About ASLaRC Aged Services Unit

The Director Professor Colleen Cartwright

Professor Colleen Cartwright is Foundation Professor of Aged Services and Director of the ASLaRC Aged Services Unit at Southern Cross University. Her work encompasses issues relating to both well and frail older people in areas as diverse as the challenges of an ageing population, affordable housing for older people and people with disabilities, eHealth, advance care planning and other end-of-life issues. She has extensive teaching and research experience in ageing, ethics and medical decisions at the end of life, at national and international levels, with publications in major journals and a number of book chapters. From 2002 – 2005 she was Chief Investigator & Project Manager on the Australian component of an International study, "Medical Decisions at the End of Life", which compared medical decisions at the end of life in 6 European countries and Australia. It was the first project funded under the Australia-EU "FEAST" Programme. Professor Cartwright designed the Advance Health Directive and Enduring Power of Attorney forms that are part of the Queensland Powers of Attorney Act (1998), and adapted the Qld Advance Directive to meet NSW legislative provisions. She regularly runs information and training sessions for community and health professional groups on ethical and legal issues relating to care at the end of life, including pain relief as a human right, informed consent and capacity, advance care planning, issues for carers and the special challenges of caring for people with dementia. In 2011 she wrote two reports for Alzheimer's Australia on end-of-life and the arguments for and against euthanasia. She was Chief Investigator on a study, commissioned by the Department of Housing and the Enterprise and Training Company (ETC), on Affordable rental housing for older people and people with disabilities in Mid North Coast NSW; on three projects related to Futures Planning for Older Carers of Adults with Disabilities and two projects on Reablement of frail older people, funded by NSW Ageing, Disability and Home Care. Professor Cartwright regularly reviews journal articles, grant applications and conference presentations. She has been a member of the Australian Association of Gerontology for more than 20 years.

Associate Professor Jim Curran

A/ Prof. Jim Curran was the first Director of ASLaRC. At the time of his appointment he was Associate Professor at the University of NSW Rural Clinical School. In addition to teaching medical students, he maintained an interest in population dynamics and the provision of medical and nursing services to regional, ageing communities.

Location

ASLaRC serves the region from Port Macquarie in the South to across the Queensland border in the North and West to Dorrigo. Situated on the scenic North Coast of NSW, ASLaRC is based at three Southern Cross University sites; Coffs Harbour campus, Lismore campus and Riverside campus at Tweed Heads.

Core Research and Community Activities

While a major area of our work involves frail older people living in the community and in residential aged care, we are also interested in a broad range of issues affecting well older people, with a goal of helping them to stay fit and healthy.

Updated: 21 May 2012