with projects and initiatives shaping a new context for future health, care, wellbeing, and safety. Our expertise in this area includes:
- digital services and technologies for seniors aging at home and in residential care;
- digital, visual and emerging technologies for worker health and safety;
- digital health, including tracking technologies, apps and platforms and social care robots;
- health care building, interior and service design; and
- innovating new understandings of and design for everyday care.
ETLab adds a vital ingredient to existing innovation in these fields by developing tailored design ethnographic approaches to deliver realistic and plausible accounts of how people experience these technological and environmental shifts in complex everyday environments. We outline ethical approaches to shaping possible futures and provide recommendations for future design.
By harnessing new and innovative methods we foreground what really matters to people across diverse health-focused contexts to account for the crucial creative, sensory and relational facets of future health.
Our work delivers academic and applied impact through scholarly publications, public reports, video documentaries, websites, design prototypes, co-design workshops and critical recommendations for future designs and policies. We partner with healthcare organisations, industry and technology designers, in clinical and residential settings, with community services and in people’s homes.
At Monash, we connect with the Design Health Collab and the Digital Health initiative. Internationally we connect with our Autowork project colleagues at NTNU in Norway, Research[x]Design colleagues at KU Leuven in Belgium and Sensing Spaces of Healthcare colleagues in the United Kingdom.
Projects
Workers in transition through automation, digitalization and robotization of work (AUTOWORK)
Partner: NTNU Norway
Funded by: Norwegian Research Council
Monash research team: Sarah Pink, Debora Lazeni, Ben Lyall, Aneta Podkalicka, Mark Andrejevic
Intelligent Home Solutions for Independent Living
Partners: McLean Care, Deakin University
Funded by: Australian Government, Department of Health Commonwealth Home Support Programme Innovation Grant
Monash research team: Yolande Strengers, Melisa Duque, Sarah Pink, Larissa Nicholls, Rex Martin
The Living Lab: the future of aged care
Partner: Cabrini Health (Residential Aged Care - Ashwood)
Funded by: Cabrini Foundation
Monash research team: Sarah Pink, Melisa Duque (ETLab) in collaboration with: Daphne Flynn, Eden Potter, Nyein Aung, Richard Morfuni, Joanne Mihelcic (Design Health Collab), Jon McCormack, Alon Ilsar from (SensiLab), Keith Joe and Sharni Clark (Cabrini Health)
Child protection and social distancing: social work during the COVID-19 pandemic
Partner: University of Birmingham
Funded by: Economic and Social Research Council
Monash researcher: Sarah Pink
Design for wellbeing
Partners: Exemplar Health and Bendigo Hospital
Funded by: Exemplar Health, RMIT University
Monash research team: Sarah Pink, Melisa Duque, Shanti Sumartojo
Mobility and Accessibility for Children and Adults (MACA)
(MACA) National information resources supporting the rights of all children to safe and accessible transport and participation in community life
Flight Paths, Freeways and Open Roads
Flight Paths, Freeways and Open Roads is a series of short film vignettes exploring how diverse participants currently experience transport mobilities and how automated technologies might be part of our future lives.
Unpacking Trust in AI Software Development
This project uncovers the practices and beliefs about trust that inform the design of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automated decision-making (ADM) and the ways they are engaged in the everyday work practices of software developers.
Seeing the Road Ahead
Experimenting with creative methods to explore future visions of automated mobilities in Australia.
Research Programme Lead
Are you interested in partnering with us?
Get in contact with our Research Program Lead to discuss how we can start a research project with you.