Mental Health, Impairment and Injury

Led by Associate Professor Michael Fitzharris, the Mental Health, Impairment and Injury team’s psychology expertise underpins their research into the factors associated with being injured and subsequent recovery. The team is focused on the use of technology and the adoption of regulations to improve the safety, independence and wellbeing of society. The team also has a prominent role in MUARC’s research on regulation and in-depth crash investigations.

The team adopts a mixed-method, co-designed approach when undertaking research and has expertise in qualitative and quantitative methods, including economic methods. Using comprehensive in-depth crash data, hospital data, police data and compensation systems data, they identify current and future safety concerns, with a particular interest in the links between injury, mental health and impairment due to alcohol, illicit drugs, prescription medication, and drowsiness.

With a strong focus on evaluation research, they provide evaluations of mental health leadership and psychological safety programs delivered by prominent insurers and program providers, and looking at the impact of all forms of impairment on road and workplace safety.

Major projects

In 2025, the team’s research and government inquiry submissions directly influenced a landmark safety mandate. Cited extensively by Vision Australia, the government inquiry submission led to the requirement for Acoustic Vehicle Alerting Systems (AVAS) on all new-model electric and hybrid vehicles sold in Australia. This achievement underscores the team's ability to translate rigorous research into real-world outcomes that enhance national pedestrian safety.

The team's work on improving the safety of people who are blind or have low vision when using the road transport system continued with the award of a National Road Safety Grant to Dr Sara Liu with Vision Australia as a collaborative partner. This program will continue through to early 2027.

The team also continued its research into drugs and driving, including the management of drivers post-detection and the dealing with the new challenge of medical cannabis and driving. This work fed into various government working groups with a view of informing future government policy.

Impact

Their research was shared internationally, presenting at the International Conference on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety (ICADTS) in Alcobaça, Portugal. Additionally, the team presented at the Road Safety in Five Continents Conference (RS5C) in Leeds UK, and at the Australian Road Safety Conference (ARSC) in Perth, Australia. In 2025, the team began collaborations with the Monash University Faculty of Law, evaluating the TAC Proactive Common Law program. Visiting PhD student Andrea Raimondi from the University of Florence, Italy joined MUARC for 6 months examining the potential role of technology in improving the safety of bicycle riders and other road users.

Funding partners

The team’s collaborative reach in 2025 included partners such as Transurban, Vision Australia, the Victorian Department of Transport, Transport for NSW, the TAC, and the Australian Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts.

The Mental Health, Impairment and Injury team are experts at combining data-driven analysis with clinician-researcher insights. Their work bridges research and practice to improve safety outcomes, influence regulatory policy, and support better mental health and wellbeing in transport and workplace systems.