Apply for $10,000 to research aged care innovations overseas
The Innovation in Aged Care International Fellowship is seeking two more fellows to research the latest innovations abroad.
The Innovation in Aged Care International Fellowship – which aims to up-skill leaders in the aged care system – is seeking two more fellows to research the latest innovations abroad.
The international applied research fellowships worth $10,000 each are an initiative of Hugh D.T. Williamson Foundation and the International Specialised Skills Institute.
The fellowship is designed to support people to travel overseas for two-four weeks to research the latest aged care sector innovations and disseminate the findings in Australia. The initiative is open to any leaders in the aged care system who can identify areas of research that can promote positive change
“We are open to anyone applying as long as they already have experience in aged care. When approved the candidates travel within 12 months,” a spokesperson for the fellowship told Australian Ageing Agenda.
The key areas of focus for the Innovation in Aged Care International Fellowship are:
- infection protection and control
- innovation in models of care
- improving physical environment
- workforce planning
- innovation in home care
- designing and influencing policy change in the age care sector.
Residential and home care fellowships underway
Fellowship recipients travelling in 2023 include Melbourne-based experienced workforce researcher and consultant Dr Bridget Laging – who was appointed last year – and Silverchain director of research discovery Professor Tanya Davison who was appointed this year.
Dr Laging is heading to Canada – where she is also an adjunct professor at the University of Brunswick – to research novel strategies to support greater insight into safe workload allocations in residential aged care settings.
She plans to visit the university to learn about their novel simulation centre located within a residential aged care facility. The onsite simulation laboratory provides opportunities for collaboration between researchers and residential aged care staff, enabling them to develop context-specific solutions facing that environment. By reviewing clinical scenarios, they gain insight into the stressors that contribute to decision-making challenges and identify factors that exceed the facility’s capacity, she said.
Dr Davison – who has the advantage of being able to quickly implement any findings at home care provider Silverchain – will be researching depression in older individuals receiving in-home care.
While Silverchain already has a research program with partners on mental health, Dr Davison said she was eager to explore the international developments in this field.
Dr Laging and Dr Davison will both share their research within the next 12 months.
This round of applications closes Friday 28 July.
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