Health and Ageing Research Unit

Location

War Memorial Hospital
125 Birrell Street
Waverley NSW 2024

Mission

The Health and Ageing Research Unit (HARU) serves as a focal point for nursing research, practice development and education into clinical and policy issues associated with health care for the older population. These activities are based on a Primary Health Care philosophy and support a wellness model, which is of the view that health and other community support services exist to promote the health and well being of all people.

Through collaborating with health care practitioners, service managers, health consumers, local communities, interest groups and policy makers, the HARU seeks to create opportunities for older people to live meaningfully whatever their life circumstances, and in all health care contexts.

The research, practice development and education agenda focuses on addressing their individual health needs, preferences and perspectives, and facilitates independence and self-determination.

Recent achievements

PerCEN: Person-Centred Environment and Care for residents with dementia

Since 2000 HARU staff have collaborated with nurses and allied health staff, managers, health consumers, key health service agencies, and academic colleagues from nursing, engineering and design, architecture and building in 18 competitively funded research projects across the health continuum. This research has focused on health and well-being in older persons, their families, people with dementia, stroke and Parkinson's disease, improving care delivery processes, systems, environments and policies across the health continuum, and developing functional aids for these population groups. Financial support for these projects was obtained from the National Health and Medical Research Council, the Australian Government Premiers' Department and Department of Women, Alzheimer's Australia, Parkinson's NSW, NSW Health, Perpetual Foundation, Uniting CareAgeing, South Eastern Sydney-Illawarra Area Health Service, and the former South Western Sydney Area Health Service. HARU has actively encouraged older people and their advocates to participate an all aspects of these research and practice development projects and to offer suggestions for areas needing further research.

At the present time the HARU is leading and contributing substantially to 7 projects in the following areas:

1. Nursing Recruitment and Retention in aged and dementia care
2. PerCEN (Person-Centred Environment and Dementia Care Dementia Project)
3. EN-ABLE (Dementia care project)
4. SMILE (Humour in Dementia Care project)
5. Keeping Well in Chonic Illness - Parkinson's disease project
6. Parkinson's disease medications project
7. Practice Nurse participation in Memory Clinics for persons with Dementia

Professor Lynn Chenoweth supervises post-graduate students undertaking research degrees in the following areas:

• Dementia and aged care nursing practice
• Outcomes of therapy, care management and systems for older health consumers
• Experiencing health, illness. disability and recovery in older age
• Developing and evaluating health outcome measures

Research approaches

As the variety of older patients/resident needs strongly influence the research conducted, the research approach is eclectic. Lynn Chenoweth is experienced in undertaking research and supervising student in the following research methodologies:

• Grounded Theory
• Action Research
• Case study
• Interview
• Questionnaire/survey
• Observation
• Focus group discussion
• Delphi technique
• Document review
• Randomised clinical controlled trials

Support services

The HARU staff provide support services in the following areas:

• Mentoring area aged care staff in developing research experience and expertise
• Membership of area wide committees and working parties focussed on issues pertinent to improving health care services and outcomes for older patients, community clients, nursing home and hostel residents, and their families
• Advocating for older people through public forums, conferences, and publications
• Consultations for government departments and other public organisations in matters relating to health care standards, and policy and practice development
• Advising and contributing to aged and extended care and research curriculum and education for the SESIAHS.
• Expert witness for the common law courts

Unit staffing

Dr Lynn Chenoweth, Professor of Aged and Extended Care Nursing
Ph: 02 9369 0288
Fax: 02 9387 7018
Email: Lynn.Chenoweth@sesiahs.health.nsw.gov.au or Lynnette.Chenoweth@uts.edu.au

Ms Chanel Burke, Research Assistant
Ph: 02 9369 0304, Mob: 0410 640 034

Seong Leang Cheah, Project Assistant
EN-ABLE project
Ph: 02 9369 0304
Fax: 02 93690285
Email: SeongLeangCheah@uts.edu.au

Janet Cook, Research Assistant
PerCEN study
Ph: 02 9369 0314, Mob: 0448 445 024
Email: Janet.Cook@uts.edu.au

Stephanie Fletcher, Project Manager
Ph: 02 9369 0303, Mob: 0405 663 480
Email: Stephanie.Fletcher@uts.edu.au

Yang Li, Project Manager
Ph: 02 9369 0303
Email: Yang.Li@uts.edu.au

Lesley Pope, Research Assistant
PerCEN study
Ph: 02 9369 0314, Mob: 0448 445 025
Fax: 02 93690285
Email: Lesley.Pope@uts.edu.au

Dr June Sheriff, Research Officer
Ph: 02 9369 0283
Fax: 02 93690285
Email: June.Sheriff@sesiahs.health.nsw.gov.au

Ron Smith, Research Assistant
Mob: 0449 192 261
Email: rsmi3253@usyd.edu.au

Fiona Tait, Research Assistant
Ph: 02 9369 0304, Mob: 0402 988 601
Email: danfitait@optusnet.com.au

Leonie Tinslay, Research Assistant
PerCEN study
Ph: 02 9369 0314, Mob: 0448 445 051
Fax: 02 93690285
Email: Leonie.Tinslay@uts.edu.au