Bulletin 06.11.2009

1. Message from President
2. ASPR Committee Contacts
3. ASPR Matters
4. Conferences and Related
5. Scholarships and Positions Available

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1. Message From President

As I noted in the previous bulletin, the annual ASPR conference is to held on 2-4 December in Canberra and I hope as many members as possible will attend. At the Annual General Meeting (AGM), which will be held during the conference on Thursday 3rd December, I will complete my term as President, and Helen Christensen as President-Elect will take over and begin her 3-year term.  Don’t forget that two motions will be put to members at the AGM concerning the introduction of electronic voting and changes to the Mission Statement which were circulated last month.

Finally, I am pleased to announce that the Executive Committee have decided upon a conference organiser for the next three ASPR conferences to be held in Sydney (2010), Dunedin (2011), and Perth (2012); namely International Conference and Events Australia (ICE).

All the best

Henry

2. ASPR Committee Contacts

Professor Henry Jackson (President)                 henryjj@unimelb.edu.au
Professor Helen Christensen (President Elect)   Helen.Christensen@anu.edu.au
Dr Claire Kelly (Secretary)                                ckel@unimelb.edu.au
Assoc Professor Robyn Langdon (Treasurer)     robyn.langdon@mq.edu.au         
ACT:  Dr Peter Butterworth                              Peter.Butterworth@anu.edu.au
NSW: Dr Anthony Harris                                  aharris1@mail.usyd.edu.au
NZ:    Dr Caroline Bell                                      caroline.bell@chmeds.ac.nz
NZ:    Dr Sunny Collings (co-opted)                  sunny.collings@otago.ac.nz
QLD: Dr Tom Burne                                         t.burne@uq.edu.au
SA:    Professor Cherrie Galletly                        cherrie@drgalletly.com
VIC:  Dr Elizabeth Scarr                                   elscarr@unimelb.edu.au
WA:  Ms Giulietta Valuri                                   giulietta.valuri@uwa.edu.au
TAS: Dr Kristy Sanderson                                kristy.sanderson@utas.edu.au
Dr Eoin Killackey (co-opted)                            eoin@unimelb.edu.au
Dr Flavie Waters (Early Career Researcher)      Flavie@ccrn.uwa.edu.au

Dr Butterworth is also the 2009 Conference Organiser

3. ASPR Matters

3.1       Mentoring Program

Call for Expressions for Interest for the ASPR Mentoring Program

What is the ASPR mentoring program?

The ASPR mentoring program is a semi-formal, time-limited program (12 months) in which a mentor and a ‘mentee’ are matched for the purpose of facilitating a mentoring relationship. The main goal of the relationship is to provide a supported environment in which the mentee can advance their skills, knowledge and experience, and identify and develop a career plan, with the help and guidance of one who has been there before!

The ASPR Early Career Researcher working party would love to hear from you if you believe you could be a part of this program. The aim would be for initial expressions of interest/involvement to be collated by the mentoring program committee and matching the mentors and mentees by areas of interest and specific aims, followed by an informal “get-together” in Canberra for potential mentors and mentees. The program would start officially in early 2010.

Would you like to be a mentee?

The ASPR mentoring program is set up for those who consider themselves “early career researchers”, and who seek greater communication with researchers who are well established in their careers.

The main role for the mentor is to support the mentee in (i) the development of generic skills, such as grant identification and writing, reviewing scientific papers, or improving presentation skills; (ii) providing career advice, such as opinion on research options, or managing life/work balance; and (iii) field-specific requests, including technical or clinical information.

Could you be a mentor?

Would you be willing to help an early career researcher to advance their knowledge, efficacy, confidence, and career?

Mentoring is a vitally important aspect of any field of endeavour and we are seeking senior mental health researchers who would be willing to share a little of their time and expertise to mentor early career researchers. This relationship can be a very positive experience for both the mentor and ‘mentee’.

Importantly, there are defined limits to the expectations of the mentor/mentee relationship to ensure that involvement in the program does not place undue stress on mentors and their time, and does not become a proxy for work or academic supervision.

Please indicate your interest by emailing Felice Jacka, the mentoring program co-ordinator, at felice@barwonhealth.org.au

3.2       Research Update

ASPR is currently assembling documents for the Mental Health Council of Victoria (MHCA) in the area of Borderline Personality Disorder. A working party has now been developed, including Janine Stephenson, Carol Hulbert, Andrew Chanen, and Henry Jackson.

4. Conferences And Related

Mental Health Wiki
Mental Health Wiki seeks contributors

We wish to inform readers of the ASPR e-bulletin of the launch of Mental Health Wiki (www.mentalhealthwiki.org), a collaborative web guide to mental health problems.

We invite contributions to Mental Health Wiki from health professionals, academic researchers, consumer and carer advocates, and health service administrators.

About Mental Health Wiki
Mental Health Wiki aims to provide high quality and up-to-date information about mental disorders. It allows contributors to edit and improve each other’s information and incorporates material from professional journals, textbooks, or websites run by government organisations.

The potential of collaborative websites
Websites are now a major source of information about mental disorders. While some are of high quality, many contain information of variable quality, have trouble providing locally relevant information, and are hard to keep up-to-date due to the rapid expansion in knowledge [1].

A potential solution to the out-of-datedness and limited coverage of information websites is the wiki. A wiki is a type of software that allows the creation of collaborative websites, with the on-line encyclopedia Wikipedia the best known example. The large number of contributors allows wikis to be constantly updated and errors rapidly corrected [2]. This approach has so far not been specifically applied to the collation of information about mental disorders.

One of the criticisms of Wikipedia and other similar wiki guides is that they may include inaccurate or biased information. In order to ensure that Mental Health Wiki provides high quality information, permission to contribute to Mental Health Wiki is limited to:

• Mental health professionals
• Employees of government health and human services departments
• Major NGOs dealing with mental health
• University academics working in mental health
• Consumer or carer advocates working for health services or major organizations representing the interests of consumers and carers.

Contributors have to register and state their affiliations.  

Evaluation of Mental Health Wiki
A formal evaluation of Mental Health Wiki will be conducted, examining the level of use and comparing the quality of information with other sources such as conventional websites and textbooks.

We invite contributions to Mental Health Wiki from health professionals, academic researchers, consumer and carer advocates, and health service administrators.

Regards,
Prof Anthony Jorm, Dr Nicola Reavley, and Amy Morgan                
Orygen Youth Health Research Centre                                        
University of Melbourne                                                                        
Australia                                                                                       

David Jorm
Sura Systems
Melbourne
Australia

1.         Barnes, C., et al., Review of the quality of information on bipolar disorder on the internet. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 2009. 43(10): p. 934-945.
2.         Giles, J., Internet encyclopaedias go head to head. Nature, 2005. 438: p. 900-901.

ASPR CONFERENCE
2- 4 December 2009
Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia

The theme of the conference, ‘From Young Minds to Grey Matters’, will consider mental health and wellbeing across the life course, from childhood through to old age. The national and international keynote speakers, invited symposia and free papers will cover clinical, epidemiological and biological neuroscience streams, and also emphasize research with relevance for policy and practice.

A number of associated events will be held prior to the conference on 1 December, including a statistical workshop and a satellite e-mental health conference.

The conference program will include special events for early career researchers and a number of travel scholarships will be offered.

Register your interest via email to: aspr@consec.com.au

48th Annual National Scientific Conference of the Australian Society for Medical Research
November 15-17 2009 
The Grand Chancellor Hotel, Hobart

The theme for the conference is "Neurogenetics on the Apple Isle"

Speakers include Firkin Orator, Professor Jonathan Flint of the University of Oxford, UK who is investigating the genetic basis of psychiatric disorders
 
The program covers diverse topics such as epilepsy, neuromuscular diseases, motor neurone, schizophrenia, stroke, Huntington's disease, ataxis, MS, neuropathies, brain development, mental retardation, Parkinson's disease, bipolar disorder, neurofibromatosis, muscular dystrophy and neurological diseases. 
 
Abstract submission and online bookings are now open at: http://www.asmr-nsc.org.au/ 

Submissions for Poster-Only selection close Friday September 25th 2009

XIV Annual Course of Schizophrenia “Psychosis: Communication, motivation and change
26-28th November 2009
Hotel Meliá Castilla, Madrid

The Schizophrenia Courses aimed at mental health care professionals, that have been held over the last thirteen years, have been organised by the Psychiatry Service I of the General University Hospital “Gregorio Marañón” of Madrid, with the institutional and financial support of the Foundation for the Investigation and Treatment of Schizophrenia and other Psychotic Disorders and institutional member of ISPS (International Society for Psychological Treatments of Schizophrenias and Other Psychoses) . Their objective is to facilitate the relationship and up-date the knowledge of all the professionals involved in and interested in understanding these patients better and helping them more.

For information, visit the website at: www.cursoesquizofreniamadrid.com

4th Biennial Conference of the International Society for Bipolar Disorders
17-20th March 2010, San Paolo, Brazil

The ISBD is the premier global bipolar disorder research and advocacy group, and this is the official biennial meeting of the Society. The ISBD is committed to diversity and inclusiveness in all its activities, and aims to bring together international scientists and clinicians to advance shared goals.

Bipolar disorder is one of the most active and rapidly evolving areas of psychiatry, and this meeting will provide an opportunity to hear cutting edge findings, presented by a select panel of internationally recognized experts in the area. The educational program will comprise plenary lectures, symposia, workshops, oral communications and poster sessions, and a forum for involving patient advocacy and support groups.

More information can be found at:
www.isbd2010.org

11th Biennial Australasian Schizophrenia Conference
22-24 September 2010
Sydney

The 11th Biennial Australasian Schizophrenia Conference (ASC 2010) will be hosted by The Schizophrenia Research Institute. The theme of the ASC2010 conference will be ‘Molecules to Mind’, which reflects the broad perspective required to achieve a greater scientific understanding of schizophrenia, understanding that will make a tangible difference in the lives of people with this illness. The theme reflects the quest for improved knowledge of the molecular and cellular processes involved, better appreciation of the structure and function of the brain in this disorder, new insights into the role of social and other environmental influences in contributing to schizophrenia, and to discover how new knowledge at each of these levels may be translated into better therapies and preventative interventions.
A range of internationally renowned scientists from Europe, Asia and the USA will be presenting at the ASC2010 conference. In addition, Australian researchers will be invited to present their own work across the ‘Molecules to Mind’ spectrum in a way that will complement the presentations of our international guests. Special workshops with strong clinical themes will be available to highlight the translational capacities that have developed recently, and how both sound evidence and theory can inform innovative therapy.

Details of the Conference can be found at: www.asc2010.com

5. Scholarships and Positions Available

None advertised this month