Watch recording: Social determinants of health

The Department of Nursing and Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre hosted the final public nursing seminar of this year's series on 19 October 2023.

photograph of the Event speakers

This seminar showcased presentations by Associate Professor Karla Gough and Professor Mei Krishnasamy, followed by a panel discussion featuring Associate Professor Ian Collins, Piergiorgio Moro and Dr Polly Dufton.

This seminar explored healthcare equity, the lack of representative diversity in administrative and health research datasets, and opportunities to raise awareness about disadvantage at point of care.

A panel discussion followed, focusing on issues of access to care from regional and multicultural perspectives, and for patients experiencing disadvantage.

Watch recording

About the Speakers

Photograph of Mei KrishnasamyProfessor Mei Krishnasamy holds the inaugural Chair in Cancer Nursing at the University of Melbourne. Her research interests include the development and evaluation of nurse-led interventions targeted at improving patient and carer experiences of living with a diagnosis of cancer, demands of treatment and symptom profiles. She is particularly interested in the development and evaluation of nursing and allied health-led services.
The focus of her work has been on generating new knowledge through diverse research projects and methodologies, and increasingly, on the best ways of meaningfully translating new and existing evidence into clinical practice. She has considerable teaching and post-graduate supervision experience. She also holds national leadership positions on nursing and multi-disciplinary oncology societies (CNSA and COSA).
Photograph of Karla GoughAssociate Professor Karla Gough's career has been driven by a commitment to excellence in the design and analysis of data arising from patient-centred outcomes and comparative effectiveness research, and the development of quality measurement and reporting systems, with a specific focus on those designed to capture patient-reported outcome data. She is committed to understanding how varied patient values, needs, and preferences can help shape healthcare delivery systems to optimise the outcomes and experiences of all Australians affected by cancer.
Karla guides the methodological and statistical aspects of research within and outside Peter Mac, working with senior clinicians, researchers, and consumers on local, state-wide, and national projects, and as a member of Peter Mac’s Clinical Research Committee, which supports the HREC by judging the scholarly and scientific merit of single and multi-site clinical research applications. She has been involved as a co-author, investigator and/or collaborator on successful grant/funding applications totaling AU$9.3M and has almost 100 peer-reviewed publications in top oncology and speciality journals.
Photograph of Pier MoroPiergiorgio Moro is the co-ordinator of the MHSS team. MHSS works with people from a migrant and refugee background as well as international students. His projects include the areas of sexual health/STI’s, blood borne viruses, healthy relationships, cultural competence and stigma. Pier has worked in the community sector for over 30 years in diverse areas such as human rights, international development, labour rights, community radio, blood borne viruses and health promotion. Pier is an experienced trainer, with a Diploma of Education, a Master of Arts and a Bachelor of Science (Hons).
Photograph of Polly DuftonDr Polly Dufton is an experienced cancer nurse specialising in complex symptom management. Dr Lufton has experience in developing, implementing and evaluating nurse-led services with a specific focus on translating evidence into practice. Her research focuses on emergency department presentations by people receiving systemic anti-cancer therapy and interventions to mitigate potentially avoidable emergency presentations. She also expertise in geriatric oncology and have lead the development and implementation of a sustainable nurse-led, MDT model. She has recently developed and is currently teaching cancer nursing subjects at the University of Melbourne.
APhotograph of Ian Collinsssociate Professor Ian Collins trained in medical oncology in Ireland before coming to Australia in 2010 for further training at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre for four years. Ian treats all cancer types but has a special interest in breast cancer, cancer genetics and information technology in oncology.
Ian also provides chemotherapy and consultation services at the Portland District Hospital every Thursday. He has an appointment as a clinical Associate Professor at Deakin University.