The WEVAL Project

Hi everyone,

It's been a while since I've posted, but very excited to be able to share that I officially submitted my thesis last month 🥳 Very grateful to everyone who supported me along this long (long) journey.

Now that the thesis is submitted, and I've had time to catch my breath, I wanted to share some of my study findings ☺️ There's still a lot more I hope to do with this project, but its nice to finally be able to share some of the insights from this research.

📢UPDATE📢

It's been a while since I posted an update; I've been hard at work on my thesis, but very excitingly, the first article from my PhD has been published. I'm so proud to finally be able to share this with everyone! Hopefully more pubs (and other exciting things) to come in the next few months 🤞

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🗣 Calling all practitioners who screen for family violence 🗣

We want to know your experience using screening tools. For further information about participating, please follow the link: https://curtin.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3TSJzSmiPpyyWUe

Kicking the week off with this year's National Elder Abuse Conference. It's been great to reconnect with the sector I started my research journey in and learn so much about the fantastic work that is happening in this space.

Excited to share my own research this afternoon 😁

If you haven't yet heard, the Federal government is currently seeking feedback on the new Violence Against Women strategy. The consultation period has been extended into the end of February, so there's still time to have your voice heard. Whether you're a victim-survivor (there are safety measures and quick exit buttons if you want to contribute but also need to keep yourself safe), a practitioner, or simply someone who cares about violence against women and wants to make sure the government gets it right, I strongly encourage you to read the plan and provide feedback.

The draft plan and feedback survey can be accessed via https://engage.dss.gov.au/draft-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children-2022-2032/

Let's make sure we get this right 👊

Today is International Day of Older Persons and Australia's inaugural Ageism Awareness Day!

Ageism is the discrimination or mistreatment of a person (usually an older person) because of their age. It might be the assumption that a person cannot make their own decisions, speaking down to an older person, treating an older person like a child, or even the ways that we talk about ageing. In the family violence space, ageism means that older victims of violence are often forgotten, ignored or discounted.

This is an area I'm hugely passionate about, and one of the reasons why I was drawn to this project. Ageism is a key driver of violence against older people, and so if we want a world where all older people are safe from abuse, we need to address ageism. There are some fantastic online events being run by the Older Person's Advocacy Network (OPAN) and the United Nations today, so if you're interested to learn more about ageism and how it affects older people, check them out!

Whether you're a footy fan or not, we know today is a big day in Australia, especially for supporters of the Melbourne Demons and Western Bulldogs. But what we also know is that for those who experience family violence, sporting finals can be a terrifying time. With the festivities comes heavy drinking, and for one team, disappointment at the result, all of which can exacerbate perpetrators' violence and put women and children at greater risk today.

So, I'm asking you to share this post with your friends and family. Let them know that if they, or someone they know is experiencing violence, there's somewhere to go for help.

And if you see bad behaviour today, don't ignore or excuse it. Call it out. Because the only way we can stop violence is by making sure that every member of our community knows it is unacceptable.

Taking some time to think about the overlap between abuse and dementia this week, with it being Dementia Action Week. Today is also, World Alzheimer's Day.

We know that people with dementia are more likely to experience elder abuse than those without dementia, particularly financial abuse. As with violence, women are more likely to have a diagnosis of dementia. To address violence against women, we need to think about how we protect women with dementia, who are among some of the most vulnerable women in our society.

If you're worried about someone with dementia experiencing elder abuse, the most important thing is to do something about it. So often, we're afraid to intervene in what we see as people's private lives, but people who experience violence are often too fearful to speak out, or don't know who to seek help from. This is particularly so for people with dementia, who may be reliant on an abuser for care, or may not be able to reach out for help because of their dementia.

Elder Abuse Helpline - 1800 700 600 (national contact number that will connect you with your local aged care advocacy organisation)

Office of the Public Advocate (WA) - 1300 858 455

Exciting day today, trying my hand at the 3 Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. The 3MT is a competition that brings together Masters and PhD candidates from all faculties, giving them each 3 minutes and 1 slide to explain their research. Finalists from today's heats will be through to a final being held on Thursday, the winner of which will progress to the national 3MT competition (though let's not get ahead of ourselves).

For my 3MT, I'll be using the story of one of my participants as a case study, to demonstrate the way violence occurs across the lifespan and highlight ways we may be able to prevent or shorten future experiences. I'm looking forward to sharing my research, and hearing more about some of the other exciting projects being conducted at Curtin.

🗣👂 LAST CALL! 🗣👂

Surveys close midnight tonight AWST. If you haven't yet participated, now's your last chance.

Practitioner survey can be accessed via https://curtin.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bDwFeHW5vwMSCnX

Lived experience survey can be accessed via https://curtin.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_42bucWI214XNQOx