Shades of empire: police photography in German South-West Africa

This article looks at a photographic album produced by the German police in colonial Namibia just before World War I. Late 19th- and early 20th-century police photography has often been interpreted as a form of visual production that epitomized power and regimes of surveillance imposed by the state apparatuses on the poor, the criminal and the Other. On the other hand police and prison institutions became favored sites where photography could be put at the service of the emergent sciences of the human body—physiognomy, anthropometry and anthropology. While the conjuncture of institutionalized colonial state power and the production of scientific knowledge remain important for this Namibian case study, the article explores a slightly different set of questions. Echoing recent scholarship on visuality and materiality the photographic album is treated as an archival object and visual narrative that was at the same time constituted by and constitutive of material and discursive practices within early 20th-century police and prison institutions in the German colony. By shifting attention away from image content and visual codification alone toward the question of visual practice the article traces the ways in which the photo album, with its ambivalent, unstable and uncontained narrative, became historically active and meaningful. Therein the photographs were less informed by an abstract theory of anthropological and racial classification but rather entrenched with historically contingent processes of colonial state constitution, socioeconomic and racial stratification, and the institutional integration of photography as a medium and a technology into colonial policing. The photo album provides a textured sense of how fragmented and contested these processes remained throughout the German colonial period, but also how photography could offer a means of transcending the limits and frailties brought by the realities on the ground.International Bibliography of Social Science

Community-based lifestyle modification workforce: An underutilised asset for cardiovascular disease prevention

This paper reports on a qualitative study exploring the capacity of the community sector to support a whole-of-system response to cardiovascular disease prevention in primary health care. As a component of the Model for Prevention (MoFoP) study, community-based lifestyle modification providers were recruited in the Australian Capital Territory to participate in focus group discussions; 34 providers participated across six focus groups: 20 Allied Health Professionals (four groups) and 14 Lifestyle Modification Program providers (two groups). Thematic analysis of focus group transcripts was undertaken using a mixed deductive and inductive approach. Participant responses highlight several barriers to their greater contribution to cardiovascular disease prevention. These included that prevention activities are not valued, limited sector linkages, inadequate funding models and the difficulty of behaviour change. Findings suggest that improvements in the value proposition of prevention for all stakeholders would be supported by improved funding mechanisms and increased opportunities to build relationships across health and community sectors

Mental Health in Tertiary Curricula for Dietitians: Phase 2 - Final Report

The 2006 Federal Budget included $1.9 billion for a mental health reform package to improve services for people with a mental illness, their families and carers. This funding also represented the Australian Government’s commitment to the Council of Australian Governments National Action Plan on Mental Health. As part of this package, the Mental Health in Tertiary Curricula Program included approximately$5.6 million over 5 years to enhance the mental health skills of the newly graduating health workforce by expanding the mental health components of undergraduate health training. The Dietitians Association of Australia (DAA) was previously funded under the Mental Health in Tertiary Curricula Program to identify the current and future needs of dietitians in relation to mental health issues; review Entry Level Competencies for Dietitians and supporting documents in relation to mental health; and review the DAA course accreditation requirements to include a minimum mental health component. A subsequent project, Mental Health Curricula Project for Dietitians: Phase 2, has been funded under the same Program through the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing to share the learnings from the first project with other disciplines and to assist the universities operating the 17 nutrition and dietetic programs accredited by DAA in Australia to deliver revised curricula

DAA Mental Health in Tertiary Curricula for Dietitians - Phase 1 Project Report (June 2008)

In 2006, the Australian Government committed $5.6 million to a Mental Health in Tertiary Curricula Program as part of the broader Australian Government’s commitment to mental health through the <i>Council of Australian Governments</i>' (COAG) National Action Plan on Mental Health. \ud \ud As part of this program the <i>Dietitians Association of Australia</i> (DAA) received funding from the Department of Health and Ageing to review and enhance dietetic standards and practice in relation to mental health. \ud \ud Dietitians have significant involvement with mental health issues through our clinical, community and food service roles. They work intensively with some mental health issues (such as anorexia nervosa) and more broadly with a range of heath conditions which can have mental health as a significant co-morbidity, such as obesity and depression. Dietitians also work on health promotion programs that target vulnerable groups, which may include people with a mental illness and with services, such as group homes for people with mental illness and in acute psychiatric facilities\ud \ud Dietitians are not generally considered as primary providers in relation to mental health, however this project demonstrated the key role dietitians have to play in improving the health of people with mental health issues and the need to improve dietitians knowledge and skills in this area.\ud \ud DAA is the accrediting body for dietetic programs in Australia. The current DAA National Competency Standards for Entry-level Dietitians (“competencies”) which form the basis of DAA’s accreditation system, do not require specific knowledge and skills in dealing with mental health issues. Phase 1 of the Mental Health in Tertiary Curricula Project provided an opportunity to review the DAA competencies and supporting documents to ensure dietitians in Australia were better prepared to address mental health issues across the range of dietetic practice

Implementation of cardiovascular disease prevention in primary health care: Enhancing understanding using normalisation process theory

Background: The reorientation of primary health care towards prevention is fundamental to addressing the rising burden of chronic disease. However, in Australia, cardiovascular disease prevention practice in primary health care is not generally consistent with existing guidelines. The Model for Prevention study was a whole-of-system cardiovascular disease prevention intervention, with one component being enhanced lifestyle modification support and addition of a health coaching service in the general practice setting. To determine the feasibility of translating intervention outcomes into real world practice, implementation work done by stakeholders was examined using Normalisation Process Theory as a framework. Methods: Data was collected through interviews with 40 intervention participants and included general practitioners, practice nurses, practice managers, lifestyle advisors and participants. Data analysis was informed by normalisation process theory constructs. Results: Stakeholders were in agreement that, while prevention is a key function of general practice, it was not their usual work. There were varying levels of engagement with the intervention by practice staff due to staff interest, capacity and turnover, but most staff reconfigured their work for required activities. The Lifestyle Advisors believed staff had varied levels of interest in and understanding of, their service, but most staff felt their role was useful. Patients expanded their existing relationships with their general practice, and most achieved their lifestyle modification goals. While the study highlighted the complex nature of the change required, many of the new or enhanced processes implemented as part of the intervention could be scaled up to improve the systems approach to prevention. Overcoming the barriers to change, such as the perception of CVD prevention as a ‘hard sell’, is going to rely on improving the value proposition for all stakeholders. Conclusions: The study provided a detailed understanding of the work required to implement a complex cardiovascular disease prevention intervention within general practice. The findings highlighted the need for multiple strategies that engage all stakeholders. Normalisation process theory was a useful framework for guiding change implementation.Full Tex

Improving the prevention of cardiovascular disease in primary health care: The model for prevention study protocol

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death globally, and accounted for nearly 31% of all deaths in Australia in 2011. The primary health care sector is at the frontline for addressing CVD, however, an evidence-to-practice gap exists in CVD risk assessment and management. General practice plays a key role in CVD risk assessment and management, but this sector cannot provide ongoing lifestyle change support in isolation. Community-based lifestyle modification services and programs provided outside the general practice setting have a key role in supporting and sustaining health behavior change. Fostering linkages between the health sector and community-based lifestyle services, and creating sustainable systems that support these sectors is important. Objective: The objective of the study Model for Prevention (MoFoP) is to take a case study approach to examine a CVD risk reduction intervention in primary health care, with the aim of identifying the key elements required for an effective and sustainable approach to coordinate CVD risk reduction across the health and community sectors. These elements will be used to consider a new systems-based model for the prevention of CVD that informs future practice. Methods: The MoFoP study will use a mixed methods approach, comprising two complementary research elements: (1) a case study, and (2) a pre/post quasi-experimental design. The case study will consider the organizations and systems involved in a CVD risk reduction intervention as a single case. The pre/post experimental design will be used for HeartLink, the intervention being tested, where a single cohort of patients between 45 and 74 years of age (or between 35 and 74 years of age if Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander) considered to be at high risk for a CVD event will be recruited through general practice, provided with enhanced usual care and additional health behavior change support. A range of quantitative and qualitative data will be collected. This will include individual health and well being data collected at baseline and again at 12 months for HeartLink participants, and systems related data collected over the period of the intervention to inform the case study. Results: The intervention is currently underway, with results expected in late 2015. Conclusions: Gaining a better understanding of CVD prevention in primary health care requires a research approach that can capture and express its complexity. The MoFoP study aims to identify the key elements for effective CVD prevention across the health and community sectors, and to develop a model to better inform policy and practice in this key health priority area for Australia.Full Tex

DAA Mental Health in Tertiary Curricula for Dietitians - Phase 2: Final Project Report (June 2009)

The 2006 Federal Budget included 1.9 billion for a mental health reform package to improve services for people with a mental illness, their families and carers. This funding also represented the Australian Government’s commitment to the Council of Australian Governments National Action Plan on Mental Health. \ud \ud As part of this package, the Mental Health in Tertiary Curricula Program included approximately 5.6 million over 5 years to enhance the mental health skills of the newly graduating health workforce by expanding the mental health components of undergraduate health training.\ud \ud The <i>Dietitians Association of Australia</i> (DAA) was previously funded under the Mental Health in Tertiary Curricula Program to identify the current and future needs of dietitians in relation to mental health issues; review Entry Level Competencies for Dietitians and supporting documents in relation to mental health; and review the DAA course accreditation requirements to include a minimum mental health component. \ud \ud A subsequent project, Mental Health Curricula Project for Dietitians: Phase 2, has been funded under the same Program through the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing to share the learnings from the first project with other disciplines and to assist the universities operating the 17 nutrition and dietetic programs accredited by DAA in Australia to deliver revised curricula