Ms Naomi Priest

Research Fellow: Cochrane Health Promotion and Public Health Field

Telephone: +61 3 8344 0926
Facsimile: +61 3 9348 2832
Email: npriest@ unimelb.edu.au

Research Profile

Naomi’s current work is in the area of child public health and health inequalities. She is currently in the final stages of her PhD project exploring Aboriginal perspectives of early childhood health and wellbeing in urban Melbourne. This is in partnership with Aboriginal organizations in Melbourne. She also has a strong interest in evidence synthesis and knowledge translation and exchange. Through her role with the Cochrane Health Promotion and Public Health Field she has participated in consultancies for Queensland Health, WHO and VicHealth. Naomi is a qualified occupational therapist and has worked for a number of years with children and families from diverse backgrounds in community settings. She has also worked as a casual lecturer and clinical supervisor in occupational therapy.

Current research interests:

• Child health inequalities
• Social and emotional wellbeing
• Cultural competence
• Knowledge synthesis, translation and exchange

Qualifications

Doctor of Philosophy (candidate), Melbourne University, due for completion 2008

Work History

2007-present: Research Fellow (part-time), Cochrane Health Promotion and Public Health Field

2004-2005: Research Fellow (0.5 FTE) Primary Health Care Research, Education and Development Program (PHCRED), Department of General Practice, School of Medicine, Flinders University, South Australia.

1999-2004: Adjunct Clinical Lecturer in Occupational Therapy, School of Health Sciences, University of South Australia

2002-2005: Senior Occupational Therapist, Early Childhood and Families Team, Noarlunga Health Services, Noarlunga, South Australia

1999-2001: Occupational Therapist, Murray Mallee Community Health Service, Murray Bridge, South Australia

Awards

ARACY NHMRC/ARC New Investigators Network, (2008-2009)

NHMRC Postgraduate Public Health Training Award/PhD Scholarship (2006-2008)

OT Australia SA Achievement Award (2005)

OT Australia Undergraduate Research Award (1999)

Marjorie Black Prize for mental health in occupational therapy, University of South Australia (1998)

Publications

1. Priest N, Armstrong R, Doyle J, Waters E. Policy Interventions implemented through sporting organizations for promoting healthy behaviour change. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Issue 3, 2008
2. Priest N, Armstrong R, Doyle J, Waters E. Interventions implemented through sporting organisations for increasing participation in sport. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Issue 3, 2008
3. Davis E, Davies B, Waters E & Priest, N. The relationship between primary caregiver-proxy reported health-related quality of life and parental mental health: parental gender differences. Child: Care, Health and Development, In press, February 2008.
4. Davis E, Davies B, Cook K, Waters E, Gibbs L & Priest, N. A cross cultural examination of barriers to social inclusion for children: a qualitative study using child-centred methods. International Journal of Mental Health Promotion, In press, February 2008.
5. Waters E, Petticrew M, Priest N, Weightman A, Harden A, & Doyle J. Evidence synthesis, upstream determinants and health inequalities: a Cochrane Public Health Collaborative Review Group. European Journal of Public Health. Advance access published online on January 27; doi:10.1093/eurpub/ckm127, 2008.
6. Waters E, Gibbs L, Renzaho A, Riggs E, Kulkens M, Priest N. Increasing Cultural Competence in Public Health and Health Promotion. In Encyclopedia of Public Health, Ed. Heggenhougen K. Elsevier Inc., Oxford UK. In press 2007.
7. Waters E, Priest N, Armstrong R, Oliver S, Baker P, McQueen D, Summerbell C, Kelly M, & Swinburn B. The role of a Prospective Public Health Intervention Study Register in building health evidence: a proposal for content and use. Journal of Public Health, 29(3), 322-327; doi:10.1093/pubmed/fdm039, 2007.
8. Priest N & Waters E. ‘Motor Magic’ – Evaluation of a community capacity building approach to supporting the development of preschool children – (Part 2). Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 54(2) 140-148, 2007.
9. Priest N. ‘Motor Magic’ – Evaluation of a community capacity building approach to supporting the development of preschool children. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 53(3), 220-232, 2006.
10. Priest N & May E. Laptop computers and children with disabilities: Factors influencing success, Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 48(1) 11-23, 2001.

Submitted publications

11. Priest N, Mackean T, Waters E, Davis E & Riggs E. A systematic review of Australian Indigenous child health, development and wellbeing epidemiological data: Is the right research being done? Submitted to Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, February 2008.

Recent Consultancies

Social Participation and Mental Health and Wellbeing Outcomes, VicHealth, 2008
Examples of Successful Action on Socially Determined Health Inequities, Global Commission on the Social Determinants of Health, WHO, 2007.
Evidence-based summaries. A report for Population Health Branch, Queensland Health, 2007

Professional Networks

Member Public Health Association of Australia