News

Researchers from the University of Adelaide and Paraquad SA invite people with a spinal cord injury who are looking for work to participate in a study trailing a free email based information package developed for job seekers.

Participation involves completing two brief surveys. You will also receive practical information on how to review and recognize your job skills, understand employer’s needs, cope with work issues following a spinal cord injury, and plan your career development.

For more information go to www.surveymonkey.com/r/work_SCI

If you have any questions please contact Liz Potter (Research Officer South Australian Spinal Cord Injury Research Centre) on 0498 599 320.

Please do whatever is necessary, to ensure that Australia’s budget airlines, abandon their unfair, discriminatory and inequitable two wheelchairs per flight policy.

Please follow the link to sign the petition.

http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/the-australian-human-rights-commission-please-do-whatever-is-necessary-to-ensure-that-australia-s-budget-airlines-abandon-their-unfair-discriminatory-and-inequitable-two-wheelchairs-per-flight-policy

Lonely Planet are planning to publish an Accessible Melbourne e-book. They have selected the most appropriate sights and activities, bars, restaurants and hotels from their Melbourne & Victoria guide and are requesting feedback on how accessible they are.

They have created a simple online form for your feedback, with a straightforward rating system, plus space to add comments.

Visit http://accessibility-feedback.spp.lonelyplanet.com and follow the instructions.

Submissions close 22 June 2014.

For further information about Lonely Planet’s accessible travel project email accessmelbourne@lonelyplanet.com.au

Alfred Health HREC Ref. No 148/13

Dr. Peter New and colleagues from Caulfield Hospital and Monash University in Melbourne are conducting a world-first study into sexuality and changes in sexual functioning after damage to the spinal cord from causes other than trauma. These causes include: cancer, circulation problems, infection, or bone and joint problems. Male and female participants are needed for a face-to-face interview with a researcher for about an hour. Only a few more are needed to complete this important project. People must live in /Melbourne and the researcher will visit you. If you are interested please call Dr. Narelle Warren on (03) 9903 4046.

Dr. Peter New (Caulfield Hospital & Monash University) and colleagues are after people with spinal cord damage from any cause – traumatic or non-traumatic – to participate in a study about sexuality and sexual functioning.

The project is designed to help people working in rehabilitation better understand the sexuality issues that occur for people who have spinal cord damage from any cause. The project will study how spinal cord damage affects people’s sexual identity, sexual functioning, and relationships, and also investigate the sexual rehabilitation education needs of people with spinal cord damage.

Participation involves completing a 15 minute web-based questionnaire. No identifying details are collected. Only adults in Australia aged 18 years or older are required.

For more information and to complete the online questionnaire, go to https://monashmnhs.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_e3ha3ysQrmtBbCd

or email Dr. Narelle Warren at narelle.warren@monash.edu

This study has been approved by the Alfred Health Research and Ethics Committee:Project 148/13

The University of Melbourne in partnership with the Royal Talbot Rehabilitation Centre are researching the effectiveness of physical sailing simulators on dry land to help people with disabilities to start sailing on water. Using a sailing simulator system, participants can experience real time ‘ride on’ sailing providing a realistic, safe and easily supervised medium in which non-sailors can learn required skills prior to venturing out on water.

If you are interested in participating in the study and do not have previous experience in sailing please contact Maree Ellul (PhD candidate at the University of Melbourne) on 0433 748 294 or mellul@student.unimelb.edu.au

2012 Young Australian of the Year Marita Cheng has been working on a smart-phone controlled, wheelchair or table mounted robotic arm for people with limited upper mobility. The project started in April 2013, while she was studying at the University of Melbourne.
Now onto their fourth prototype, in February, March and April, Marita is searching for people to test the robotic arm in their homes. They’re looking for:
People with limited upper mobility based in Melbourne. Must be able to use your fingers enough to use a smartphone. Must be willing to give feedback on the robotic arm functions and interface. Must be willing to be photographed or videoed. Shouldn’t have any history of epilepsy or similar conditions.

Every time you visit a healthcare professional, hospital or other medical facility, important information about your health is created. However, this information is stored in separate files at each of these locations. Even if your health information is stored on a computer at some of these locations, many of these systems are not connected and it is hard to share your health information between your different healthcare professionals.

An eHealth record is an electronic record that contains a summary of your health information. You will have access to this summary from anywhere you want via a website. You can add your own notes to your eHealth record. You can allow healthcare professionals to view this information and to add new information to your record. This greatly increases the ease of sharing health information.

For more information on eHealth Records go to http://publiclearning.ehealth.gov.au/consumer/what-is-it/introduction/

Researchers at Monash University are seeking people with a spinal cord injury (SCI) to participate in a research study regarding social and community participation. The results of this study will be used to design programs that can assist people with SCI to participate more fully in the community and thereby improve their overall quality of life.

Volunteers are needed who are between 18-65 years of age, have a spinal cord injury and are living in the community. Involvement consists of a short interview at a time and place of convenience to you, or over the telephone.

For more information please contact:

Linda Barclay, Occupational Therapy Department, Monash University

Telephone: 9904 4493 or email: linda.barclay2@monash.edu

Stephanie Hulsmann is undertaking research into sexuality and sexual rehabilitation post spinal cord injury of women as part of a Master’s degree in Sexology at Curtin University. She is seeking to interview women who are over 18, speak English, are comfortable talking about topics related to sex, had a spinal injury at least 12 months ago and are not highly dependent on medical care.

She is specifically looking at barriers or difficulties women overcome post injury to reconstruct a sexual life and the availability and appropriateness of services during rehabilitation.

There would be two face-to-face meetings and confidentiality is ensured.

If you would like more information about the study and/or to take part, contact Stephanie on stephaniehulsmann@y7mail.com

This study has been approved by the Curtin University Human Research Ethics Committee.