Officially opened on 1st August 2007, the Collaborating Centre was established to strengthen research and postgraduate education links between AUT University and Waitemata District Health Board. Physically located on the North Shore Hospital Campus, the Centre is staffed on Wednesdays by Dr Clare Hocking from the School of Rehabilitation and Occupation Studies and on Thursdays by Dr Deb Spence, the joint Head of Nursing. In addition to learning their way around WDHB and establishing a working space, Clare and Deb have begun to work with clinical, education and managerial staff.
Introducing Clare Hocking
Clare is an Associate Professor. She teaches three postgraduate papers (Occupational Science, Enabling Occupation and Occupational Practice) which focus on the things people do in everyday life, how they affect health and wellbeing, and how health professionals can help people resume participation despite illness or injury. Clare will be working primarily with occupational therapists and physiotherapists, and has met with groups of therapists in their workplaces to explain the role and how they might benefit. Projects to date include initial planning for an occupational therapy referral system, and criteria for selection of formal assessment tools. One focus of her collaboration with WDHB will be working with physiotherapists to make the most of opportunities arising from the establishment of a clinical school.
Introducing Deb Spence
Deb has a strong practice background in acute care nursing and teaches at Masters and Doctoral levels. Strengths in relation to her teaching and research include: advanced nursing practice, qualitative methodologies, particularly hermeneutics and action research, working collaboratively with clinicians to advance their practice through postgraduate education and supporting the development of clinically focused research. Deb has undertaken an informal survey to ascertain WDHB nursing interest in developing research capacity and is now leading the implementation of two projects: firstly, an evaluation of nursing models of care and secondly, action research monitoring of a clinical nurse specialist role in surgical services. She is also available to support and advise nurses enrolling in postgraduate study with AUT.
Collaborations
Discussions are under way about how AUT and the Knowledge Centre can collaborate to keep WDHB staff up to date with Collaborating Centre activities, ways of informing WDHB staff enrolled in AUT research papers of the need to work with the Knowledge Centre, and ways of sharing information about research related presentations and funding opportunities.
Contact information
You can contact Clare and Deb by popping in to the Collaborating Centre on the Lower Ground Floor, leaving a message on ext 7167, or sending us an email at AUT
Clare.hocking@aut.ac.nz
Deb.spence@aut.ac.nz