The Making of a Health Profession:How Chinese Medicine Became a Nationally Registered Allied Health Profession in Australia

In 2012, traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) practitioners in Australia became nationally-registered allied health professionals in three categories: acupuncturist, Chinese herbal medicine practitioner, and Chinese herbal medicine dispenser. Australia was the first Western country to introduce national registration for Chinese medicine, followed by Portugal and, recently, New Zealand. The practice of TCM in Australia can be traced back to the beginning of Chinese immigration to Australia during the Victorian Gold Rush which began in the 1850s. The process which led to national registration commenced in the early 1970s with the establishment of the first acupuncture courses. Decades of gradual development of courses from unaccredited part-time diplomas to accredited bachelor degrees, and the development, by the profession, of national consensus on educational standards were essential elements in the process which led to registration. Professional associations, such as the Australian Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine Association Ltd.(AACMA), also developed a framework of professional selfregulation, including Codes of Ethics, Codes of Conduct, ongoing professional development requirements and Infection Control Guidelines, and provided leadership in the development of the profession. After decades of tribalism and division within the TCM profession, the National Academic Standards Committee brought almost all stakeholders together to reach a consensus on the Australian Guidelines for Traditional Chinese Medicine Education which were published by AACMA in 2001. Professional associations also collaborated on joint submissions to the government in support of registration, which was introduced first in the state of Victoria in 2000, and subsequently became national in 2012. Despite national registration, some barriers still remain, and professional associations continue to lobby the federal government for inclusion in Medicare, chronic disease management scheme, and Veterans Affairs.

A systems perspective on national prioritisation of sustainable development goals:Insights from Australia

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs)requires effective national initiatives and resource allo-cation.Yet,the simultaneous attainment of all goals is hindered by constraints such as limited budgets and resources,varied national priorities,and the intricate nature of the goals.As we approach 2030 and beyond,an urgent need for an effective,data-driven prioritisation system exists to optimise what can be accomplished.A considerable knowledge gap persists in identifying the priority areas that demand concentrated attention and how their improvement would propel overall sustainability goals.To bridge this gap,our study presents a priori-tisation approach that identifies significant SDG indicators based on urgency and impact,utilising Benchmarking,Bivariate,and Network analysis.Furthermore,we introduce an innovative Impact Index(IMIN)to assess an indi-cator’s extensive effect on the SDG network.This system carries significant international relevance by establishing a robust framework to identify key,potent,and interconnected indicators.It supports decision-makers worldwide in comprehending their nation’s SDG performance and promotes efficient resource allocation.In the specific con-text of Australia,our analysis spotlights several impactful,yet underperforming SDG indicators.These include the protection of Freshwater,Terrestrial,and Mountain Key Biodiversity Areas(KBAs),the share of renewable energy and energy intensity level of primary energy,targeted research and development,gender equality in national parliaments,and carbon-efficient manufacturing,amongst others.

The quality of older adults'involvement in clinical communication with general practitioners:evidence from rural towns in Australia

Objective:A study was conducted about the putative links of older rural Australians'health knowledge and preparation with their quality of involvement in patient-general practitioner(GP)communication during health intake visits.Methods:It was a cross-sectional study between January 2021 and April 2022.The 32-item quality of involvement in communication scale was designed and incorporated into the SurveyGizmo software.This online survey was administered by sending an email request to the Renmark Rotary Club,which actively promoted this study across five rural towns in South Australia.121 participants completed the surveys.Mean-sum scores were calculated based on the questionnaire responses to evaluate outcomes,specifically initiation of information,active participation,and emotional expression.We employed different methods including t-tests,ANOVA,and leaner regressions to analyse data.Results:The demographic profile of participants characterised by a female predominance(58.7%,71/121),a majority falling within the 65-<70 age bracket(47.1%,57/121),and a high level of educational attainment(58.7%had completed high school or higher,71/121).Additionally,35%of the participants predominantly spoke a language other than English at home.Regarding the initiation of information with GPs,the mean sum-score was(20.5+3.7),indicating a marginally above-average level of engagement.Contrarily,the active participation was suboptimal,as suggested by a mean sum score of(35.9±6.3).Furthermore,the emotional expression was relatively low,with a mean score of(13.9±1.8).Substantial variations were discerned in the quality of patient-GP communication,contingent upon factors such as educational background,language spoken at home,health literacy,and preparatory measures for clinical visits.Participants who predominantly spoke a language other than English at home demonstrated significantly lower levels of information initiation with their GPs(P<0.o01).Higher educational attainment was positively correlated with increased active participation(P<0.001).Enhanced health literacy and thorough visit preparation were significantly associated with increased levels of active participation(P<0.001).Conclusion:Meaningful engagement through recognition,empowerment,and support(health literacy programs)for older rural adults is suggested for improving their quality of involvement in communication with GPs.

Exploring Themes in the Movie Australia on Culture Identity Theories

Gathering the history and emotions of the nation of Australia,the movie Australia not only reflects Australians’exertion to construct an equal harmonious diversified new Australia but also incarnates Australian people’s nisus to pursue the sense of belonging internally and seek international recognition externally.In order to expand the perspective of researching this movie and give enlightenment on constructing an equal harmonious diversified international community,based on culture identity theories,this paper tries exploring the themes of this movie.

A Representative of “the Other”Image:Analysis on the Character Nullah in the Movie Australia

Addressed as Australian version Gone with the Wind,with a successful"Other"image,named Nullah,the movie Australia presents Australians' attitude towards culture impact brought by globalization,to absorb positive ingredients of adventive cultures and uphold one's own uniqueness in culture will be a reasonable way to integrate into globalization.

Analysis on the Emotions in Australia

Analyzing familial affection between Sarah and Nullah across race, love between Sarah and Drover across caste, friendship between Sarah and King George across caste and race, this paper attempts to help audience comprehend the theme of the movie Austrlia and construct a new equal harmonious diversified Australia.

Australian tertiary care outcomes of entecavir monotherapy in treatment naive patients with chronic hepatitis B

AIM:To evaluate the long-term treatment outcomes of entecavir monotherapy in treatment naive patients in an Australian tertiary care setting. METHODS:A retrospective analysis of treatment naive patients receiving entecavir monotherapy through Westmead Hospital was performed.Patients were excluded if they had received previous treatment with another nucleoside or nucleotide analogue,were pregnant or less than 18 years old. RESULTS:Out of 336 patients,163 patients fulfilled the selection criteria.Range of follow up was 3-46 mo (mean 26 mo).134 patients(82.2%)had pre-treatment biopsies,with 26 patients(16.0%)demonstrating F3-4 fibrosis.In total,153 patients(93.9%)achieved at least Partial Virological Suppression(PVS),with 134 patients (82.2%)achieving complete virological suppression. The cumulative CVS and PVS rates at 36 mo were 82.1%and 96.4%,respectively.3 patients(1.8%)failed to achieve PVS,while 5 patients(3.0%)developed virological rebound.128 patients(78.5%)maintained CVS throughout follow up.Predictors of CVS included lower baseline DNA level(P=0.001),hepatitis B virus e antigen negative status(P=0.001)and increasing age at treatment(log rank 0.001).No significant adverse effects were reported necessitating cessation of entecavir. CONCLUSION:Entecavir monotherapy is efficacious and safe in an Australian tertiary care setting.Resistance and rebound rates are very low.This is similar to data from controlled and uncontrolled trials around the world.

Plant conservation in Australia:Current directions and future challenges

Australia is a large, old and flat island continent that became isolated following the breakup of the Gondwanan super continent. After more than 40-50 M years of independent evolution, approx. 600,000-700,000 species now call Australia home. More than 21,000 of these species are plants, with at least84% of these being endemic. Plant taxa are protected, conserved and managed under a range of legislation at the State-and Territory-level as well as Federally for matters of national significance. This can create issues of misalignment among threatened species lists but generally there is co-operation among conservation agencies to reduce misalignments and to manage species irrespective of jurisdictional borders. Despite significant investment in programs designed to assist the recovery of Australian biodiversity, threatened plants in particular appear to be continuing to decline. This can be attributed to a range of factors including major threatening processes associated with habitat loss and invasive species,lack of public awareness of the cultural and socio-economic value of plant conservation, and our relatively poor understanding of basic species taxonomy and biology, especially for those species that have specific interactions with pollinators, symbionts and herbivores. A recent shift in Federally-based conservation programs has been to identify 30 key plant species for recovery through the setting of measurable targets, improving the support provided to recovery teams and encouraging industry,business and philanthropy to support conservation actions.

Tracking the Cretaceous transcontinental Ceduna River through Australia:The hafnium isotope record of detrital zircons from offshore southern Australia

The middle-upper Cretaceous Ceduna River system traversed continental Australia from the NE coast to the centre of the southern coast. At its mouth, it formed a vast delta system that is similar in scale to the Niger delta of West Africa. The delta system is composed of two main lobes that represent different phases of delta construction. A recent hypothesis has challenged the traditional idea that both lobes of the delta were derived from a transcontinental river system by suggesting that the upper lobe （Santonian -Maastrichtian） is instead derived from a restricted catchment within southern Australia. Hf isotopic data presented here fingerprint the original source of the upper delta lobe zircons to NE Australia, with data comparing well with similar U-Pb and Lu-Hf isotopic data from the Lachlan Orogen, the New England Orogen, the eastern Musgraves Province and the northern Flinders Ranges. These data do not preclude a model where the lobe is derived from recycled Eromanga Basin sediments during a phase of late Cretaceous inland Australian uplift, but when coupled with reconnaissance low-temperature thermochronometry from the region of the Ceduna River course indicating widespread Triassic-Jurassic exhumation, and comparisons with detrital zircon data from the Winton Formation upstream of any proposed uplift, we suggest that both lobes of the Ceduna Delta are likely to be derived from a transcontinental Ceduna River.

Update of Meat Standards Australia and the cuts based grading scheme for beef and sheepmeat

Changing markets and evolving consumer demand present new challenges for the beef and sheep industries. In response, the industry has been investing in innovations to deliver new products and management systems to consumers. One such innovation is the Meat Standards Australia（MSA） system. This system is a Total Quality Management System, aimed at delivering an eating quality guarantee to consumers, and through this adding value to the entire supply chain. At present, it is well developed for beef and still evolving for sheepmeat. MSA has identified Critical Control Points（CCPs） in the production, pre-slaughter, processing and value-adding aspects of the supply chain that impact on consumer palatability through the large-scale taste testing of meat by untrained consumers. These CCPs are used as either（1） mandatory criteria determining eligibility for grading, and（2） inputs in a model predicting the palatability of individual combinations of muscle and different cooking methods. Through the prediction of palatability, MSA increases consumer satisfaction and is used to provide assurance for branded products and new marketing innovations in Australia and internationally. This has added significant value to the Australian beef industry, with several retail examples demonstrating consumer willingness to pay more for premium quality beef and sheepmeat products based on the MSA grading scores. This price differential at retail allows the value of the carcass to be calculated based on the eating quality as well as the volume produced, thereby delivering a financial reward for farmers producing high quality carcasses. The continuous quality scale of MSA allows producers to realise the financial gain of incremental improvements in quality, as well as the precise economic weights associated with traits such as marbling, ossification score, or breed. The use of MSA in this fashion has underpinned a new and innovative supply chain where the pricing is transparent and allows producers to make informed decisions to modify both quality and yield traits. To date, the MSA system for beef has proved to be effective in predicting beef palatability not only in Australia but also in many other countries（France, Poland, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Japan, South Korea, New-Zealand, the USA and South Africa）. In Europe, results of the Pro Safe Beef and Pro Opti Beef projects as well as other national projects demonstrate the potential to develop an MSA-like international grading system for the supply chain in the EU, despite thediverse cultures and complex beef production systems within the member states. International testing in lamb has only just begun and preliminary results are discussed here.

Towards a Large-Scale Hydrogen Industry for Australia

1.Introduction As nations around the world seek to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in order to mitigate climate change risks,there has been a resurgence of interest in the use of hydrogen as a zero-emissions energy carrier.Hydrogen can be produced from diverse feedstocks via a range of low-emissions pathways and has broad potential in the process of decarbonization across the energy,transport,and industrial sectors.With an abundance of both renewable and fossil fuel energy resources,a comparatively low national energy demand and excellent existing regional resource trading links,Australia is well positioned to pursue industrial-scale hydrogen production for both domestic and export purposes[1,2].In this paper,we present an overview of the progress at the government,industry,and research levels currently undertaken to enable a large-scale hydrogen industry for Australia.

Development and Validation of an Australian Database for Estimating the Seafood Content of Canned Products

Canned fish products are of increasing popularity in Australia;however current Australian nutrient databases do not include data on the percentage fish in these products. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a database of the percentage fish and seafood contained in common canned fish and seafood products, for use in clinical trials. Six major supermarkets in the Illawarra region, NSW were audited for canned seafood products, and a database of reported percentage fish and seafood was developed. Mean + SD of each type of product was then determined. To validate the database, a representative sample of canned tuna products were weighed according to Codex Alimentarius methods. The weighed percentage fish was compared to reported percentage via independent sample t-test and Mann-Whitney test. Percentage fish data was collected for n = 214 canned fish products. The mean percentage fish in tuna products was 60.4% + 11.3% (n = 144), 72.0% + 14.7% in salmon products (n = 31) and 70.9% + 9.3% in sardine products (n = 23). There was no significant difference between the reported and weighed percentage fish. This database highlighted the substantial proportion of additional ingredients found in canned fish products. Given the popularity of such products, future studies measuring fish consumption should use a similar database to accurately measure fish intake.

Population structure of Haliotis rubra from South Australia inferred from nuclear and mtDNA analyses

Microsatellite loci and mtDNA-RFLPs were surveyed in four spatially separated populations of Haliotis rubra and two populations of putative Haliotis conicorpora from South Australia. A high level of microsatellite genetic diversity was observed in all populations although several loci were characterized by homozygote excesses, probably due to null alleles. MtDNA variation was also moderate with an average of 80% haplotype variation across the six populations. Despite the high levels of genetic variation, significant pair-wise spatial differentiation is not detected among the populations. Hierarchical AMOVA analysis revealed very low levels of genetic partitioning on either a spatial or putative species level. Both molecular techniques revealed little genetic differentiation across the six populations, suggesting a panmictic population model for these South Australian abalone populations. Furthermore, no molecular evidence suggests that the putative H. conicorpora individuals sampled from South Australia belong to a separate species.

Epidemiology and outcomes of acute liver failure in Australia

BACKGROUND Acute liver failure (ALF) is a life-threatening syndrome with varying aetiologies requiring complex care and multidisciplinary management. Its changing incidence, aetiology and outcomes over the last 16 years in the Australian context remain uncertain. AIM To describe the changing incidence, aetiology and outcomes of ALF in South Eastern Australia. METHODS The database of the Victorian Liver Transplant Unit was interrogated to identify all cases of ALF in adults (> 16 years) in adults hospitalised between January 2002 and December 2017. Overall, 169 patients meeting criteria for ALF were identified. Demographics, aetiology of ALF, rates of transplantation and outcomes were collected for all patients. Transplant free survival and overall survival (OS) were assessed based on survival to discharge from hospital. Results were compared to data from a historical cohort from the same unit from 1988- 2001. RESULTS Paracetamol was the most common aetiology of acute liver failure, accounting for 50% of cases, with an increased incidence compared with the historical cohort (P = 0.046). Viral hepatitis and non-paracetamol drug or toxin induced liver injury accounted for 15% and 10% of cases respectively. Transplant free survival (TFS) improved significantly compared to the historical cohort (52% vs 38%, P = 0.032). TFS was highest in paracetamol toxicity with spontaneous recovery in 72% of cases compared to 31% of non-paracetamol ALF (P < 0.001). Fifty-nine patients were waitlisted for emergency liver transplantation. Nine of these died while waiting for an organ to become available. Forty-two patients (25%) underwent emergency liver transplantation with a 1, 3 and 5 year survival of 81%, 78% and 72% respectively. CONCLUSION Paracetamol toxicity is the most common aetiology of ALF in South-Eastern Australia with a rising incidence over 30 years. TFS has improved, however it remains low in non-paracetamol ALF.

Some aspects of Chinese-Australian cooperation in Antarctic Research over the past forty years

China and Australia have been collaborating in Antarctic activities since the early 1980s and that collaboration has grown and become more formalized as China＇s Antarctic program has expanded. This collaboration has involved personnel exchange, logistic support, environmental protection and particularly scientific research. China and Australia have signed a series of memorandums and treaties of friendship and cooperation on Antarctic activities in the past few years. Relevant mechanisms of cooperation between expedition plans and programs have been established, and the exchange and cooperation in people, science and technology, services, and supplies are undertaken across a range of organizations. Here we overview the history of the bilateral collaboration and provide a few examples of the many areas of cooperation. These examples are focused on activities in Hobart, the key centre of the Australian Antarctic program.

Evaluation of a School-Based Health Education Program for Urban Indigenous Young People in Australia

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a school-based health promotion and education program in improving knowledge, attitudes, self-efficacy and behaviours of urban Indigenous young people regarding chronic disease and associated risk factors. A mixed methods approach was adopted for this evaluation;however, this paper will focus on the quantitative aspect of the study. The Deadly Choices? health education program was delivered weekly at six education facilities in Brisbane, Australia to participants from years seven to 12 over seven weeks. One school that received the Deadly Choices program the following term acted as the control group. Questionnaire data was collected immediately pre and post intervention to assess program impact. As self-reported by participants there were mostly significant improvements over time for questions relating to knowledge, attitudes and self-efficacy regarding leadership, chronic disease and risk factors within the intervention group. There were also significant changes within the intervention group regarding breakfast frequency (P = 0.002), physical activity frequency (P ≤ 0.001), fruit (P = 0.004) and vegetable (P ≤ 0.001) intake. Overall, there were few significant differences between the control and intervention groups regarding health attitudes and behaviours;however, there were considerably more improvements relating to self-efficacy and knowledge of chronic disease and associated risk factors between groups. The program also facilitated 30 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health checks for participants. Deadly Choices is an innovative and comprehensive school-based program which has great potential to improve the health outcomes of Indigenous young people in urban areas by providing education in leadership and chronic disease prevention;engaging students in physical activity participation;and collaborating with health services to facilitate health checks.

Petroleum geology and exploration direction of gas province in deepwater area of North Carnarvon Basin, Australia

North Carnarvon Basin is a gas province with minor oily sweet spots in deepwater area with water depth more than 500 m,which is one of the hot spots of global petroleum exploration for its series of giant hydrocarbon discoveries in recent years.However,the degree of oil and gas exploration in deepwater area is still low,and the conditions for oil and gas accumulation are not clear.Based on the current exploration situation and latest database of fields,applying multidisciplinary analysis of hydrocarbon geology,hydrocarbon accumulation elements and its exploration direction of North Carnarvon Basin in deepwater area are analyzed.The results show that there are three sets of main source rocks in deepwater area of North Carnarvon Basin,which are Triassic marine shale in Locker Formation and delta coal-bearing mudstone with thin carbonaceous mudstone in Mungaroo Formation,Lower–Middle Jurassic paralic carbargilite and coal measure strata in Athol Formation and Murat Formation,Cretaceous delta mudstone in Barrow Group and marine shale in Muderong Formation.Most source rock samples show gas-prone capability.The coarse sandstone of delta facies in Middle–Upper Triassic Mungaroo Formation is the most important reservoir in deepwater area,Lower Cretaceous Barrow Group deep-water gravity flow or underwater fan turbidite sandstone is the secondly main reservoir.Lower Cretaceous marine shale in Muderong Formation is most important regional caprock.Triassic mudstone in Mungaroo Formation is an important interlayer caprock in deepwater area.There are two main reservoir accumulation assemblages in deepwater area,one is Triassic structural-unconformity plane reservoir accumulation assemblage of Locker Formation to Mungaroo Formation,and the other is Lower–Middle Jurassic Athol Formation and Murat Formation–Lower Cretaceous stratigraphic lithology-structural reservoir accumulation assemblage of Barrow Group to Muderong Formation.There are three main control factors of hydrocarbon Accumulation:One is coupling of source and seal control hydrocarbon distribution area,the second is multi-stage large wave dominated deltas dominate accumulation zone,the third is direction of hydrocarbon migration and accumulation in hydrocarbon-rich generation depression was controlled by overpressure.The south of Exmouth platform in deepwater area is adjacent to hydrocarbon rich depression zone,reservoir assemblage is characterized by“near source rocks,excellent reservoir facies,high position and excellent caprocks”,which is the main battlefield of deepwater oil and gas exploration in North Carnarvon Basin at present.There are a lot of fault block traps in the northern structural belt of Exmouth platform,and the favorable sedimentary facies belt at the far end of delta plain in Mungaroo Formation is widely distributed,which is the next favorable exploration zone.The Lower Cretaceous,which is located at the concave edge uplift adjacent to the investigator depression and the Exmouth platform,also has a certain exploration prospect in northwest of deepwater area.

Satellite SAR observation of shallow bottom topography of the east Australia Sea

A preliminary account of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imaging mechanisms of oceanic bottom topographic features and a description of the principles of the information extracted from SAR images and the processing and the analysis technology of SAR images are made. Some results were obtained from researching shallow topography and its bathymetric features of the regions of offshore in the east Australia Sea by ERS-1 SAR images. The preliminary research indicates that these features covered with SAR have never been reported before and some results of them are yielded for the first time in Australia. This information is very valuable in a great number of applications to oceanic engineering, shipping navigation, marine fishery and environment, as well as oceanographic research and development. The paper comes to the conclusion that SAR remote sensing of oceanography and its applications are of great potential.

Why Fast Trains Work: An Assessment of a Fast Regional Rail System in Perth, Australia

Perth’s new 72 km long Southern Rail System opened in 2007. With a maximum speed of 137 km/hr and an average speed of almost 90 km/hr this system acts more like a new high speed rail than a suburban rail system, which in Australia typically averages around 40 km/hr for an all-stops services. The Southern Rail Line was very controversial when being planned as the urban areas served are not at all typical of those normally provided with rail but instead were highly car dependent and scattered low density land uses. Nevertheless it has been remarkably successful, carrying over 70,000 people per day (five times the patronage on the express buses it replaced) and has reached the patronage levels predicted for 2021 a decade ahead of time. The reasons for this success are analyzed and include well-designed interchanges, careful integration of bus services, the use of integrated ticketing and fares without transfer penalties and, crucially the high speed of the system when compared to competing car based trips. The Southern Rail Line in effect explodes the current paradigm of transfer penalties, exposing this as a myth. The lessons for transport planning in low density cities are significant, and are explored further in the paper.

Standards of liver cirrhosis care in Central Australia

BACKGROUND Liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)are highly prevalent in Australia’s Northern Territory.Contributing factors include high levels of alcohol consumption,viral hepatitis and metabolic syndrome.Rural Aboriginal residents form a significant proportion of the Central Australian population and present a challenge to traditional models of liver care.HCC surveillance and variceal screening are core components of liver cirrhosis management.AIM To assess participation in HCC and variceal surveillance programmes in a Central Australian liver cirrhosis patient cohort.METHODS Retrospective cohort study of patients with liver cirrhosis presenting to Alice Springs Hospital,Australia between January 1,2012 and December 31,2017.Demographic data,disease severity,attendance at hepatology clinics,participation in variceal and/or HCC surveillance programmes was recorded.Regression analyses were conducted to assess factors associated with two independent outcomes:Participation in HCC and variceal surveillance.RESULTS Of 193 patients were identified.82 patients(42.4%)were female.154 patients(80%)identified as Aboriginal.Median Model for End-stage Liver Disease Score at diagnosis was 11.Alcohol was the most common cause of cirrhosis.Aboriginal patients were younger than non-Aboriginal patients(48.4 years vs 59.9 years,P<0.001).There were similar rates of excess alcohol intake(72.6%vs 66.7%,P=0.468)and obesity(34.5%vs 38.4%,P=0.573 across non-Aboriginal and Aboriginal cohorts.20.1%of patients took part in HCC surveillance and 42.1%of patients completed variceal screening.Aboriginal patients were less likely to engage with either HCC surveillance(OR:0.38,95%CI:0.16-0.9,P=0.025)or undergo variceal screening(OR:0.31,95%CI:0.14-0.65,P=0.002).CONCLUSION HCC or variceal surveillance programmes had less uptake amongst Aboriginal patients.Greater emphasis needs to be placed on eliminating cultural obstacles to accessing hepatology services.