Arnold, Anna-Lena
Description
My placement for the Master of Philosophy in Applied Epidemiology
(MAE) degree was with the Evidence and Evaluation section, within
the Indigenous Health Division, Australian Government Department
of Health. In this thesis, I present projects undertaken which
fulfil the requirements of the MAE program.
Data analysis project: The Northern Territory Aboriginal Health
Key Performance Indicators (NT AHKPIs) are a collection of key
performance indicators...[Show more] that measure primary health care (PHC)
performance. I conducted a descriptive analytical study of the NT
AHKPIs. The data that inform the NT AHKPIs are not currently in
the public domain, this chapter is therefore a closed chapter.
Evaluation project: I evaluated the NT AHKPIs to assess the
extent to which the NT AHKPIs are addressing their intended goals
and to determine whether they were being used for other purposes;
my approach to the evaluation was utilisation focused.
Preliminary findings show that the KPIs are useful to inform
service planning and continuous quality improvement, but there is
room for improvement. Findings were reported back to the NT AHKPI
steering committee to inform ongoing strengthening of the NT
AHKPI system.
Epidemiological study: Anaemia in Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander children in the NT is a public health problem. I
undertook a study to describe the application of best practice
guidelines for screening and management of children aged 6 months
to 3 years with anaemia in the NT. Findings show that of 5,543
children, 63% were screened for anaemia. The prevalence of
anaemia was 40% - a ‘severe’ public health problem as defined
by the World Health Organisation (WHO). A very low proportion of
anaemic children were recorded as treated according to best
practice guidelines, however, our findings are subject to
multiple potential biases and these findings need to be
validated.
Outbreak investigation: I was a member of the Communicable
Disease Network Australia team that investigated an unusual
cluster of Ralstonia bacteraemia from 1 April to 26 June 2014 in
three states in Australia. The objectives of this investigation
were to assess the possibility of a causal association between
the administration of propofol and Ralstonia bacteraemia, and to
identify sources of the infections. The propofol solution passed
all sterility and contamination tests, but 18% of the flip-off
caps and external surfaces of the rubber stoppers were
contaminated with a variety of bacterial species including R.
mannitolylitica. These isolates were genetically
indistinguishable from three out of eight isolates from patients
with R. mannitolylitica bacteraemia. Findings from this study
highlighted the need for proper aseptic techniques when
administering intravenous injections.
I spent ten weeks in Sierra Leone supporting the WHO’s response
to the Ebola virus disease outbreak (EVD). I summarise my role
and responsibilities in the outbreak, including a description of
our investigation of a cluster of cases with EVD.
Items in Open Research are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.