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Congress News Updates |
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| June 2008 Congress Update |
Download June Update PDF Version |
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With the Congress now less than three weeks away, we have about 1150 people registered. This is expected to grow to about 1400 people by July 6th.
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FINAL PROGRAM ON-LINE NOW
The full program with presentation titles and authors is now on the website, so that you can already begin to make choices
about which proffered paper sessions you wish to attend. There is such a wide variety of topics, it’s probably best to start now! View
here...
HARD COPY OF PROGRAM AND ABSTRACTS
The Congress program book is now being printed and will be available in your satchel when you register at the Congress in Brisbane. At 200 pages, this very large document will include all presentation and poster abstracts, as well as important information on programming and social activities.
POSTER SESSIONS
All delegates are encouraged to visit the poster sessions to be held in the Exhibition and Catering area of the Great Hall. Authors will be available to discuss their work from 1.30pm to 2pm (the last half hour of lunch) each day. Please note that to accommodate such a large number of posters, they will be changed every day.
BREAKFAST SESSIONS SELLING OUT FAST
Some of the breakfast sessions are now booked out, but there are still an excellent range of sessions available. Booking is easy: print or copy the registration booking form
here, fill out your session/s of interest and fax the form to Conference Coordinators.
CELEBRATE NAIDOC WEEK – ATTEND THE ABORIGINAL DANCE PERFORMANCE
NAIDOC week celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and this year will be held during the same week as Congress. We encourage as many delegates as possible to celebrate with us at the Congress Aboriginal Interactive Dance Performance at 7pm on
Monday. Bookings as per breakfast sessions above.
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ADDITIONAL INTERNATIONAL HEALTH SESSION
The Congress Organising Committee is very pleased to announce that ten public health workers from the Asia-Pacific region have been successful in securing funding to attend Congress from AusAID through the International Seminar Support Scheme. An additional International Health Session has been convened so these recipients can present their papers.
INTERNET ACCESS AT THE CONGRESS
Delegates will have limited access to emails through two computer terminals in the Exhibition and Catering area of the Great Hall. For those bringing laptops, wireless internet services will be available through the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre at a cost.
UPDATE ON FULL PAPERS
The eleven full papers which have been written as part of the Congress will go up on the website shortly before the Congress begins. These papers were all selected as high scoring abstracts and will make informative reading.
EXHIBITORS
There will be twenty three exhibition booths at the Congress including the four host organisations and the following:
Universities (Deakin, ANU and QUT)
NGOs (Diabetes Australia, Royal Flying Doctor Service)
Environment (Northey St City Farm, The Green Booth)
Publishers (Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford University Press)
Businesses (Health Super, Inception Strategies)
Government organisations (Queensland Health, DHS Victoria, Dept of Health and Ageing, NSW Health, AIHW).
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AILEEN PLANT MEDAL NOMINATIONS CLOSE
Nominations for the inaugural Aileen Plant Medal for Australia and New Zealand’s top early career researcher, closed on May 30th. Twenty-four outstanding applications were received, and a selection panel formed with representatives from each of the four Congress host
organisations. The Panel is currently reviewing applications and will announce the winning recipient at the Congress Dinner (7.00pm-11.00pm on Tuesday 8 July in the Ballroom, Terrace Level, Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre).
Safe traveling and we look forward to seeing a big crowd at The Brisbane Convention Centre.
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| May 2008 Congress Update |
Download May Update PDF Version |
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CONGRESS 2008 IS GROWING!
Following an outstanding response to early-bird registrations, it appears that the Congress will be larger than originally anticipated. It is now likely that there will
be 1300-1400 delegates in attendance, which means that the Congress will be largest gathering of population health professionals from Australia and New Zealand for some years.
THE CONGRESS VENUE
With so many delegates expected, Congress will now occupy most of the convention section of the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre. The plenaries will be held in one half of the Great Hall (Ground Level) with a seating capacity of 1,500 people, while the other half of the Great Hall will be used as an exhibition, poster and catering area.
Four of the Congress breakout rooms will be on the Mezzanine Level and three will be on the Plaza Level. Having the bulk of the venue to ourselves will help integrate the congress into a very functional and hopefully successful event. For further information on the Congress venue, go to:
www.bcec.com.au/interactive-venue-map.aspx
DRAFT CONGRESS PROGRAM NOW ON WEB
The draft program is now available for all to view. Go to:
www.conferenceco.com.au/PopHealth08/program.html
AILEEN PLANT MEDAL – NOMINATIONS OPEN
The Aileen Plant Medal will be presented at Congress
2008 to Australia and New Zealand’s top early career
researcher. This medal commemorates the outstanding
population health work of Aileen Plant, and with a winner
only once in every four years, it is likely to become a very
highly esteemed medal in the population health field.
Nominations for the medal have just opened and will
close on Friday 30th May. The nomination form and
guidelines are available on the Congress website or from
Assoc Prof Jane Freemantle: janef@ichr.uwa.edu.au.
INDIGENOUS SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS
Congratulations to the three winners of Indigenous
Scholarships to attend Congress. They are:
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Karl Briscoe from Mossman, Queensland (PHAA
member) who won the scholarship sponsored by the
Department of Veteran’s Affairs
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Scott Winch from Darwin, Northern Territory (AEA
member) who won the scholarship sponsored by
ACT Health
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Michelle Elwell from Cairns, Queensland (PHAA
member) who won the scholarship sponsored by
Myran Ventures
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VOLUNTEERS
Congratulations are also due to the following thirteen volunteers who have been selected to help out at Congress:
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Julie Balen, PhD candidate, QIMR (AEA member)
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Clair Gardner BScHonours student, USC (AHPA and
AEA member)
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Holly Pardey Bachelor double degree student, QUT (AHPA member)
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Annie Su BApplSc student, UQ (AHPA member)
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Shelley Wilkinson PhD candidate, UQ (AHPA member)
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Kerry Roach BHlthSc student, USC (AHPA member)
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Elizabeth Rashid BScHons student, USC (AHPA member)
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Kate van Dooren PhD candidate, UQ (PHAA member)
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Melinda Boyd MBBS student, Bond (PHAA member)
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Emma Field MAE student, ANU (PHAA member)
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Amelia White BHlthSc student, QUT (PHAA member)
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Craig Davis MAE student ANU, (PHAA member)
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Kyoka Miura Masters student, QUT (PHAA member)
REMINDER TO BOOK EARLY
Please be aware that due to the large number of
delegates registering to attend Congress, some breakfast
sessions and social activities are selling out. Tickets are
no longer available for:
- Reducing Health Inequalities: It Matters How You Measure
- Social Determinants of Health
- Night Kayaking on Brisbane River
Accommodation is also booking out fast due to the
International Rugby match being played in Brisbane.
Please note that rooms at the Hotel George Williams are
no longer available.
CONGRESS GOLD SPONSORS
As always, events of this magnitude rely on the generous
financial support from various organizations and
businesses.
The Congress Organising Committee would
particularly like to thank gold sponsors, Queensland
Health and the Department of Health and Ageing.
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April 2008 Congress Update |
Download April Update PDF Version |
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NOTIFICATION OF STATUS OF ABSTRACTS
By the time this update is posted, most authors will have received notification of the status of their abstract (sent out in the week of 14-18 April). There was a large volume of abstracts received, and overall they were of a very high standard and covered a rich variety of topics and methods.
Following a challenging meeting by the programming/scientific group, the program has been finalised: In all there will be 181 long presentations, 291 short presentations and 416 posters at the Congress.
LAYOUT OF SESSIONS
There will be a vast range of topics presented at the congress. There will be 10 sessions relating to social capital and health equity, 8 relating to food and 6 relating to Indigenous health. There will also be sessions covering cancer (3) child/perinatal health (4) chronic disease (5) International health (4) health promotion (3) and women’s health (4).
REGISTRATIONS
There are about 165 registrations with three weeks to go until the close of Earlybird Registrations on Friday May 2nd. It is envisaged that there will be another 500-600 registrations in this three week period as presenters register for the Congress. You are encouraged to register as early as possible to ensure that you are able to attend the breakfast and lunch sessions of your choice. Presenters please note that you must register by 2nd May to guarantee a place in the Congress program.
ACCOMMODATION
The Congress Conference Co-ordinators are encouraging everybody to book accommodation early, especially for the Saturday night prior to the Congress as bookings are already heavy due to the International Rugby Match being played in Brisbane that night.
SESSIONS CHAIRS
With around 80 concurrent proffered paper sessions being run during the congress, we will be seeking people willing to chair these sessions. Soon, the four participating organizations will be approaching people who are attending the Congress to become chairs.
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VOLUNTEERS
Applications for the 12 Congress volunteer positions closed on Friday April 18th. The successful applicants will be notified very shortly.
FULL PAPERS
A group of 22 people have been offered the opportunity to submit full papers to the Congress Full Paper Review Committee. Papers will be submitted by April 18th and reviewed by May 2nd, and posted on the Congress website during and after the Congress.
EXTERNAL SCHOLARSHIPS AND AWARDS
Some Branches and Special Interest Groups of the Congress partner organisations (PHAA, AEA, AHPA and AFPHM) are offering their own scholarships and awards in association with Congress. See below for details or speak to your local representatives:
AHPA - One free registration per state/territory Branch. Some Branches may provide additional scholarship support (e.g. additional registrations, accommodation, travel, etc). Speak to your local AHPA Branch representative
http://www.healthpromotion.org.au/branches/branches.php
PHAA (SA) - Two student scholarships; closing date 22nd May 2008; contact teresa.burgess@adelaide.edu.au
AEA (Aus) - Three awards are being offered.
1. Up to five AEA Student Bursaries (value $200AUD) based on abstracts submitted by students.
2. One AEA Student Presentation Prize for the best poster - value $200AUD. This will be announced and awarded at the Congress.
3. Up to three AEA Early Career Awards (Value $500AUD each).
Details are available from the AEA website
http://www.aea.asn.au/studentmembers_who.htm
AEA (NZ) - For a NZ student to attend the conference. Preference is given
to students who are financial members of the AEA, who are presenting a
paper at the conference, and who do not have access to any other funding for
conference attendance. The award is advertised to New Zealand members
and through the AEA bulletin and academic departments mid year.
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Population Health Congress 2008 Registration Fees
The Registration brochure for the Congress will be available in February – however to assist plans to attend the Congress we are pleased to advise that registration fees will be as follows:
Early bird full registration fees (Payment received by 2 May 2008)
| Member of AEA, AFPHM, AHPA or PHAA |
$800 |
| Non-member |
$875 |
| Full-time student |
$525 |
Standard full registration fees (Payment received after 2 May 2008)
| Member AEA, AFPHM, AHPA or PHAA |
$900 |
| Non-member |
$975 |
| Full-time student |
$575 |
Day Registration Fees
| Member |
$300 per day |
| Non-member |
$350 per day |
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Satellite Events Announced
A range of exciting satellite events have been planned to complement the Population Health Congress 2008.
Firstly, on Sunday 6th July three workshops will be conducted outside the Congress venue:
The first of these workshops will focus on Indigenous Health and will have Professor Ian Anderson from the University of Melbourne as a speaker.
The second will be a methodological workshop examining causal diagrams and their application to a range of research topics. This workshop will be presented by Professor Sonia Hernandez-Diaz and Associate Professor Miguel Hernan of Harvard University.
The third will be a workshop on International Health and will be hosted by the People’s Health Movement.
During the congress there will be breakfast and lunchtime sessions taking place. These will include seminars and workshops on:
- Reducing health inequalities
- Perinatal epidemiology
- Health Promotion workforce development and competencies
- Influenza vaccine effectiveness
- Social determinants of health
- Decriminalisation of abortion in Victoria
- Cancer cluster investigations
Further details on these and other events will be available in the Registration booklet which will be available on-line and in hard copy in early February 2008.
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With all the keynote speakers finalized for the congress, we have assembled brief details on each speaker under the three congress sub-themes.
Environment and Health
Professor Ian Lowe
– National President of the Australian Conservation Foundation and a well known national campaigner for the environment.
Mr Allen Kearns – Allen is deputy head of the ecology division of CSIRO and will speak on the ecological perspectives of our changing environment.
Professor Tony McMichael – Director of the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health and a leading Australian exponent of the health effects of climate change.
Social Cohesion, Social Capital and Health
Professor Sir Michael Marmot
– Head of the WHO Commission on the Social Determinants of Health.
Professor John Lynch – John is the Canada Research Chair in Population Health and is an epidemiologist with a keen interest in measuring health disparities.
Professor Ian Anderson – Ian is the Professor of Indigenous Health at Melbourne University, and Director of the the Centre for Health and Society and the Onemda VicHealth Koori Health Unit. He is one of Australia’s key spokespersons on indigenous health issues.
Food and Health
Professor Adam Drewnowski
– A nutritional epidemiologist who has a special interest in the relationship between the cost of food and nutritional quality.
Dr Cliona Ni Mhurchu – Cliona will report on her evaluation of the effectiveness of strategies to promote healthier supermarket food purchases as part of the SHOP trial which she is currently conducting in New Zealand.
Dr Jane Dixon – Well known Australian expert on food and obesity, and reknown for her interesting theories on the causes of obesity in the Australian population.
There will be a range of events happening around the congress. On the Sunday prior to the congress there will be workshops and seminars happening around a number of venues in Brisbane. Already there are plans for an Aboriginal Health workshop, a Research Methodology workshop and an International Health seminar. During each day of the congress there will be a range of breakfast and lunchtime sessions covering special interest areas.
The social program is beginning to take shape with a major congress dinner on Tuesday evening, July 8th. There are also a planned range of physical activities which congress attendees can participate in, including kayaking and rock-climbing for the adventurous, and morning walks for those seeking exercise.
You may have noticed that the Call for Abstracts details are now available on this website. You will be able to submit Abstracts on-line from 5th November 2007 to 29th February 2008. Please check the website for the range of presentation options which are available. We look forward to a large number of abstracts on a diverse range of topics being submitted for the congress.
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From the Congress Organising Committee
The congress organising committee will aim to keep you periodically informed of developments in the Congress program and related events.
Sir Michael Marmot
The biggest news around the Congress at this stage is the participation of Sir Michael Marmot, the head of the World Health Organisation's Commission on Social Determinants of Health. He is also widely known as a co-author of the British report on the social determinants of health entitled 'The Solid Facts'. He has indicated that he will use his Australian visit to the Congress as a platform to release the findings of the commission in the Western Pacific region. Further details on him are available on the following URL.
http://www.who.int/social_determinants/strategy/marmot/en/index.html
Opportunities to Participate
The congress committee was fortunate to have a tour of the Brisbane Convention centre in July, and we can assure you that this Congress will be held at one of Australia's best convention sites. With four professional organizations coming together nationally for the first time ever, opportunities for meeting new people will be paramount for many participants, and the Brisbane venue will provide the perfect setting for this.
Also the program features time slots of in excess of 300 proffered papers, ensuring that a large number of researchers and health professionals will have the opportunity to participate in what is expected to be one of the largest population health audiences ever assembled in Australia or New Zealand.
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