Alix Woolard

A community-led, trauma-informed psychosocial intervention to improve health outcomes of children and young people with Type-1 diabetes

T1D can be a traumatic diagnosis for children and young people, and often involves strict adherence to painful treatments, comorbid mental health conditions, and shortened life expectancy.

Co-designing a trauma-informed program for parents whose infant has had a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) admission

Having a newborn child admitted into a NICU can be highly traumatic for parents. The compounding effects of the NICU clinical environment, having a seriously ill child, in addition to the inability to care or adequately bond with your child can be extremely distressing.

The Perspectives and Experiences of Trauma-Informed Practice Education and Training: From Early Career Teachers

This study aims to investigate early career teachers’ education, knowledge, perceptions and experiences of trauma-informed practice in Western Australia.

Building a culturally safe mental health system for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people

The impact of colonisation, genocide, and continuing discriminatory policies have created a context for ongoing disadvantage, trauma, and high rates of mental health issues for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people.

A trauma-focused program for childhood and adolescent dissociation

Dissociation is the act of separating oneself from reality and is often used by children and young people to disconnect from traumatic experiences.

Understanding autistic LGBTQA+ young people’s experiences of trauma: An intersectional approach

Recent research has consistently found significantly higher rates of gender and sexual diversity reported in the autistic population compared to the non-autistic population, and higher rates of autism reported in LGBTQA+ populations compared to cisgender and heterosexual populations

Wellbeing study

Burns are a common cause of emergency presentations, and most burn injuries happen to children and adolescents.

Autism likelihood in infants born to mothers with asthma is associated with blood inflammatory gene biomarkers in pregnancy

Mothers with asthma or atopy have a higher likelihood of having autistic children, with maternal immune activation in pregnancy implicated as a mechanism. This study aimed to determine, in a prospective cohort of mothers with asthma and their infants, whether inflammatory gene expression in pregnancy is associated with likelihood of future autism. 

Effect of fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO)-based asthma management during pregnancy versus usual care on infant development, temperament, sensory function and autism signs

Asthma during pregnancy is associated with a range of adverse perinatal outcomes. It is also linked to increased rates of neurodevelopmental conditions in the offspring. We aimed to assess whether fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO)-based asthma management during pregnancy improves child developmental and behavioural outcomes compared to usual care. The Breathing for Life Trial was a randomised controlled trial that compared FENO-based asthma management during pregnancy to usual care.

Treatment for Childhood and Adolescent Dissociation: A Systematic Review

Dissociative symptoms are linked to experiences of trauma, often originating in childhood and adolescence. Dissociative disorders are associated with a high burden of illness and a poor quality of life. Despite evidence suggesting that early intervention can improve outcomes, little research exists on the treatment of dissociative disorders in childhood and adolescence.

Pre-service teachers’ experiences with students impacted by Trauma in the school setting

Experiencing trauma can adversely impact a child's education and their lifelong social, physical and mental health. Trauma is poorly understood by those working within the education sector. Teachers play a pivotal role in recognising and helping when children display trauma-related behaviours, but risk re-traumatising children if not adequately trained. Pre-service teachers have limited exposure and experience in responding to the different needs experienced by children impacted by trauma. 

A wellbeing program to promote mental health in paediatric burn patients: Study protocol

One of the most traumatic injuries a child can experience is a severe burn. Despite improvements in medical treatments which have led to better physical outcomes and reduced mortality rates for paediatric burns patients, the psychological impact associated with experiencing such a traumatic injury has mostly been overlooked. This is concerning given the high incidence of psychopathology amongst paediatric burn survivors. 

“It's a big trauma for the family”: A qualitative insight into the psychological trauma of paediatric burns from the perspective of mothers

Despite the medical and surgical improvements of paediatric burn injuries, burn injuries can be a painful and traumatic experience for the child and their family. It is therefore important to explore the experiences of caregivers who support their child throughout the burn journey. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore the traumatic nature of paediatric burns on the family from a caregiver's perspective.

The queers are all right: a content analysis of LGBTQIA + mental health on TikTok

The formation of online communities instils a sense of connectedness which can ameliorate the mental health concerns that result from minority stressors for lesbian, gay, queer, intersex, asexual, and other diverse genders/sexualities (LGBTQIA+). The aim of this study was to explore how LGBTQIA + people communicate social and mental health concerns on TikTok.

The relationship between pitch contours in infant-directed speech and early signs of autism in infancy

Mother-infant interactions during the first year of life are crucial to healthy infant development. The infant-directed speech (IDS), and specifically pitch contours, used by mothers during interactions are associated with infant language and social development.

The Investigation of Health-Related Topics on TikTok: A Descriptive Study Protocol

The social media application TikTok allows users to view and upload short-form videos. Recent evidence suggests it has significant potential for both industry and health promoters to influence public health behaviours. This protocol describes a standardised, replicable process for investigations that can be tailored to various areas of research interest, allowing comparison of content and features across public health topics.

"I just get scared it's going to happen again": a qualitative study of the psychosocial impact of pediatric burns from the child's perspective

Advances in medicine have improved the chances of survival following burn injuries, however, psychosocial outcomes have not seen the same improvement, and burn injuries can be distressing for both the child or young person, negatively affecting their wellbeing. Pediatric burn patients are at a higher risk of developing psychopathology compared to the general population.

The effectiveness of a day hospital mentalization-based therapy programme for adolescents with borderline personality traits: Findings from Touchstone—Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service

Individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) are at a substantial risk of harm to themselves and others, experience high levels of functional impairment and typically are high users of tertiary healthcare to address their mental health concerns. As indicators for BPD typically emerge in adolescence, a day therapy service in Bentley, Western Australia, Touchstone Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS), was developed as an intensive intervention for adolescents with indicators for BPD and its associated symptomology.

Reach and perceived effectiveness of a community-led active outreach postvention intervention for people bereaved by suicide

Postvention is a core component of suicide prevention strategies, internationally. However, the types of supports provided to people impacted by suicide vary widely. This study examines the perceived effectiveness of the Primary Care Navigator (PCN) model for people bereaved by suicide. The PCN model was implemented in response to a suicide cluster.

Parent-infant interaction quality is related to preterm status and sensory processing

Parent-infant interactions provide the foundation for the development of infant socioemotional wellbeing. Preterm birth can have a substantial, and often detrimental, impact on the quality of early parent-infant interactions. Sensory processing difficulties, common in preterm infants, are further associated with poorer interaction quality.

Resilience and Posttraumatic Growth after Burn: A Review of Barriers, Enablers, and Interventions to Improve Psychological Recovery

Burn injuries are traumatic experiences that can detrimentally impact an individual’s psychological and emotional wellbeing. Despite this, some survivors adapt to psychosocial challenges better than others despite similar characteristics relating to the burn.

The psychological impact of paediatric burn injuries: a systematic review

To review and synthesise qualitative literature regarding the psychological outcomes following paediatric burn injuries, and to determine if children and adolescents who experience a burn injury have elevated risk of psychopathology following the injury.