News archive
MARC IN THE NEWS - October 2020
MARC IN THE NEWS - September 2020
   | Prof Dan Lubman, A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen & Dr Debbie Scott Monash Lens |
 | Prof Grant Russell The Age Warnings GP surgeries could close as pandemic hits doctor income |
  | Prof Liam Smith & Dr Fernanda Mata Your life choices |
| Prof Geoff Webb Gov tech review |
 | A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen & Dr Amanda Roxburgh The wire |
 | A/Prof Chris Pearce The Guardian More children diagnosed with mental illness amid Victoria’s second COVID wave |
  | A/Prof Steven Roberts Ticker TV |
 | Dr Shalini Arunogiri ABC News |
 | Dr Amanda Roxburgh, Prof Paul Dietze & A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen The Conversation Opioids continue to be the leading cause of overdose deaths in Australia. What else can we do? |
 | Dr Christine Grove ABC Radio Quokkas aren’t just cute; they could help your mental health |
 | Dr Christine Grove & Dr Laura Alfrey the educator |
MARC IN THE NEWS - August 2020
 | Prof Sean Drummond Onya Magazine Aussies trying to give it a rest during the pandemic: The effects of sleep on performance |
 | Prof Kerry O'Brien ABC Radio National |
 | Prof Jennifer Oxley The Daily Telegraph More Victorian pedestrians hit by motorists breaking the rules |
| Prof Liam Smith The Conversation Can Victorians stick to the stage 4 rules? Our perception of what others are doing might be the key ABC’s Law Report Could tracking devices stop people breaching coronavirus quarantine rules? |
 | A/Prof Charles Livingstone ABC Radio Sydney Discusses the rise in profits for online gambling companies during the COVID-19 pandemic. 9News |
| A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen AJP.com.au Prescription opioids: A needed discussion Australian Pharmacy |
| A/Prof Steven Roberts Berwick News |
 | A/Prof Marie Yap ABC Radio National |
| Dr Christine Grove The Age What Victorian can learn from New Zealand’s drastic lockdown Radio NZ |
 | Dr Liz Sturgiss newsGP |
MARC IN THE NEWS - July 2020
 | Prof Simon Bell Yourlifechoices.com.au |
 | Prof Kim Cornish The educator First-of-its-kind program helps educators gauge students’ mental health |
 | Prof Jo Lindsay ABC Radio Adelaide |
 | Prof Rebecca Wicke The New York Times Australia thought the virus was under control. It found a vulnerable spot. |
| A/Prof Charles Livingstone The Age Poker machines used to launder cash and avoid tax 2GB |
| A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen The Conversation People who use drugs face unique challenges under hard lockdown. The government’s support is vital Mirage News |
| A/Prof Steven Roberts Australian Financial Review |
 | Dr Ben Beck Cyclingtips.com |
 | Dr Jane Hayman Domain.com.au DIY disasters: Injuries from home maintenance rise during lockdown, figures show |
Recap of MARC EMCR social media workshop
We had a great turnout for the MARC social media presentation and workshop on Thursday 23 July. Thank you to everyone that came along to the session. We hope you all took away some handy tips to help you promote your research via your social channels, and it's been great to see some of our members embracing social media for the first time. For those that weren't able to make it, here is a recap of our top tips.
- New research shows that papers that are tweeted receive four times more citations compared to those that aren't.
- Twitter is the primary social media platform that academics use to disseminate and learn about new research.
- When posting on social media, include rich content such as an image, video, or gif to increase engagement - it can even be a screencap of a paper abstract.
- Use URL shorteners like bitly to save on the 280 Twitter character limit.
- Amplify your audience by tagging relevant people/organisations in your field who may ‘like’ or retweet you. Members can also tag @MonashAddiction for us to retweet your tweet to our hundreds of followers.
- Include your Twitter handle at the bottom of your presentation slides to make it easier for audience members to live-tweet your conference work.
MARC IN THE NEWS - June 2020
Kellie Rudlin joins the MARC team
 | The MARC team would like to welcome Kellie Rudlin who has commenced in the role of Senior Communications Adviser at MARC and Turning Point. Kellie has been with Monash for almost two years and most recently has been working in a senior communications role across the School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health and the MNHS External Relations team. As Senior Communications Adviser, Kellie will be responsible for driving the communication strategies for MARC and Turning Point, as well as promoting the great work we do and strengthing collaboration between MARC members. If you have any research content, stories or upcoming papers you would like promoted through MARC, please contact Kellie at kellie.rudlin@monash.edu. |
MARC IN THE NEWS - May 2020
MARC IN THE NEWS - April 2020
Our members have been really active in the media this month.
Prof Simon Bell
The Lens
Prof Alex Collie
Herald Sun
Job losses cause psychological distress
Prof Collie discussing his new COVID-19 Work and Health study
Prof Kim Cornish
The Herald Sun
Opinion: Hope of hi-tech health
Prof Diana Egerton-Warburton
ABC Radio
Prof Dan Lubman and Dr Shalini Arunogiri
Channel 10’s The Project
Corona isolation is the perfect storm for corona vices (story starts at 25min and 40 sec)
Prof Liam Smith
The Conversation
A/Prof Charles Livingstone
3AW
ABC Radio, RN Breakfast
Reductions in gambling related harm since coronavirus closures
A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen
MedicalXpess
Life saving overdose-reversing drug still not being accessed
Lens
By the double: COVID 19, opioids, and the threat of a syndemic
The Guardian
‘On top of everything’: coronavirus is making Australia’s drug crisis a whole lot worse
A/Prof Steven Roberts
The Lens
COVID-19 the dangers of framing the coronavirus in generational terms
A/Prof Rebecca Wicke
Lens
Coronavirus: How COVID-19 is changing the world
A Different Lens
What long-term COVID-19 global ripple effects will we see?
ABC News Radio, Weekend Breakfast
The sweeping impact of the coronavirus pandemic is unprecedented in this lifetime and is reshaping broader society.
A/Prof Marie Yap
News.com.au
Battling anxiety in the age of COVOD-19
Dr Christine Grove
The Lens
Talking to children and young people about COVID-19
Opportunities
We're excited to announce that applications are now open for the MARC PhD Scholarships commencing Semester 2, 2020.
MARC is offering scholarships to domestic students who wish to undertake the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) on alcohol and other drug-related projects that align with MARC's core Workplan areas:
Not a member? Click here to apply
MARC IN THE NEWS - March 2020
A/Prof Rebecca Wickes
ABC Radio Sunshine Coast
‘Planning for Welcoming and Inclusive Communities: Guidelines for Regional Growth’
Prof Dan Lubman and Prof Karen Smith
Herald Sun
Crying out for help (paywall)
A/Prof Philip Mendes
ABC Eyre Peninsula and West Coast and 2CC
Cashless welfare is doing more harm than good
A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen
Medical Forum
A/Prof Charles Livingstone
ABC News
ABC Radio Sydney
MARC IN THE NEWS - February 2020
Dr Shalini Arunogiri
ABC News
Lyrica, a drug linked to depression and anxiety, now the top pain medication on the PBS
Prof Dan Lubman and A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen
The Conversation Hour
Dr Susan Baidawi
Monash Lens
From care to custody: the tragic trajectory of crossover kids
Prof Antonio Verdejo-Garcia
Monash Lens
Can social media overuse lead to poor decision making?
A/Prof Adrian Carter
Monash Lens
Stimulus package: brain stimulation holds huge promise, but is critically under-regulated
Prof Kim Cornish Dr Sonja Kassenboehmer
Monash Lens
The state of our mental health: Addressing quality of care in mental health
MARC IN THE NEWS
Dr Brian Vandenberg
UNSW Newsroom
‘Alcohol tax only punishes the poor’ argument doesn’t hold water
Prof Simon Bell
Monash News
Monash research reveals extent of strong and high-does opioid pain medication use
Dr Tina Lam
The Age
Australia’s young drinkers report unwanted sexual attention, violence
A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen
ABC Radio
Gambling Research Capacity Grants 2020 open
New PhD scholarships, post-doctoral fellowships and study grants are now open.
Funded by the Responsible Gambling Fund (RGF), these grants aim to build capability and capacity for gambling research.
The submission round for the PhD scholarships and post-doctoral fellowships:
Opens: Tuesday 19 November 2019
Closes: Friday 31 January 2020
More information is available on the NSW Office of Responsible Gambling website.
Upcoming Events
TurningPoint'sSymposiumandOration
Wednesday 4th December 2019
1:30pm to 5:00pm To be followed by the serving of light refreshments110 Church Street, Richmond
The rise of prescription opioids and the promise of medicinal cannabis
Turning Point's Symposium and Oration: This year’s Turning Point symposium and oration focuses on the promises and pitfalls of prescription medications, and the related policy and clinical opportunities and challenges. It will take place at 110 Church Street, Richmond, on December 4th from 1.30 to 5:00pm.
The symposium will feature key local and national leaders in this space, including perspectives from primary care, pain medicine, pharmacy and addiction medicine.
Professor Nick Lintzeris
This year’s oration will be delivered by Professor Nick Lintzeris, Director of Drug and Alcohol (D&A) Services in South East Sydney Local Health District. Professor Lintzeris is an Addiction Medicine specialist who has been involved for over two decades in clinical service delivery, research, professional education, and policy activities in the field. He is internationally recognised as an expert in the treatment of opioid dependence and has clinical and research interests in benzodiazepine, cannabis and psychostimulant use.
Key speakers at the symposium include:
Associate Professor Suzanne Nielsen, who is the Deputy Director of the Monash Addiction Research Centre in Melbourne, an NHMRC Career Development Fellow, and a registered pharmacist for over 20 years. Her current research focuses on understanding how to improve identification of prescribed opioid use disorder, with the aim of reducing risks relating to prescribed opioid use through evidence-based treatment and prevention.
Dr Malcolm Hogg, who is a Past-President of the Australian Pain Society and current board member of Pain Australia. He has advised on the development of the National Strategic Action Plan for Pain Management and contributed to the development of the National Pain Service directory. Current Victorian activity includes membership on government committees regarding opioid monitoring (Safescript) and in the development of models of care for pain services.
Dr Dean Membrey, who is a general practitioner with a special interest in the treatment of people with substance use disorders. He has spent the majority of his career working in primary care clinics designed to meet the health needs of people who inject drugs, including regional, metropolitan and adolescent-specific services. Dr Membrey is involved in providing MATOD training to other GPs through the RACGP and is on the clinical council for EMPHN. He is also a member of the GP Clinical Advisory Service, which provides support to GPs in relation to SafeScript.
This is a free event but RSVPs are essential, please register on Eventbrite
Australian Pharmaceutical Science Association (APSA) Annual Conference 2019
December 1-4, 2019
Monash University, Parkville Campus
The APSA annual conferences brings together international and national academics and researchers in the fields of pharmaceutical science, clinical sciences, pharmacy practice, and pharmacy education.
The program will showcase the latest scientific research in each field and offer attendees the opportunity to network with colleagues and other leading international and national scientists and academics at both social and scientific activities.
More information on the program and registration here
The College on Problem drug Dependence (CPDD) Annual Meeting 2020
June 20 – 24, 2020
The Diplomat Beach Resort – Hollywood, Florida
CPDD provides a national and international forum for scientists of diverse backgrounds to advance the understanding of molecular-neurobiological aspects of addictive disorders and, by the application of new scientific knowledge, to improve and develop treatments utilizing novel behavioural and pharmacological therapies.
Oral/poster abstracts can be on any aspect of drug use disorder or addiction or on the actions of drugs of abuse. They should contribute to our knowledge of the agents involved in drug use disorder, including their molecular biology, chemistry, pharmacological action, biological disposition, abuse potential, safety or clinical usefulness. Contributions concerning research on neurobiology, epidemiology, prevention, public health aspects, or management and treatment of drug dependence are also encouraged.
| Submission Deadlines |
Abstracts | December 2, 2019 |
Travel Awards | January 13, 2020 |
Awards for Excellence | February 3, 2020 |
Late-Breaking Research | April 17, 2020 |
2020 National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) International Forum
June 19–22, 2020
The Diplomat Beach Resort – Hollywood, Florida
The NIDA International Program seeks abstract submissions for the 2020 NIDA International Forum.
Cannabis is the most used illicit substance in the world, and government policies regarding legal status and medical or recreational use are changing rapidly. Abstracts will be given priority that address any aspect of cannabis or cannabinoids, including but not limited to routes of administration, prevalence, neurobiology, drugged driving, potential therapeutic benefits, and harms. Other topics of interest include linkages between HIV/AIDS and drug use, smoking during pregnancy, and use, abuse, or addiction to amphetamine-type stimulants, inhalants, new psychoactive substances, or opioids.
| Submission Deadlines |
Abstracts | January 6, 2020 |
Travel Awards | January 6, 2020 |
Research Updates
DECRA Fellowship 2020
Congratulations Dr John Gardner who has been awarded a DECRA Fellowship for his project “Australian Public Hospitals of the Future: A Sociological Study”. This project aims to investigate the effects of major technological innovations in healthcare on Australian public hospitals.
Fulbright Future Scholarship 2020
Congratulations to Dr Pallavi Prathivadi who has been awarded a Fulbright Future Scholarship 2020. This unique opportunity provides 100% funded opportunities for study and research programs in the U.S., for projects that seek to have a positive impact on the health, livelihoods, and prosperity of Australians.
APSAD Conference 2019
Dr James Wilson Dr Jasmin Grigg Prof Michael Farrell and Dr Tina Lam
The Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs (APSAD) conference was held in November in Hobart, Tasmania. There were 16 MARC members and Monash staff delivering oral presentations, posters, including a keynote by Antonio Verdejo-Garcia. MARC Research fellow Dr Tina Lam received the ‘Senior Poster Presentation – Honourable Mention 2019’.
APSAD poster listing and abstracts here
MARC in the News
A/Prof Charles Livingston
The Age
‘Just spin’: Gamblers, experts say pokie self-exclusion is not working
Prof Simon Bell
The Guardian
Liberal MP misused research to support Newstart drug-test trial, academic alleges
A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen
The Conversation
Opioid dependence treatment save lives. So why don’t more people use it?
ABC radio
Study: Half of opioid overdoses aren’t an accident
OTHER NEWS
Dr Rowan Ogeil
Sleep Talk: Episode 44 – Alcohol and Sleep
Updates and awards
Congratulations to A/Professor Philip Mendes (Department of Social Work) who has received the Dean's Awards for Excellence 2019 in the area of Excellence in Research Impact (Economic and Social Impact).
Congratulations to Dr Jennifer Schumann (Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine) who has received a 2019 Churchill Fellowship to investigate effective public health policies for preventing opioid misuse. Jennifer's fellowship will investigate effective Canadian and USA public health policy for preventing opioid misuse to identify opportunities to stop the growing crisis in Australia and prevent similar numbers of deaths, by developing evidence based prevention policies.
NEWS
VicHealth Impact research Grant 2019
Dr Liz Sturgiss (Department of General Practice) has been awarded a VicHealth grant for her project “Working with practitioners to reduce alcohol related harm – embedding brief interventions in Victorian general practices”. The research aims to increase the capacity of general practitioners to use brief interventions for alcohol. The project is a collaboration with North West Melbourne Primary Health Network, enliven and The Health Issues Centre.
Victorian Mental Health Ministerial Advisory Committee
Professor Dan Lubman has been appointed to the Victorian Mental Health Ministerial Advisory Committee, which provides advice and guidance to the Minister for Mental Health on the state-wide implementation of the 10 year mental health plan and the recommendation of the Royal Commission into Mental Health.
National Suicide and Self-harm Monitoring System Project Expert Advisory Group
Professor Dan Lubman has also been invited to be on the National Suicide and Self-harm Monitoring System Project Expert Advisory Group to provide advice to assist in the development, implementation, and application of a national suicide and self-harm monitoring system.
Fifth Contemporary Drug Problems Conference
The 2019 Fifth Contemporary Drug Problems Conference at the Monash University Prato Centre in Italy was themed ‘Rethinking ‘change’: New theories, new topics, new questions, new methods’. The conference sought to present research from range of social science disciples that re-imagine the notion and focus of ‘change’ in relation to drugs.
MARC member A/Prof Kate Seear (Faculty of Law) gave the opening keynote presentation which was titled “On law’s fragility, onto-advocacy and the possibility of change”. The presentation was based on A/Professor Seear’s recent ARC DECRA fellowship, which explored how ‘addiction’ was dealt with across multiple areas of law, and how it was conceptualised and enacted by lawyers and decision makers such as judges. The presentation drew upon data collected for that study. Shedding light on how ideas about addiction are shaped by lawyers (through their advocacy) and decision makers, the presentation highlighted the importance of connections, stereotypes, assumptions, emotions and anticipation in the production of legal content and legal ‘truths’ about drugs. A/Prof Seear argued that lawyers might consider deliberately leveraging law’s ontological fragility, and rethinking their advocacy practices in light of the power they hold to constitute objects, subjects and outcomes.
The Contemporary Drug Problems conference also featured a presentation from MARC member Dr Michael Savic (Turning Point). Dr Savic’s presentation was entitled “Producing care and change through pauses, waiting and silences in online alcohol and other drug counselling encounters”. This presentation reported on early findings from a project to explore client and counsellor experiences of online counselling. The project was funded through the Monash University Arts-Medicine Interdisciplinary Seed Funding Research Scheme and involved several Monash University researchers, including Dr Narelle Warren, A/Prof Adrian Carter, Dr Kiran Pienaar, A/Prof Victoria Manning, Prof Dan Lubman, Anthony Barnett and Emma Sandral.
Hazard, Edition No. 86, September 2019 – Trends in Pharmaceutical opioid-related harm in Victoria, 2008/09 to 2017/18
The Monash University Accident Research Centre (MUARC) in collaboration with the Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit (VISU) and the Monash Addiction Research Centre (MARC) have authored the most recent edition of Hazard. The report focuses on pharmaceutical opioid-related harm in Victoria over a ten-year period using patterns in hospital admissions and Emergency Department attendances. In addition, the Hazard report provides insight into intentional self-harm versus unintentional opioid poisoning, and harms by type of pharmaceutical poisoning.
Download a copy here.
MARC in the News
Prescription opioids: both a blessing and a curse -Professor Simon Bell & Associate Professor Suzanne Nielsen
Monash University report reveals rising hospital admissions, million-dollar cost of pharmaceutical opioid overdoses - Associate Professor Suzanne Nielsen
Inaugural MARC 2019 Symposium
We were delighted to host the inaugural MARC Symposium on Thursday 22 August. We heard from over 30 speakers from 5 Faculties and 15 Departments across Monash. It was a fantastic event highlighting the diverse range of research currently being conducted at the University by academics, and the truly collaborative spirit of our researchers. Here is some the feedback we received:
“Congratulations on running one of the most thought provoking and truly impactful and interdisciplinary symposia that it has been my pleasure to attend.”
“It was a fantastic event - really blown away not just by the breadth but also by the quality of the work that is being conducted across the university.”
“Congratulations on such a really well organised and run day. I’m a big fan of short punchy presentations and so the format was great.”
Prizes
Best Poster Award – Dr Pallavi Prathavadi for her poster presentation titled 'The opioid prescribing practices of Australian GP’s'
Best Early to Mid-Career Research Rapid Communication Presentation Award – Dr John Gardner for his talk titled 'Psychedelic-assisted therapies: Cultural barriers to responsible research'
Thank you so much everyone who attended – the strength of MARC is in bringing new ways of thinking together and the symposium demonstrated the enormous potential we have to leverage.
Results of MARC Interdisciplinary Research Support Funding Scheme: 2019
Collaborative Seed Funding Project Grant Awardees
Professor Dan Lubman and Dr Nadine Andrew
Dr Simon Bell and Dr Nadine Andrew – 'Generating evidence for action: The incidence, prevalence and trajectories of benzodiazepine use in Australia 2013-2019’
Dr Debbie Scott and Dr Ben Beck – ‘Linking Victorian State Trauma Registry and Ambo Data to explore the relationships between trauma, alcohol and drug use, self-harm and mental health’
Prof Antonio Verdejo-Garcia – ‘Goal Management Training for Methamphetamine Addiction.’
Post-doctoral Seed Funding Grant Awardees
Dr Ting Xia – ‘Opioid prescriptions among Victorian workers’ compensation claimants: Prescription patterns and risk factors with longer-term opioid prescribing’
Dr Dhanya Nambir – 'One size does not fit all: Targeting factors that influence overdose and other drug-related harms in high risk regions of Melbourne'
Dr Rowan Ogeil – ‘Hot spots of alcohol-related harm in adolescent risky drinkers: How can they be used to understand harms and inform policy?’
Dr Shalini Arunogiri – 'Sex hormones, mood and alcohol use in women: Towards a novel treatment target’
PhD Top-up Scholarships Awardees
Michael Curtis – ‘Understanding the impact of opioid substitution therapy programs on drug use, health service utilization, morbidity and mortality among young people who inject drugs following release from prison’
Dr Pallavi Prathivadi – ‘Improving opioid prescribing in Australian general practice’
Research Updates
Recent funding awarded
Turning Point researchers have published findings of the first ever study of approach bias modification for people with methamphetamine use disorder. Research suggests that up to 80% of people relapse after methamphetamine withdrawal treatment, thus new approaches to improving treatment outcomes are urgently needed. One technique proven effective for people with alcohol use disorders is Approach Bias Modification (ABM), a computerised training task which aims to reduce automatic (subconscious) responding to alcohol cues that lead to craving and subsequent consumption.
The team: Dr Victoria Manning, Dr Joshua Garfield and Mr Hugh Piercy
A/Prof Vic Manning and her team received funding from Eastern Health Foundation to examine the feasibility, acceptability and outcomes of ABM delivered during inpatient methamphetamine withdrawal. 47 inpatients recruited from 3 withdrawal units in Melbourne underwent four consecutive days of training. Using a joystick they were trained to push away (avoid) images of methamphetamine and pull towards them (approach) images of fruit and vegetables and completed follow-ups assessing treatment outcomes two-weeks and three months post-discharge. Acceptability of the training was high, with 75-78% agreeing that it improved their attention and was interesting, and only 4 withdraw due to the methamphetamine images triggering craving. Encouragingly 61% reported no methamphetamine use during the first two weeks following discharge and 54% reported abstinence at the 3-month follow-up which is substantially higher than the 18% observed in a large multi-site treatment outcomes study.
The findings, currently in press with the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment suggest ABM could be beneficial for people seeking treatment for methamphetamine use. The team have been funded by the National Centre for Clinical Research in Emerging Drugs to conduct a RCT to test the efficacy of this low-cost, easily-administered intervention that could help prevent relapse.
Monash Addiction Research Centre (MARC) 2019 Symposium
This one-day symposium will bring together world leading addiction researchers from across Monash. The program will feature invited speakers, oral presentations, and a combined poster session and networking event. We will announce the successful MARC Interdisciplinary Seed Funding Grants and PhD top-ups during the event.
The symposium will be focusing on three major themes:
1) Changing the way we think about harms
2) Technology and action
3) Preparing for the future
Registrations are now closed.
MARC 2019 SYMPOSIUM PROGRAM, 22 AUGUST
Registration | Start at 8.45am |
9.15 – 9.50 AM | WELCOME & SETTING THE SCENE Prof Dan LUBMAN – What is MARC & Responding to the rapidly changing landscape |
9.50-11am | CHANGING THE WAY WE THINK ABOUT HARMS | CHAIR: FELICITY TOPP |
Dr Jennifer SCHUMANN “Emerging substances and emerging harms” Dr Sonja KASSENBOEHMER – “Economic conditions and opioid deaths” A/Prof Suzanne NIELSEN – “Changing our understanding of opioid harms” A/Prof Charles LIVINGSTONE- “Reconsidering the impacts of gambling harm” Dr Debbie SCOTT – “The intersection of family Violence with Alcohol and Other Drugs” POSTER HIGHLIGHTS Pallavi PRATHAVADI – “The opioid prescribing practices of Australian GPs” Michael CURTIS – “Retention on opioid substitution therapy following prison release: Understanding trajectories to reduce harms” Wai Chung TSE – “Changes in Australian community naloxone supply following naloxone rescheduling ” Penny HILL – “Predictors of fatal and non-fatal overdose” Maggie JOHNSON – “Measuring influence: an analysis of Australian gambling industry political donations and policy decisions” Isabelle VOLPE – “Using SMS nudges to reduce Did Not Attend rates in outpatient AOD treatment services” | |
11 – 11.20 AM | MORNING TEA |
11.20-12.20PM | RAPID COMMUNICATIONS | CHAIR: ARON SHLONSKY |
Dr Susan BAIDAWI – “Crossover kids: Relationships between childhood maltreatment, substance abuse, and youth offending” Dr Tina LAM – “Young people and alcohol overview: Young Australians Alcohol Reporting System” Dr Cameron ROSE – “New ways of communicating science” Dr Rowan OGEIL – “The Impact of sleep- and wake- promoting drugs on sleep, psychological distress, and performance indices” Dr Adeel RAZI – “Computational neuroscience imaging psychedelic action I the brain” Dr Jasmin GRIGG – “The impact of legislation on acute synthetic cannabinoid harms resulting in ambulance attendance” Dr Ting XIA – “Drivers health & Compensation data” A/Prof Nicole BLACK – “The effects of proximity to gambling venues on gambling and gambling-related harms” Dr Olatz LOPEZ-FERNANDEZ- “Examining new process addictions through technologies: from internet addiction to gaming disorder” Dr John GARDNER – “Psychedelic-assisted therapies: Cultural barriers to responsible research” Dr Bernadette WARD – “General Practice providers perceptions of access to health care for consumers who use methamphetamines” | |
12.30 – 1.30 PM | LUNCH |
1.30 – 2.30PM | DATA AND TECHNOLOGY | CHAIR: DAVID COPOLOV |
Dr Christine GROVE – “Introducing Ash - AI bot speaking with adolescents about mental health” A/Prof Victoria MANNING – “Approach bias modification during AOD treatment: feasibility, acceptability and effectiveness for relapse prevention” Prof Murat YUCEL – “Gamble, drink, consume, repeat: How to cycle your way out” Harnessing data – Monash data opportunities Prof Alex COLLIE – “Using insurance claims data to understand medicine use in the injured and ill” Dr Jane Hayman – “The Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit Datasets” Dr Debbie Scott – “Coded ambulance data- a world first to understanding pre-hospital harms” Dr Ben Beck – “Alcohol and other drugs in trauma” | |
2.30 – 3.30PM | PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE - NEW CHALLENGES AND NEW SOLUTIONS | CHAIR: MICHAEL WEST |
A/Prof Philip MENDES – “Competing public representations of the Melbourne Supervised Injecting Room: What are the key philosophical perspectives presented in parliamentary and media debates?” Prof Paul DIETZE – “Overdose prevention” Dr Shalini ARUNOGIRI– “Changing face of pharmacotherapy” Dr Michael SAVIC – “Online care delivery” Prof Antonio VERDEJO-GARCIA – “Harnessing synergies between neuroscience and addiction treatment” | |
3.30 – 4 PM | PANEL: Karen McConalogue, David Copolov, Michael West, Sam Biondo |
4 – 5 PM | POSTER SESSION AND AWARDS |
5 – 6 PM | NETWORKING AND REFRESHMENTS |
Winter Research Scholarship Program student – Wai Chung Tse
Over the last month we have had the pleasure of hosting our first Winter Research Scholarship student Wai Chung Tse. Wai Chung has been working on his project “Changes in Australian Naloxone Supply and Dispensing Following Naloxone Rescheduling”.
The scholarship program was a five week long research intensive with Professor Suzanne Nielsen to investigate the effects of naloxone rescheduling from prescription only to over the counter medication. This project analysed whether there were any changes in supply following this rescheduling and describe supply trends in relation to Australia's naloxone policies.
OPPORTUNITIES WITH MARC
MARC Interdisciplinary Research Support Funding Scheme
The MARC Interdisciplinary Research Support Funding Scheme is a fantastic new opportunity to promote and facilitate innovative and collaborative addiction-related research.
There are three types of funding on offer:
(1) Collaborative Seed Funding Project Grants
(2) Post-Doctoral Seed Project Grants
(3) PhD Top-up Scholarships
Applications close: 28th June 2019. See the MARC website for more information.
MARC in the News
Devastated families join forces on cowards punch campaign - Dr Jennifer Schumann and Associate Professor Dimitri Gerostamolous
News prescription monitoring system reveals thousands of Victorians are at risk of harm -Associate Professor Suzanne Nielsen
Psychedelics to treat mental illness? Australian researchers are giving it a go - Dr Martin Williams
A critical examination of welfare state constructions of income support recipients and addiction - Associate Professor Philip Mendes
Prescription monitoring is here, but we need to tread carefully to avoid unintended harms - Associate Professor Suzanne Nielsen
The acid test: Here's what LSD is doing to your brain - Dr Adeel Razi
Read full journal article here.
Monash Paramedics and Monash Addiction Research Centre featured on ABC’s 7.30 Report
CAPTION: Filming for the 7.30 report with Prof Suzanne Nielsen of the Monash Addiction Research Centre, Prof Brett Williams of the Department of Community Emergency Health and Paramedic Practice, and Paramedic students Natasha, Taylor, Lorna & Victoria.
Researchers from the Monash Addiction Research Centre (MARC) A/Prof Suzanne Nielsen and Melissa Middleton conducted a study on changes in prescribing trends for codeine and other commonly prescribed opioids following the up-scheduling of the codeine to prescription only medication. The analyses showed that despite concerns, substitution of over-the-counter codeine with higher strength prescribed codeine was not observed at a population level, nor did a shift to other prescribed opioids appear to occur. The results were presented at the International Medicine in Addiction Conference Melbourne in March 2019, and attracted media interest.
This story was also presented by ABC’s the 7.30 Report. This was filmed in Building H on the Peninsula Campus with paramedic students from the Department of Community Emergency Health and Paramedic Practice.
You can read more about the story here.
Welcome Krista Crawford
MARC has welcomed our new executive assistant Krista Crawford. Krista completed her undergraduate degree in Psychology at Deakin University (Melbourne) and Bishops University (Quebec, Canada). She also has completed a graduate diploma of Zoology and has worked as a research assistant in the fields of Neuropsychology and Social Epidemiology. Krista has been working in Research Administration for the past 5 years.
MARC Masters of Social Work students
Congratulations to our inaugural Monash Addiction Research Centre Masters of Social work students who have completed their research placement!
Ms Yanjin (Kate) Chen and Mr Yanbin (Henry) Wang conducted a scoping review on opioid overdose prevention in the emergency department, and were supervised by Dr Tina Lam (MARC), A/Prof Lisa Kuhn (Department of Nursing and Midwifery), A/Prof Suzi Nielsen (MARC), and Ms Renate Hoffmann (Social Work Department).
MARC’s Grant Writing Intensive
MARC’s inaugural Grant Writing Intensive (GWI) ran on December 3 & 4, 2018. This 1.5 day workshop provided overviews of how various funding schemes were structured, and was an opportunity to receive peer-review feedback on individual proposals.
Nine MARC early to mid-career researchers participated from Turning Point, the Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neurosciences, the Centre for Medicine Use and Safety, and General Practice. The intensive was facilitated by Professor Alison Ritter, internationally recognised drug policy scholar and the Director of the Drug Policy Modelling Program at the University of New South Wales who has had consistent success with winning Australian Competitive Grants.
MARC will look to run another GWI prior to the NHMRC ‘Ideas Grants’ submissions in 2019.
Welcome Melissa Middleton
MARC has welcomed our new biostatistician Melissa Middleton. Melissa recently completed her Masters in Biostatistics and has an interest in suicide prevention, addiction and improving the quality of life for disadvantaged young people.
Suzi Nielsen’s NHMRC grant success
MARC’s Deputy Director Associate Professor Suzanne Nielsen has received almost half a million dollars toward her implementation research to treat and prevent opioid-related harms.
There are a lack of studies that test the implementation of strategies to reduce opioid prescribing and related mortality. Suzi's research aims to address this gap through the investigation of scalable interventions designed for use in pharmacy and primary care settings.
MARC & CREIDU Opioid Overdose Symposium
The Monash Addiction Research Centre (MARC) and the Centre for Research Excellence into Injecting Drug Use (CREIDU) co-hosted a symposium on September 12, 2018. There was a full house at the first official MARC event, a symposium focusing on opioid overdose in Victoria. The event had an interactive format and exciting mix of speakers, and brought together researchers, affected communities, policy makers and practitioners to present on local Victorian developments in opioid overdose prevention and response.
The opening address was given by Professor Dan Lubman, Director of the MARC, and A/Professor Suzanne Nielsen (Deputy Director of MARC) presented on overdose prevention in mainstream healthcare settings.
Other presentations considered overdose prevention from many angles including discussions of peer-led prevention by Sione Crawford from Harm Reduction Victoria, and the new Medically Supervised Injecting Room (MSIR) was discussed by Sarah Hiley, Team Leader at the North Richmond MSIR. The event highlighted success in innovating new ways to reduce harm, and the importance of partnerships with community in addressing lives lost to overdose.
(L-R) Tina Lam, Dan Lubman, Suzanne Nielsen
and Louisa Picco. Photo courtesy of Burnet Institute.
(L-R) Paul Dietze, Stephen McNally and Suzanne Nielsen.
Photo courtesy of Burnet Institute.
The speaker presentations are now available.
Click on the links below, or you can also view and download presentations from creidu.edu.au/resources
Dr Deb Scott, Turning Point
Trends in opioid overdose attended by Ambulance Victoria
Ms Sarah Hiley, Melbourne Medically Supervised Injecting Room
MSIR Another piece of the puzzle
Mr Sione Crawford, Harm Reduction Victoria
Peer-led opioid overdose response work
Dr Renae Fomiatti, National Drug Research Institute
Addiction stigma and impediments to take-home naloxone uptake
Associate Professor Suzanne Nielsen, Monash Addiction Research Centre
Naloxone supply and overdose prevention in mainstream healthcare services
Dr Stephen McNally, Penington Institute
Take-home naloxone insights from existing international programs
If you have any questions about CREIDU or the Symposium please email penny.hill@burnet.edu.au
MARC is delighted to announce the appointment of Dr Tina Lam, our first research fellow. Dr Lam’s work has a strong focus on alcohol and drug use among youth and she is passionate about research that can help shape policy and practice to improve the health of all Australians.