Publications by authors named "Agatha Faulkner"
Background: Children in out-of-home-care (OOHC) are a vulnerable population, typically with complex needs, however there is minimal research examining the behavioural presentations that lead to the increased use of acute emergency care by OOHC children.
Objective: This study aimed to describe differences in lifetime complexity factors identified during ambulance attendances between children with and without an identified history of OOHC. Further, this study aimed to describe whether having an identified history of being in OOHC was associated with increased utilisation of emergency care resources and increased likelihood of multiple ambulance attendances.
Objective: Amphetamine-type stimulants are increasingly implicated in road trauma incidents. Although ambulances are typically first to attend these emergencies, limited research has used paramedic clinical data to examine the contribution of amphetamine use to road trauma-related ambulance attendances. We describe the clinical and temporal risk profiles associated with amphetamine-related harm in road trauma incidents requiring paramedic attendance in the Australian state of Victoria.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) use and attributable harms have been increasing in Australia, however changes over time, including the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions on harms requiring an ambulance attendance, are unknown. This study utilised a novel population-based surveillance system to identify the types of GHB-related harms between January 2018 and 31 December 2021 in Victoria, Australia.
Methods: A cross-sectional, retrospective analysis of all GHB-related ambulance attendances between January 2018 and 31 December 2021 in Victoria, Australia was undertaken.
Background: In response to COVID-19, government-mandated health directives including widespread lockdowns were implemented. Changes in alcohol purchasing were reported, with growing concern that alcohol may be consumed as a way to cope with pandemic-associated stressors. Hitherto, there have been limited studies examining alcohol-related harms, including acute harms requiring an ambulance, and their relationship to government announcements or policies related to COVID-19.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: To determine (i) whether the strength of Australian alcohol control policy in three domains (youth access, trading hours and drink driving) changed during the 2000s; and (ii) estimate associations between these policies and adolescent drinking after adjusting for television alcohol advertising exposures, alcohol outlet density, alcohol price changes, exposure to negative articles about alcohol in daily newspapers and adult drinking prevalence.
Design: Repeated cross-sectional surveys conducted triennially from 2002 to 2011. Multi-level modelling examined the association between alcohol control policies and drinking prevalence after adjusting for covariates.
Aims: To determine (i) whether Australian adolescents' exposure to television alcohol advertisements changed between 1999 and 2011 and (ii) examine the association between television alcohol advertising and adolescent drinking behaviours.
Design: Cross-sectional surveys conducted every 3 years between 1999 and 2011. Analyses examined associations between advertising exposures and reported drinking.
Aims: While recent evidence suggests that higher alcohol outlet density is associated with greater alcohol use among adolescents, influence of the four main outlet types on youth drinking within urban and regional communities is unknown. This study provides the first investigation of this relationship.
Design: Repeated cross-sectional surveys with random samples of secondary students clustered by school.
Introduction And Aims: The aim of this study was to determine changes in advertising expenditures across eight media channels for the four main alcohol beverage types and alcohol retailers in Australia.
Design And Methods: Yearly advertising expenditures between January 1997 and December 2011 obtained from a leading media-monitoring company. Media channels assessed were: free-to-air television, newspapers, magazines, radio, outdoors (billboards), cinema, direct mail (from 2005) and online (from 2008).
Objective: To examine the impact of plain packaging of cigarettes with enhanced graphic health warnings on Australian adolescents' cognitive processing of warnings and awareness of different health consequences of smoking.
Methods: Cross-sectional school-based surveys conducted in 2011 (prior to introduction of standardised packaging, n=6338) and 2013 (7-12 months afterwards, n=5915). Students indicated frequency of attending to, reading, thinking or talking about warnings.
Introduction: To examine the long-term impact of graphic health-warning labels (GHWL) on adolescents' cognitive processing of warning labels and cigarette pack perceptions.
Methods: Cross-sectional school-based surveys of students aged 13-17 years residing in urban centers, conducted prior to GHWL introduction (2005) and 6 months (2006), 2 years (2008), and 5 years (2011) post-GHWL introduction. Students who had seen a cigarette pack in the previous 6 months or in 2006, who had seen GHWL were included in analyses (2005 n = 2,560; 2006 n = 1,306; 2008 n = 2,303; 2011 n = 2,716).