Liz Watt

Lecturer

La Trobe/Austin Health Clinical School of Nursing,
Level 4, Education Centre, Austin Tower

Ph: +61 3 9496 4461
Fx: +61 3 9496 4450
Email: e.watt@latrobe.edu.au

Qualifications

Dip N, BAppSc (Adv Nurs), MNS, Cert Prom Cont, RN, RM, FRCNA

Academic background

Elizabeth has over 20 years experience in higher education, teaching in undergraduate and postgraduate nursing programs. She is the Head, Clinical School of Nursing @ Austin Health and has been invoveld in the development of the clinical school at Austin Health since it inception in 2002. Liz has significant experience in curriculum development and implementation.

Areas of Teaching

Liz’s teaching interests include urological and continence nursing, health assessment, adult acute care nursing and clinical education. Liz coordinates the undergraduate program at the clinical school and the post graduate urological and continence nursing courses including the prostate care nurse program.

Research

Areas of Interest

• Urological and continence nursing issues
• Innovation in teaching and learning

Current Research

• Innovations in teaching and learning
• The needs of men with advanced prostate cancer
• The role and scope of practice of prostate care nurses in Australia.

Past Research

Liz has researched and published on: patient advocacy; current practices related to the time of day of urinary catheter removal; patient progress post urinary catheter removal; the transition experiences of students in their graduate nurse year; the impact of incontinence on care givers; and acute care nurses’ approach to the assessment and management of people with urinary incontinence, walking programs for older hospitalised people, social support for people with chronic illness, and continence curriculum.

Supervision of Higher Degree Students

Masters Research Theses

• Childbirth and sexuality: exploring the changes – 1999
• An exploration of women’s experience of vaginal examination during labour - 2000
• The experience of transition in a private hospital graduate nurse program - 2001
• An exploration of acute care nurses approach to assessment and management of people with urinary incontinence - 2001
• The effect of a walking program on the mobility, independence and exercise self efficacy of elderly hospital in-patients: A pilot study - 2002
• Discharge planning: Identifying post discharge problems encountered by elderly patients who have undergone orthopaedic surgery - 2003
• An exploration of the relationship between perceptions of social connections and health in older people with a chronic disease – Type II Diabetes Mellitus – 2008/9

Honours Research Theses

• An exploration of the way in which registered nurses perceive autonomous practice - 1997
• An exploration of registered nurses perception of ‘presence’ - 1997
• Nature and prevalence of lower urinary tract symptoms in men with advanced prostate cancer - 2008

Responsibilities within the Division

• Head, Clinical School of Nursing @ Austin Health
• Subject Chair – NSG3AUB Acute care nursing practice B
• Course Coodinator – Urological and Continence Nursing Stream

Selected Publications

Journal Articles

Scanlon, A., & Watt, E. (2009). Developing the mentor role through elearning. Journal for Nurses in Staff Development (accepted for publication – in press).

Killey, B., & Watt, E. (2006). The effect of extra walking on the mobility, independence and exercise self-efficacy of elderly hospital in-patients: A pilot study. Contemporary Nurse, 22(1), 120-133.

Paterson, J., & St. John, W., Watt, E., Thorogood, C. (2006). Consultation, consensus and commitment to guidelines for inclusion of continence into undergraduate nursing and midwifery curricula: Literature review. Adelaide: Federal Department of Health and Ageing: National Continence Management Strategy.

Paterson, J., & St. John, W., Watt, E., Thorogood, C (2006). Consultation, consensus and commitment to guidelines for inclusion of continence into undergraduate nursing and midwifery curricula: Literature review. Adelaide: Federal Department of Health and Ageing: National Continence Management Strategy.

Paterson, J., & St. John, W., Watt, E., Thorogood, C. (2006). Consultation, consensus and commitment to guidelines for inclusion of continence into undergraduate nursing and midwifery curricula: Final report. Adelaide: Federal Department of Health and Ageing: National Continence Management Strategy.

Cassells, C., & Watt, E. (2003). The impact of incontinence on older spousal caregivers. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 42(6), 607-616.

Cooper, G., & Watt, E. (2003). An exploration of acute care nurses approach to assessment and management of incontinence. Wound, Ostomy & Continence Nursing, 30(6), 305-313.

Goh, K., & Watt, E. (2003). From dependant on to depended on: An exploration of the experience of transition in a private hospital graduate nurse program. Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, 21(1), 14-20.

Conferences

Watt, E., Street, A., & Cassells, C. (2009). The role and scope of practice of prostate care nurses in Australia: summary of the project. Paper presented at the 10th National Prostate Symposium (19th – 21st August), Melbourne.

Watt, E., Murphy, M, Pascoe, E., Scanlon, A., Gan, S. (2009). An evaluation of a structured learning environment as a component of the clinical practicum in the final year of a Bachelor of Nursing program: A pre-post test analysis. Paper presented at the International Council of Nurses 24th Quadrennial Congress, (27 June - 4 July), Durban, South Africa.

Watt, E. (2008). Evidence based continence assessment tools. Paper presented at the 17th National Conference on Incontinence, Continence Foundation of Australia (5th-8th November), Hobart, Tasmania.

 Watt, E. & Ogilvie, A. (2008) Bothersome lower urinary tract symptoms in men with prostate cancer – development of a research project, paper presented at the Nurses for Continence Special Interest Group Seminar (National) (19th April), Melbourne.

Paterson, J., & St. John, W., Watt, E., Thorogood, C. (2007). Consultation, consensus and commitment to guidelines for including continence into undergraduate nursing and midwifery curricula, paper presented at the16th National Conference on Incontinence, Gold Coast, Queensland. Australian & New Zealand Continence Journal 13(4), 116.

Paterson, J, St John, W, Watt, E & Thorogood, C (2007) Guidelines for inclusion of continence into undergraduate nursing and midwifery curricula, paper presented at the 8th Asia/Oceania Regional Congress of Gerontology and Geriatrics (22-25 October), Beijing, China.

Scanlon, A., Watt, E., & Smithers, M. (2007). Engaging time poor nurses through e learning. paper presented at the Nursing Leadership Conference (April), Cairns, QLD.

Rudd, R., & Watt, E. (2005). The best of both worlds: A collaborative pilot program for the conduct of clinical experiences for final year Bachelor of nursing students, paper presented at the Royal College of Nursing Australia: National Conference, Adelaide: SA.

Paterson, J, Day, K, Watt, E, St John, W, Prior, J & Glover, P (2004) Continence curriculum guidelines recommended for inclusion into undergraduate nursing and midwifery curricula, paper presented at Continence: The ultimate goal: Continence Foundation of Australia’s 13th National Conference (10-13 November), Fremantle, WA.

 Watt, E. (2004). Evidence based continence assessment, paper presented at the Continence Management Symposium – Ausmed, November, Melbourne, Victoria.

Professional Affiliations

• Fellow of the Royal College of Nursing Australia
• Continence Foundation of Australia (Vic Branch)
• Nurses for Continence
• Victorian Urological Nurses Society
• Australian Nursing Federation

Community Involvement/Engagement

Peer Reviewer:

• Australian and New Zealand Continence Journal
• International Journal of Nursing Practice
• Journal of Advanced Nursing