Research

Research is central to how we understand and interpret the issues and concerns of carers.

We actively support research projects as a way of creating better results for all caring families.

We are committed to furthering our understanding of their needs to make a difference in their lives.

Below you can find some of our current research projects. If you are interested in participating in any of them, you can contact the researchers directly.

Placing a relative with dementia into residential care has been described by family carers as being amongst the most difficult and stressful times of their lives.

This study from QUT Health aims to see whether delivering a telehealth counselling support program and printed informational support helps people cope better with the issues surrounding the transition.

Are you a family carer of someone with dementia who has Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT) approval to move into residential care?

They are currently looking for participants.

Researchers from the University of Queensland are seeking parents and carers of children and adolescents with a disability to complete a survey.

Responses from the survey will be used to evaluate the Early Response Tool – a tool that aims to capture the day-to-day experiences of parents/carers.

Parents/carers who complete the survey can enter a raffle to win one of four $50 Coles Myer Gift Cards.

Click on the link below to complete the anonymous survey online,  (password: parent).

To request a paper survey, please contact Maria Vassos (m.vassos@uq.edu.au).

Are you a carer, or a consumer of health-related services?

Researchers at Flinders University need your help to understand caregiving relationships in healthcare settings. Participants will complete an online survey (15-30 minutes) and receive a gift card.

The project has been approved by Flinders University's Human Research Ethics Committee (Project ID 4610).

To find out more information, click the link below or email the chief investigator: kristi.urry@flinders.edu.au

The University of Sydney is conducting the Palliative Paramedicine: A Qualitative Study of Families and Carers  research, which investigates  the role of paramedics in providing palliative and end-of-life care in the community.

Interviews will be conducted with health professionals, families and carers involved in the care of palliative patients who have come into contact with paramedics towards the end of their lives in the community.

Researchers at the National Ageing Research Institute are working with the National Mental Health Commission to understand the key issues for older adults with mental illness and their carers.

They are seeking older adults who live in the community or in residential aged care as well as family or friend carers of older people living with mental illness to participate in a focus group discussion.

Researchers from Deakin University are conducting interviews with people with heart failure and their carers.

The project aims to co-design and develop a smart home ecosystem to support self-management of heart failure, improve health outcomes and health-related quality of life.

They are currently seeking participants for a 30-60 minute interview with a member of the research team via Zoom or telephone. The main topic of discussion will be the self-management of heart failure and how technology can improve this.

If you are interested or need further information, contact Hannah Thompson at smartheart@deakin.edu.au

Charles Darwin University is conducting the project research ‘Caring for an adult family member with a chronic condition' and they are currently seeking for participants.

Are you caring for an adult family member who is living with a chronic condition?

Do you have an immigrant background?

Are you and the person you care for living in Australia?

Contact Lilly Tsai on 0430 171 735 or email: lily.tsai@students.cdu.edu.au

The Queensland Ageing and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Sistergirl and Brotherboy issues Working Group invites all who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Gender-Diverse, Non-Binary, people with the experience of Intersex variations Sistergirl, and Brotherboy to complete a confidential and anonymous survey to help them to understand your needs with ageing and aged care.

The study seeks to understand whether there have been improvements in the attitudes, support and experiences of LGBTISGBB elders following 13 years of policy, legal and social developments, and to identify the gaps and needs that remain unaddressed, and new issues arising that can collectively inform the development of strategies to address the needs and concerns of older LGBTISGBB people in Queensland.

The University of the Sunshine Coast is seeking volunteers living with dementia and their care partners to participate in research studying character strengths and caregiver responsibilities. Participants will be asked to undertake a survey each, taking approximately 30-45 minutes each.

The purpose of this research project is to explore how personal strengths affect stress related to informal caregiving.

We understand the challenges caregivers face when caring for a person with a stroke, and we would like to support you in your everyday life.

In the past, we have conducted an online survey to identify the needs of stroke caregivers like you, which we have used to develop a mobile web app.

Currently, we would like your assistance in evaluating the app to inform engineers and developers regarding your technological preferences and the best methods to support you in your daily activities.

Australian Catholic University is conducting The Impact of Dementia on Relationships research.

The study explores how spouses of people with dementia experience changes in their relationship and communication with their partner.

Participants must:

– Be the spouse of someone with a diagnosis of dementia

– Be the primary carer for their spouse with dementia

– Have known their spouse prior to the onset of dementia

As a participant of this study, you will take part in a one-hour individual interview.

For more information click on the link below or contact Dr Erin Conway at erin.conway@acu.edu.au

Researchers from the University of Newcastle are conducting the FoCCuS4HEART (Female Carers Co-produce Support 4 Heart and Emotional health to Address Risk factors) project, which seeks to work with informal female carers of stroke survivors to develop strategies and tools to support carers to self-manage their emotional and physical health.

If you’re a woman who provides care or has provided care to someone who has had a stroke, you can help by sharing your experiences in the survey below.

For more information contact the research team at FoCCuS4HEARTproject@newcastle.edu.au or Dr Alexandra Denham at Alexandra.Denham@newcastle.edu.au or on phone number (02) 4055 3232

The School of Psychology from the University of Queensland is working on a research project that aims to provide a greater understanding of how therapy can produce meaningful change for clients.

Research shows that numerous factors can influence a person’s response to therapy; some of which are indirect and not specific to the content of the treatment itself.

This study examines these indirect influences further, focuses on how feeling connected and aligned with your therapist or with others in a therapy group can influence how well people respond to the treatment they receive.

To examine this question, they have created an anonymous online survey that can be completed by anyone who is in treatment or completed treatment in the last three months.

The implications of this research can provide valuable insights to lead further study and effectively train therapists and clinicians to reduce rates of drop-out and improve treatment outcomes for clients of therapy.

Recent research suggests that children with autism may begin to experience the early signs of anxiety before they even start school. We know that in children without autism, there are some parent interventions which can help prevent anxiety from developing, but these have not yet been fully tested for children with autism.

Griffith University wants to trial a new intervention with a group of parents of children with autism to see whether this intervention is able to reduce or prevent their children experiencing anxiety and see if these results are maintained over time.

Are you the primary carer for someone with dementia?

Central Queensland University is conducting research on the effects of COVID-19 on informal caregivers of people with dementia in Australia.

The main goal of this study is to better understand the caregiver experience during COVID-19. It will also increase general  knowledge on how the pandemic has affected caregivers, and guide us to help caregivers in the future.

You are invited to take part in a confidential online survey. The survey will take about 20 minutes of your time.

Deakin University is conducting a study that aims to estimate the monetary value of the time spent providing informal care to a person with dementia.

Informal carers of people living with dementia in Australia are invited to complete an online survey, which asks questions about your opinion of different caring situations.

People with dementia are at greater risk of getting lost and experiencing devastating outcomes as a result. Queensland University of Technology (QUT) is leading research to help address this. They are looking for people with early stage dementia or memory problems to participate in an online interview with a member of the research team. The aim is to hear what people with dementia think should be done to improve the safety of people with dementia who go missing.

Family caregivers provide a significant amount of the care received by the elderly and frail in Australia.

Carers are often older themselves and, coupled with the emotional, physical and financial effects of the caregiver role, are susceptible to burnout and poor health outcomes.

Australia’s ageing population means an increase in family caregivers is likely so more understanding of the motivations and their effects on health outcomes are needed to improve the quality of supports provided to carers.

The University of Queensland is conducting a research project on Young People with cognitive disability.

They are currently wanting to interview young people with cognitive disability, aged 15 to 30 years. They are looking for people from a wide range of backgrounds, including people from CALD, First Nations and LGBTIQ+ communities.

This research project aims to understand experiences of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation as told by young people with cognitive disability.

Findings will help the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability.

For more information about our research, please call Dr Kathy Ellem from the University of Queensland on 0426 816 595 or email k.ellem@uq.edu.au

Exploring women's experiences of family and domestic violence over the lifespan.

Curtin University is conducting research that considers violence against women across the entire lifespan, exploring whether experiences and responses differ across the lifespan.

They are looking for practitioners and women with lived experience to participate in online surveys, which should take no longer than half an hour to an hour.

Are you interested in designing a new approach to care for people with a lived experience of dementia? Be part of exciting new changes at Bolton Clarke

Monash University is seeking 25 carers of older adults living in the community to take part in an interview for a research project. The research project aims to identify carers’ experiences and needs in supporting older adults who are discharged from hospital to home.

Sexual and gender minorities, including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex (LGBTQI+), represent an “ignored epidemic” and a “growing and medically underserved population” in cancer care.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for better communication technologies across all age groups and it is particularly important for many older people who live in aged care separated from their families and friends.

Want to share your experiences with rehabilitation? Griffith University researchers are recruiting adults 18 years and over who have undertaken rehabilitation in the following subacute or specialist rehabilitation settings, during the last 2 years: stroke; major trauma/burns; amputation; geriatrics, acquired brain injury, progressive neurological conditions, spinal cord injury, deconditioning post-acute illness; community-based programs for chronic lung and cardiac disease (cardiac rehabilitation and heart failure rehabilitation), pain, and chronic musculoskeletal conditions.

Researchers from Central Queensland University are conducting a study focused on the work-related wellbeing of employed Personal Care Attendants/ Assistants (PCAs) who work in the aged care sector, and are aged 18 years or over.

The research aims to highlight the contribution of these important workers, inform employers and promote change within organisations to improve workplace procedures so PCAs are better resourced and supported in their role.

Researchers from the University of Southern Queensland are seeking carers of an elderly spouse/family member from Brisbane (or other urban area), or Toowoomba (or other rural areas) to take part in a research project on values associated with caring for elderly spouse/family members including those with Dementia.

Research suggests that children with autism may begin to experience the early signs of anxiety before they even start school.

The Autism Centre of Excellence at Griffith University is conducting a new study to determine if parent’s intervention is effective in reducing the anxiety experienced by children with autism.

Griffith University is currently seeking parents of children with a diagnosis of autism who will start school in 2021 in South East Queensland.

Researchers from Griffith University are looking for unpaid male carers over the age of 50, who live in South East Queensland to participate in a study to explore how men experience this role and how it impact their lives.

Researchers at The University of Queensland have developed an early intervention approach for infants at risk of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) – that is, for infants with a first-degree relative (parent or sibling) with ASD.

This study brings together a team of researchers from The University of Queensland, Wesley Hospital and St Andrew’s War Memorial Hospital. It aims to find out whether melatonin can assist people with Parkinson’s Disease to get better sleep.

Researchers from Queensland University of Technology (QUT) are conducting a study to learn more about factors that may ultimately impact the emotional and behavioural functioning of adolescents diagnosed with ASD, from the perspective of the adolescents and their parent/caregivers.