Laura started as Project Manager Centre for Rural Health (CRH) in July 2018 working with a team from UTas evaluating the Tasmanian arm of the National Suicide Prevention Trial (NSPT). This local-level evaluation is being conducted alongside a national evaluation by the University of Melbourne. It adopts a participatory action research (PAR) approach to determine what strategies are effective for suicide prevention (SP) at a local-level and for at-risk populations, driving the planning of future SP activities.

In addition, Laura is also managing evaluations of the Community Responses to Eliminating Suicide (CORES) and the ‘Providing an Inclusive Practice and Community for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex and Queer/Questioning (LGBTIQ) People’ Training Program. The CORES training program is a well-established suicide prevention (SP) program based in Tasmania, aiming to equip participants with the ability to recognise warning signs of suicide, intervene before a potential crisis occurs, and support at-risk persons with accessing appropriate services. The evaluation seeks to determine the extent to which the training reflects 'best practice' in enhancing community awareness, capacity, and ownership of SP, within a Tasmanian context.

The LGBTIQ training program provides service providers and interested professionals, who would like to deepen their understanding and confidence in working with LGBTIQ people, with some general knowledge and ‘tools for their toolbox.’ The evaluation will identify the extent to which this training provides participants with skills-based knowledge to assist individuals and organisations to offer an inclusive and welcoming service for LGBTI people. Findings from these evaluations will assist with ensuring the sustainability of the programs, in addition to future planning initiatives in the areas of suicide prevention and working with LGBTIQ people.

Laura has also worked with the CRH since April 2017 in Research Assistant roles on several studies. These include the Social Attention and Communication Study – Revised (SACS-R), which looks at the developmental surveillance of Autism Spectrum Disorder in Tasmania, in addition to studies exploring the experiences and mental health of former Refugees who have resettled in Launceston and surrounding areas.

In January 2020 Laura was awarded a PhD scholarship co-funded by Australian Rotary Health, the Rotary Club of Deloraine, and the Centre for Rural Health. Through this PhD Laura is exploring youth suicide prevention in regional and rural Tasmania, from the perspectives of service providers, policy organisations, and community organisations and members, including those with a lived experience of suicide. This research will include a Delphi expert consensus study to determine what the research priorities are for youth suicide prevention in Tasmania, and mixed methodology research exploring these priorities in detail. The aim of this study will be to build on findings from the NSPT at a state and national level, to determine best practice strategies to inform policy and program planning for youth suicide prevention in Tasmania.

Biography

Laura has worked in several project and research related roles in state and federal government organisations across Australia, including the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, the WA Department of Health, the NSW Ministry of Health and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

Laura has interests in public health and mental health-related research addressing complex issues, including suicide and childhood trauma and development. Laura wants to influence positive policy and social change for Australia’s most vulnerable people, including people living in regional and rural areas, former refugees, youth, children and people affected by mental illness and suicide.

Career summary

Qualifications

Memberships

Professional practice

• Suicide Prevention Australia
• International Association for Suicide Prevention
• Australian Evaluation Society
• Tasmanian Suicide Prevention Community Network
• Tasmanian Transcultural Mental Health Network
• Mental Health Council of Tasmania
• Flourish Mental Health
• Autism Tasmania Inc.
• Lifelink Samaritans
• Mental Health Professionals’ Network - Launceston

Administrative expertise

• Project management
• Program evaluation
• Data management and analysis
• Metadata development
• Grant and funding submissions, ministerial briefings
• Research planning and design – inc. methodology, survey design, participant recruitment (qualitative and quantitative methods)
• Policy analysis and development
• Publication, presentations, and report preparation