Drink Tank

FARE research showcased at Australian Winter School

The 2015 Australian Winter School (AWS2015) Conference, presented by Lives Lived Well, will be held in Brisbane this week.

Pre-conference workshops are available on Wednesday, with the AWS2015 plenary sessions, concurrent sessions, panels, and round-table discussions from Thursday 23 to Friday 24 July.

The program includes 14 streams and more than 60 speakers and a wide range of topics exploring alcohol and other drugs research, treatment and practice – including presentations showcasing some of the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education’s (FARE) great work.

Register and find out more | Like Winter School on Facebook | Follow @AusWinterSchool on Twitter


The hidden harm: Alcohol and its impact on children and families
11:05-11:35AM, Thursday 23 July 2015

Panel discussion: Domestic and family violence
4:15-5:00PM, Thursday 23 July 2015

Keynote presentation: Alcohol harms to others
8:45-9:15AM, Friday 24 July 2015

Dr Anne-Marie Laslett of the Centre for Alcohol Policy Research (CAPR), will present on The hidden harm: Alcohol’s impact on children and families, the landmark study commissioned by FARE that revealed the full extent of alcohol-related family and domestic violence in Australia.
Launched by Australian of the Year Rosie Batty in February, the study examined the prevalence and effects of heavy drinking on families and children, and the extent to which they persisted or changed over time.
The hidden harm draws on two national surveys of alcohol’s harm to others, service system data and qualitative interviews with families. It paints a concerning picture of the prevalence of alcohol-related family and domestic violence in Australia, shedding new light on a hidden dimension of alcohol harms that occurs largely behind closed doors.
Dr Laslett will provide insight into the findings from The hidden harm and alcohol’s role in family violence, and will deliver one of the conference’s keynote presentations on CAPR’s research into alcohol’s harm to those other than the drinker.
Read a summary of the findings and the full report | Dr Laslett: Reflections from a researcher


Alcohol brands cross the line online
11:45-12:15AM, Friday 24 July 2015

Panel discussion: Like, Tweet, Share: Playing with the big boys, the digital space and alcohol
9:15-9:55AM, Friday 24 July 2015

Dr Nicholas Carah, University of Queensland, presents new research which shows alcohol brands regularly breach industry advertising codes on social media platforms such as Facebook and draws further attention to the inadequacies of the current self-regulatory system.
The study, Breaching the code: Alcohol, Facebook and self-regulation which was commissioned by FARE, examined social media content using the Alcohol Beverages Advertising Code (ABAC) and Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) codes.
It found the Facebook pages of Australia’s most popular alcohol brands are filled with highly inappropriate content that glamorises and encourages excessive drinking and features crude and offensive language, and derogatory, vilifying and sexist remarks.
Dr Carah will discuss how alcohol marketers are using social media, what this industry activity teaches us, and the challenges that it presents for public health researchers and policy-makers.

Read the Breaching the code report | Read more from Dr Carah on Drink Tank


Making alcohol and drug treatment more accessible to Indigenous communities
10:45-11:15AM, Friday 24 July 2015

FARE Director Professor Kate Conigrave looks at ways to make alcohol and drug treatment more accessible to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, using two examples of approaches.
The first is a public treatment service in Sydney, which consulted with the local Aboriginal community and community controlled health services and clients on how to improve care. The resulting partnerships helped the mainstream service to enter into a continuous process of improving accessibility and appropriateness of care.
The second is a home alcohol detox and withdrawal management service in regional New South Wales. The ‘A-clinic’ is a partnership project between the University of Sydney, the Sydney Local Health District and Illawarra Aboriginal Medical Service and was supported by funding from a FARE Good Practice Grant.
The A-clinic is based on cultural appropriateness, best evidence and clinical experience, and the service has already resulted in an increase in the number of Aboriginal people engaging with alcohol treatment services. Its success was recognised in the 2014 NSW Aboriginal Health Awards, as the winner of the Integrated Planning and Service Delivery category.
Professor Conigrave will highlight the key role of partnerships in improving accessibility and appropriateness of treatment, and the importance of involving Indigenous health professionals and communities in the process.

Find out more about the Illawarra Aboriginal Medical Service | Professor Conigrave: Support for Indigenous Australians

Jeremy Henderson

Jeremy Henderson is the Director of Communications at the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education.

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