Amalgamating tribunals: a recipe for optimal reform

The last decade has seen numerous proposals to reform existing tribunal systems in jurisdictions throughout the common law world. Across the board, there have been proposals to adopt generalist tribunal models in preference to smaller, specialist tribunal systems, and to achieve these changes through the process of amalgamation. The most significant recent developments to occur in Australia have taken place in Victoria and NSW during the past five years. Legislators in these States have chosen to amalgamate a number of smaller, specialist tribunals into larger, generalist bodies. In 1997 the NSW Parliament passed legislation amalgamating a number of specialist tribunals to create the Administrative Decisions Tribunal (ADT); comparable legislation was passed in Victoria in 1998 to create the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT). There were concurrent attempts to implement similar reforms at federal level. In 1998 the Commonwealth government announced its intention to amalgamate four Commonwealth merits review tribunals to form one �super Tribunal� � the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART). The Bills containing these proposals were ultimately defeated in the Senate, however the Australian Government remains convinced of the benefits of amalgamation at federal level. Similar reforms have been proposed in Western Australia, Tasmania and the United Kingdom. This thesis argues that these reforms are taking place in the absence of data about their likely implications, and without a thorough understanding of the objectives that generalist versus specialist tribunal systems can realistically achieve. This ill-considered or �over-hasty� trend towards amalgamation raises a number of questions which have not previously been addressed in academic or policy-making circles. An obvious question is whether or not an amalgamated tribunal model is more effective than a series of smaller, specialised tribunals in delivering administrative justice, in other words, whether there is any net gain to be had from a government�s decision to amalgamate. The less explored, but equally important, question addressed in this thesis is how the process of amalgamation should be approached in order to realise the maximum potential benefits that an amalgamated tribunal can bring. That is, to ask what are the ingredients of an optimal amalgamation. This is not a question about whether government decisions to pursue amalgamation are intrinsically worthwhile or beneficial for stakeholders. Rather, it is about how government decisions to amalgamate should best be implemented. This thesis proposes a way of differentiating between good and bad amalgamations, that is grounded in theory and informed by experience to date. The proposed approach is to assess the effectiveness of amalgamation processes using relevant measures drawn from an analysis of organisational theory literature: � Legislation � the legislation establishing an amalgamated tribunal needs to ensure the tribunal will have appropriate independence, powers, processes, membership and structure. � Political commitment � those responsible for proposing and planning an amalgamation need to provide appropriate funding and support for the process and for the establishment of an autonomous, self-directed tribunal. � Organisational structure � the structures put in place need to be appropriate, integrated and flexible, and should promote cohesion and interaction. � Process and procedure � the processes and procedures adopted in an amalgamated tribunal need to capitalise upon the opportunities provided by amalgamation, as well as being appropriate, efficient and able to balance the needs of a range of stakeholders. � Organisational culture � an organisational culture which counters natural tendencies towards disjunction will assist members and staff to identify with a newly amalgamated tribunal and to implement initiatives that will improve its performance. � Leadership � effective leadership plays an important role in ensuring a smooth transition from specialist to amalgamated tribunal, and engendering commitment from members and staff. Broadly speaking, these factors fall into the four categories of law, context, organisation and people. It is argued that attention must be paid to all four of these ingredients in order to achieve optimal tribunal reform. The thesis tests this proposition by examining the three most advanced tribunal amalgamations so far, namely, the Commonwealth ART, the NSW ADT and VCAT in Victoria. It is argued that the fate of the Commonwealth ART proposal proves the importance of a solid, generally endorsed legislative foundation in creating a viable amalgamated tribunal. The importance of context, organisation and people is borne out by qualitative research into the amalgamation experiences in NSW and Victoria. The fact that the NSW and Victorian governments decided to pursue policies of amalgamation at the same time provided a unique opportunity to compare the success or otherwise of two concurrent attempts at amalgamation in different jurisdictions. This thesis finds that the unfavourable political context in NSW prevented the ADT from realising its potential. In contrast, the VCAT experience highlights the benefits of paying careful attention to the wide range of factors that can contribute to a successful amalgamation. Of most relevance are the initial scale of an amalgamation, the political �will� behind its implementation, the appointment of a core of full-time members, and the creation of an open institutional culture which facilitates the sharing of information. In short, the thesis concludes that the successful construction and consolidation of a tribunal post-amalgamation requires that the necessary ingredients of optimal tribunal reform � legislation, context, organisation and people � are thoughtfully addressed

Food Habits of Older Australians Living Alone in the Australian Capital Territory

The link between adequate nutrition and quality of life for older persons is well established. With the proportion of older adults increasing, policy regarding support and care for the ageing has shifted emphasis to keeping older adults in their homes for as long as possible. Risk of malnutrition is an issue of importance for this population and, while this risk is well researched within the hospital setting, it is still relatively under-researched within the community-dwelling elderly, particularly with respect to the lived experience. This qualitative study (underpinned by interpretative phenomenology philosophy) explores how the lived experiences of community-dwelling older people living in one-person households in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) influences dietary patterns, food choices and perceptions about food availability. Using purposeful and snowballing sampling, older people (65 years and over) living alone in the community participated in focus group discussions triangulated with their family/carers. Data were thematically analysed using a previously established approach. Participants (n = 22) were interviewed in three focus groups. Three themes were identified: active and meaningful community connectedness; eating well and behaviours to promote dietary resilience. Of these, community connectedness was pivotal in driving food patterns and choices and was a central component influencing behaviours to eating well and maintaining dietary resilience

Competency-Based Assessment for Clinical Supervisors: Design-Based Research on a Web-Delivered Program

Background: Clinicians need to be supported by universities to use credible and defensible assessment practices during student placements. Web-based delivery of clinical education in student assessment offers professional development regardless of the geographical location of placement sites. Objective: This paper explores the potential for a video-based constructivist Web-based program to support site supervisors in their assessments of student dietitians during clinical placements. Methods: This project was undertaken as design-based research in two stages. Stage 1 describes the research consultation, development of the prototype, and formative feedback. In Stage 2, the program was pilot-tested and evaluated by a purposeful sample of nine clinical supervisors. Data generated as a result of user participation during the pilot test is reported. Users’ experiences with the program were also explored via interviews (six in a focus group and three individually). The interviews were transcribed verbatim and thematic analysis conducted from a pedagogical perspective using van Manen’s highlighting approach. Results: This research succeeded in developing a Web-based program, “Feed our Future”, that increased supervisors’ confidence with their competency-based assessments of students on clinical placements. Three pedagogical themes emerged: constructivist design supports transformative Web-based learning; videos make abstract concepts tangible; and accessibility, usability, and pedagogy are interdependent. Conclusions: Web-based programs, such as Feed our Future, offer a viable means for universities to support clinical supervisors in their assessment practices during clinical placements. A design-based research approach offers a practical process for such Web-based tool development, highlighting pedagogical barriers for planning purposes.Full Tex

An analysis of the features of successful written submissions to government inquiries

Objective: Government inquiries present a policy window for advocates to influence policy. Evidence on how to write influential submissions, however, is sparse. We aimed to identify features of successful written submissions to the Parliament of Australia's Inquiry into Food Pricing and Food Security in Remote Indigenous Communities (Inquiry). Method: A scoping review was conducted to identify influential features of written submissions to government inquiries. A content analysis of a sub-sample of government Inquiry submissions and their recommendations was then coded for influential features. The frequency of submission recommendations incorporated into the final Inquiry report was recorded, as was their link to influential features. Results: Thirty features were identified. Results from 21 submissions indicate that when writing a submission to a government inquiry, advocates should: (1) ensure their submission is clear and concise; (2) convey the authority of both the writer and supporting evidence; and (3) where possible, align submission recommendations with the government agenda. Conclusions: We encourage future research to test the framework of influential features on other inquiry topics and in other countries to increase the reliability of results. Implications for Public Health: This study consolidates and presents a list of features that advocates can consider incorporating when writing a submission to a government inquiry.</p

Interventions Supporting the Social Integration of Refugee Children and Youth in School Communities: A Review of the Literature

Schools function as a primary driver of integration and as a link to resources and assets that promote healthy development. Nevertheless, most research studies on school-based programs are conducted on mainstream students, and school professionals looking to deliver interventions serving refugee students are forced to choose between evidence-based programs designed for the mainstream and developing new programs in the cultural framework of their students. The purpose of this literature review is to provide a summary of recent research on successful, evidence-based programs as well as promising interventions and practice recommendations in five core practice areas in schools: school leadership and culture, teaching, mental health, after-school programming, and school-parent-community partnerships. These findings are presented drawing from theoretical frameworks of ecological systems, social capital, segmented assimilation, resilience, and trauma, and describe how such theories may be used to inform programs serving refugee children and youth. Additionally, this review describes the core components of successful programs across these practice areas to inform researchers and practitioners as they select and develop programs in their own school communities. Finally, this review concludes with a discussion of human rights in the education of refugee children and youth

Adapting Cohort-Component Methods to a Microsimulation: A case study

Social scientists generally take United Nations (UN) population projections as the baseline when considering the potential impact of any changes that could affect fertility, mortality or migration, and the UN typically does projections using the cohort-component method (CCM). The CCM technique is computationally simple and familiar to demographers. However, in order to avoid the exponential expansion of complexity as new dimensions of individual difference are added to projections, and to understand the sensitivity of projections to specific conditions, agent-based microsimulations are a better option. CCMs can mask hidden assumptions that are surfaced by the construction of microsimulations, and varying such assumptions can lead to quite different projections. CCM models are naturally the strongest form of validation for population projection microsimulations but there are many complexities and difficulties associated with matching microsimulation projections and CCM projections. Here, we describe our efforts to tackle these challenges as we validated a microsimulation for Norway by replicating a UN CCM projection. This provides guidance for other simulationists who seek to use CCMs to validate microsimulations. More importantly, it demonstrates the value of microsimulations for surfacing assumptions that frequently lie hidden, and thus unevaluated, within CCM projections.publishedVersio

Adapting Cohort-Component Methods to a Microsimulation: A case study

Social scientists generally take United Nations (UN) population projections as the baseline when considering the potential impact of any changes that could affect fertility, mortality or migration, and the UN typically does projections using the cohort-component method (CCM). The CCM technique is computationally simple and familiar to demographers. However, in order to avoid the exponential expansion of complexity as new dimensions of individual difference are added to projections, and to understand the sensitivity of projections to specific conditions, agent-based microsimulations are a better option. CCMs can mask hidden assumptions that are surfaced by the construction of microsimulations, and varying such assumptions can lead to quite different projections. CCM models are naturally the strongest form of validation for population projection microsimulations but there are many complexities and difficulties associated with matching microsimulation projections and CCM projections. Here, we describe our efforts to tackle these challenges as we validated a microsimulation for Norway by replicating a UN CCM projection. This provides guidance for other simulationists who seek to use CCMs to validate microsimulations. More importantly, it demonstrates the value of microsimulations for surfacing assumptions that frequently lie hidden, and thus unevaluated, within CCM projections.publishedVersio

Modeling Fuzzy Fidelity: Using Microsimulation to Explore Age, Period, and Cohort Effects in Secularization

This article presents a microsimulation that explores age, period, and cohort effects in the decline of religiosity in contemporary societies. The model implements a well-known and previously empirically validated theory of secularization that highlights the role of “fuzzy fidelity,” i.e., the percentage of a population whose religiosity is moderate (Voas 2009). Validation of the model involved comparing its simulation results to shifts in religiosity over 9 waves of the European Social Survey. Simulation experiments suggest that a cohort effect, based on weakened transmission of religiosity as a function of the social environment, appears to be the best explanation for secularization in the societies studied, both for the population as a whole and for the proportions of religious, fuzzy, and secular people