ASBHM2019 – President’s Post-Conference Wrap-up

The 2019 Australasian Society for Behavioural Health and Medicine scientific conference was held in Christchurch, New Zealand from 13-15 February. The theme of the conference was ‘Behavioural Medicine- making an impact’.

Prior to the conference opening, 2 workshops were conducted. Professor Christine Stephens led a thought-provoking workshop on assessing environments for healthy ageing (using a participatory approach focusing on the ‘older persons environmental assessment tool’). The second workshop, led by Dr Emily Kothe, was a practical introduction to meta-analysis for behavioural medicine.

The conference then began with a traditional ‘Whakatau’, welcoming us to New Zealand, followed by a stimulating keynote address by Professor Jeffrey Braithwaite who spoke to the audience about healthcare as a complex adaptive system and how we might implement change in such a system.  Attendees then participated in a full program, involving 47 oral presentations, 15 poster presentations, 1 symposium and 1 well attended roundtable where participants shared thoughts about implementation of interventions.

Two other brilliant keynote addresses were held throughout the conference program. Professor Beth Grunfeld spoke to attendees about her work focused on sustaining employment for cancer survivors, examining the key factors affecting their employment and outlining the latest data on interventions to support cancer patients at work. Professor Chris Stephens then spoke about the environment and health, describing the use of the Capability approach to shift the focus of health promotion for older people.

A strong student – ECR program ran throughout the conference, including a social evening and a mentoring lunch where students had the opportunity to chat with experienced researchers and network with others.

We would like to thank the local organising committee and the scientific committee for putting together such a stimulating and enjoyable conference. Feedback has been very positive and we hope that attendees have not only learnt about new studies and methods being used but made new contacts and friends.

The 2020 conference will be held in Sydney and we would like to invite all members to attend, network with others and present their research.

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