Cancer patients undergoing major interventions face numerous challenges, including the adverse effects of cancer and the side effects of treatment. Cancer rehabilitation is vital in ensuring cancer patients have the support they need to maximise treatment outcomes and minimise treatment-related side effects and symptoms. The Active Together service is a multi-modal rehabilitation service designed to address critical support gaps for cancer patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Aims: Veterans who have recently left the military (i.e., transitioned) may be vulnerable to the development of psychiatric disorders, but little is known about gambling problems in this population.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: A short, effective therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) could decrease barriers to implementation and uptake, reduce dropout, and ameliorate distressing symptoms in military personnel and veterans. This non-inferiority RCT evaluated the efficacy of 2-week massed prolonged exposure (MPE) therapy compared to standard 10-week prolonged exposure (SPE), the current gold standard treatment, in reducing PTSD severity in both active serving and veterans in a real-world health service system.
Methods: This single-blinded multi-site non-inferiority RCT took place in 12 health clinics across Australia.
Transitioning out of the military can be a time of change and challenge. Research indicates that altered threat monitoring in military populations may contribute to the development of psychopathology in veterans, and interventions that adjust threat monitoring in personnel leaving the military may be beneficial. Australian Defence Force personnel (N = 59) transitioning from the military were randomized to receive four weekly sessions of either attention-control training or a placebo attention training.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPosttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be a severe problem, affecting veterans and military personnel at higher rates than the general community. First-line treatment for PTSD, prolonged exposure (PE), is typically delivered weekly for 10-12 weeks, however this duration can pose a barrier to accessing and completing the treatment, particularly for current serving military. This paper presents the RESTORE trial protocol, the first randomized controlled trial of massed PE therapy outside of the United States and by an independent research group.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe transition period from military-to-civilian life can be one of the most significant and stressful periods in the military life cycle. We explore the psychosocial factors associated with psychological distress and functional impairment among those who recently transitioned from the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and those currently serving in 2015. Using data from the Transition and Wellbeing Research Programme, multinomial logistic regression models were used to analyze the associations between a combined measure of psychological distress and functional impairment (K10/SDS) with various psychosocial, lifestyle, and physical health factors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The impact of mental ill-health on every aspect of the lives of a large number of Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel, their partners, and their families is widely recognized. Recent Senate inquiries have highlighted gaps in service delivery as well as the need for service reform to ensure appropriate care options for individuals who are currently engaged with mental health and support services as well as for those who, for a variety of reasons, have not sought help. To that end, successive Australian governments generally and the Department of Veterans' Affairs specifically have prioritized veteran-centric reform.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe U.S. Defense Department partnered with the International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership on effective leadership and operational practices for delivery of mental health (MH) as well as addiction services throughout the world for Service Members (SM) and beneficiaries.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEpidemiological, biological, and molecular data suggest links between endometriosis and endometrial cancer, with recent epidemiological studies providing evidence for an association between a previous diagnosis of endometriosis and risk of endometrial cancer. We used genetic data as an alternative approach to investigate shared biological etiology of these two diseases. Genetic correlation analysis of summary level statistics from genomewide association studies (GWAS) using LD Score regression revealed moderate but significant genetic correlation (r = 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study is the first to examine the diagnostic accuracy of two depression screening scales-the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)-in an entire regular-serving military population. Currently serving Australian Defence Force personnel ( = 24,481) completed the K10 and PHQ9. Then a targeted subsample (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Rigorously applied exercise interventions undertaken in a research setting result in improved health-related quality of life (hrqol) in cancer survivors, but research to demonstrate effective translation of that research to practice is needed. The objective of the present study was to determine the effect of fee-for-service cancer rehabilitation programs in the community on hrqol and on self-reported physical activity and its correlates.
Methods: After enrolment and 17 ± 4 weeks later, new clients (n = 48) to two fee-for-service cancer rehabilitation programs completed the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (rand-36: rand Corporation, Santa Monica, CA, U.
The purpose of this study was to investigate whether an educational training course on using the internet and touchscreen technology (TT) would decrease social isolation and improve self-esteem in residents living in a low-level residential facility. Twelve sessions over six weeks with two facilitators were provided to five participants with a variety of psychiatric disorders. Measures were completed before and after the 12 sessions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: To ensure the early identification and effective treatment of mental health disorders in the veteran population, general practitioners (GPs) need to be aware that the traditional profile of an Australian veteran has changed, and that more than combat service can give rise to mental health issues.
Objective: This article uses findings that have emerged from research undertaken with participants from three veteran cohorts to highlight mental health issues that should be considered in general practice.
Discussion: GPs have a key role to play in the diagnosis and treatment of mental health issues among the veteran population for several reasons.
Highly oriented [1 1 0] Bi2Te3 films were obtained by pulsed electrodeposition. The structure, composition, and morphology of these films were characterized. The thermoelectric figure of merit (zT), both parallel and perpendicular to the substrate surface, were determined by measuring the Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity, and thermal conductivity in each direction.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Occup Health Psychol
April 2016
The authors examined the effectiveness of different coping strategies in buffering the negative effects of uncontrollable stressors and predicting mental health symptoms in a low-autonomy work environment using a longitudinal design. Soldiers in training indicated the extent to which they engaged in various coping strategies to deal with stressors related to the training environment at 4 different points in time. Factor analyses of soldiers in 2 different countries (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFReproducibility and reusability of research results is an important concern in scientific communication and science policy. A foundational element of reproducibility and reusability is the open and persistently available presentation of research data. However, many common approaches for primary data publication in use today do not achieve sufficient long-term robustness, openness, accessibility or uniformity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Eval Clin Pract
December 2015
Rationale, Aims And Objectives: Within the field of evidence-based practice, policy makers, health care professionals and consumers require timely reviews to inform decisions on efficacious health care and treatments. Rapid evidence assessment (REA), also known as rapid review, has emerged in recent years as a literature review methodology that fulfils this need. It highlights what is known in a clinical area to the target audience in a relatively short time frame.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn recent years servicewomen with dependent children have for the first time in history been deployed into conflict zones in support of Australian Defence Force operations. This represents a significant social change, and the implications of deployment on the health of these service mothers are not fully understood. Data from women who participated in the Middle East Area of Operations Census study were analyzed to compare the psychological and physical symptoms reported by service mothers with service women who had no dependent children at the time of deploying to Afghanistan and/or Iraq.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Assessment of physical fitness is important in order to set goals, appropriately prescribe exercise, and monitor change over time. This study aimed to determine the utility of a standardized physical fitness assessment for use in cancer-specific, community-based exercise programs.
Methods: Tests anticipated to be feasible and suitable for a community setting and a wide range of ages and physical function were chosen to measure body composition, aerobic fitness, strength, flexibility, and balance.