Our research

What Works in Youth Violence: A re-appraisal of the evidence

With youth violence in the news, the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (Ovens Murray - East Division) commissioned this research (with contribution by Kate Syme-Lamont) to inform local government and community services’ strategic investment of resources and effort to improve outcomes for vulnerable youth. The report provides an overview of evidence-based interventions for youth violence and contributes to broader efforts to deliver more integrated and responsive services across the region.

Access Note: This is a partially restricted version. Pages 13–18 contain analysis of sensitive data and have been removed from this public version of the report to protect confidentiality and privacy. The complete analysis is available upon approval for legitimate research, policy, or professional purposes.

Ovens Murray Area Community Needs Assessment Report 2024

This comprehensive community needs analysis provides the first locally grounded snapshot of social challenges facing children, young people, and families across the Ovens Murray region. Combining local data, frontline service delivery insights, and community voices, the report rigorously assesses interconnected issues of mental health, family violence, alcohol and other drug use, and homelessness.

Key findings reveal that these challenges don't exist in isolation but intersect in profound ways, requiring coordinated collaboration rather than siloed approaches. The report calls for evidence-based action and provides critical insights to inform strategic service delivery planning across the region.

Read more in this article

Exploring the perceptions of out-of-pocket cost for health care

Professor Irene Blackberry and Jennifer Boak, in partnership with Patients Australia, highlight the need for greater transparency in costs, equitable pricing across geographical locations, and strategies to reduce out-of-pocket expenses.

Writing Proposals for Competitive Grants

La Trobe’s School of Nursing and Midwifery, and CERI hosted a research seminar where panel speakers explored the critical elements of successful grant writing and how to avoid common pitfalls that can undermine strong ideas.
Drawing on international experience, Professor Graeme Smith looked at designing proposals that demonstrate clarity, innovation, feasibility, and alignment with funder priorities. Professor Chris Maylea focused on what works in the Australian context and tailoring applications to major funding bodies such as the NHMRC, ARC, and MRFF.

Key Principals of Lived Experience Involvement: how to get started

CERI hosted the first seminar in our series exploring meaningful lived experience (LE) involvement in research and practice.

This session introduced foundational concepts, and guided participants through the early steps of engagement, including identifying the level of engagement that is right for your project and avoiding tokenism, forming group norms with lived experience panels, and preparing you for your first meeting with LE experts.

Enhanced supportive care for older patients with cancer: A global perspective

The GO ReViTALISE initiative, in partnership with the John Richards Centre for Rural Ageing Research and Border Medical Oncology and Haematology, and supported by CERI welcomed Professor William Dale for a conversation on improving care for older adults with cancer.

BEYOND THE SURFACE: The Unacknowledged Value of Unpaid Caregiver's

CERI and the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society (ARCSHS) welcomed Alexandra Drane, on International Women's Day 2025, for a discussion on how ARCHANGELS is reframing the narrative around ‘care’ ensuring that supporting and celebrating the work of caregivers is seen as vital to the health of a nation and its economy.

CERI ImPaCt Study Randomised Controlled Trial published

The ImPaCt RCT was conducted as part of Jennifer Boak's PhD (with co-authors and supervisors Dr Tshepo Rasekaba and Professor Irene Blackberry).

This study was the first in Australia to explore the use of a care complexity detection tool (PCI) to support clinical decisions of nurses caring for older people living in the community.

• The PCI was found to enhance to early decisions after the first nursing assessment, of supports (tasks and time) provided for older people.
• The study highlighted the concept of care complexity and what it means for the care of older people in a real-world setting.

CERI literature review published

Professor Dan Bressington, Professor Richard Gray, Karen Barclay, Clair Overy and Professor Irene Blackberry examined what types of online eLearning courses are available for informal/unpaid carers.

• Unpaid carers are often unprepared and underinformed on how to care people with chronic health conditions and online learning is a convenient, time-effective way to enhance their insights and knowledge and about their caring roles.
• Technology has been playing a bigger part, however there is still a shortage of user-friendly and easily accessible learning available for carers

CERI scoping review published

Professor Irene Blackberry, Jennifer Boak, Karen Barclay and Professor Hanan Khalil narrowed down their global academic literature search to 354 studies conducted between the years of 2018 to 2023 and found that:

• women were overrepresented in informal, unpaid caregiving roles in 70% of the studies
• nearly two thirds of caregivers were spouses or partners
• major barriers to care included lack of caregiving education and support, financial strain and reduced quality of life for caregivers.