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Research centre

Evidence-based research underpins all activities of the National Centre for Farmer Health (NCFH). Research programs will aim to build ongoing understanding of effective interventions that improve the health and safety of the agricultural workforce, their families and communities.

The Centre’s research is outcome driven to ensure that research positively impacts policies, practices and education that guide current rural health service delivery.

NCFH focuses on areas where research can make a difference in reducing disease and injury among farm men and women, agricultural workers and their families. One of the primary goals is to further investigate the identified health issues from earlier research and develop interventions that positively impact the lives of Australian farmers.

NCFH works with other academic institutions, health care providers and agricultural organisations to improve the quality, effectiveness, and appropriateness of health care.

Research areas

Research is currently being conducted into the following areas:
 

  • Cholinesterase Research Outreach Project (CROP) – Measuring organophosphate exposure in western Victorian farmers - 2013
     
    A 6 month Deakin University research grant to conduct a much needed study that will form the basis of a database of cholinesterase activity (an enzyme inhibited by organophosphate pesticides) from farmers exposed to agricultural pesticides in their workplace.  Organophosphates have been associated with chronic neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s in sheep farmers in particular. The critical window for exposure to toxicants may occur years before the onset of neurological symptoms. This study also aims to assess and improve the integration of cholinesterase monitoring into routine agricultural health clinics, whilst providing farming and non-farming people with a link between their cholinesterase activity and their household and agrichemical use.
     
  • NHMRC grant application – shhh hearing in a farming environment

    The National Centre for Farmer Health has been successful in receiving funding through the National Health and Medical Research Council to commence in 2012.
     
    Our partners with this grant are:
    o    Australian National University
    o    National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health
    o    Deakin University     
    o    National Centre for Farmer Health              
    o    National Acoustic Laboratories

    Congratulations to the team:
    o    Clinical Associate Professor Susan Brumby
    o    Dr. Anthony Hogan, ANU
    o    Dr. Warwick Williams , National Acoustics laboratory
    o    Ms. Cate Mercer- Grant  Western District Health Service
    o    Heidi Mason, Research Assisant - National Centre for Farmer Health
     
    Two out of three farmers are affected by hearing loss. Farmers as a group are particularly at risk as their workplace is also their home. They are also exposed to many different and unique sources of noise on farms. This project tests the hypothesis that participating in early intervention hearing services focussed towards farming families will contribute to (a) significant reduction in the impact of hearing loss on farmers and (b) educate and empower farmers on their capacity to reduce their noise exposure.

    For further information please contact Heidi Mason, at the National Centre for Farmer Health on 5551 8574.
  • Farming fit? Depression and obesity in farm men and women - a two year research grant to study mental health status and obesity in farm men and women. This is a Western District Health Service and Deakin Medical School collaborative study, funded by a beyondblue research grant. This project is due for completion in June 2011.

    Farming fit? Dispelling the Australian agrarian myth [PDF 221kb]

    Reducing psychological distress and obesity in Australian farmers by promoting physical activity [PDF 280kb]
     
  • Sustainable Farm Families™ Future Directions 2009-2011
    This project provided ongoing evidence-based information to support and inform future health, well-being and safety directions for Australia’s agricultural industries. The project focused on extending our understanding of the initial SFF program, implemented in the broad acre, cotton and sugar industries (2003-2006), in a longitudinal study. This project is in partnership with La Trobe University, Centre for Sustainable Regional Communities, Farm 500 Bendigo and funded by the Collaborative Partnership for Farming and Fishing Health and Safety managed by Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. An independent external evaluation was undertaken by Roberts Evaluation of the Future Directions program and can be found below. The final report was submitted with RIRDC at the end of April 2011.
     
    Evaluation of Sustainable Farm Families Future Directions by Roberts Evaluation [PDF 2mb]

  • Sustainable Farm Families™: Future Directions (March 2013)
    The health and wellbeing of all Australians is pivotal for economic and social success of the nation. Current data reveals that the health status of people living in rural and remote populations is poorer than their metropolitan counterparts. However there is a lack of understanding of the specific health statistics of rural farming populations.

    The Sustainable Farm Families (SFF) Future Directions program aims to fill this gap by providing ongoing evidence-based information and support to Australia’s agricultural industries, to gain insight into the health, wellbeing and safety of Australia’s rural farming populations.

    Sustainable Farm Families: Future Directions (March 2013) [PDF 1.8mb]

  • Sustainable Farm Families Program
    Victorian Auditor General’s Report September 2010 2010-11:7

    In 2010 the Victorian Auditor General undertook an audit of the Sustainable Farm Families™ program as funded through the Victorian Department of Primary Industries drought recovery program. (2007) The audit examined whether the SFF program has been effective in improving the health and well-being of farming families in Victoria. It reviewed:
    • The program’s rationale and planning;
    • Its implementation; and
    • Evidence of its effectiveness.

    Conclusions from the report were that participants report that they have learned from the program and have changed their behaviour as a result. This is borne out by clinical indicators that show their health is improving. Together these indicate the SFF program is effective in improving participants’ health.

    Victorian Auditor-General (VAGO) Report,  September 2010 [PDF 981kb]

  • Sustainable Dairy Farm Families™ - Future Directions 2010-2012.

    This project will provide ongoing evidence-based information to support and inform future health, well-being and safety directions for Victorias dairy industries. The project focuses on extending our understanding of the initial SFF dairy program, implemented in 11 dairy communities across Victoria during 2005 – 2007. We will be revisiting the same communities and undertaking a longitudinal health ,well-being and safety study during 2011.   Importantly we will also be providing health assessment, information and education and referral. This project is in partnership with La Trobe University, Centre for Sustainable Regional Communities, Bendigo, United Dairy farmers Victoria and funded by the Gardiner Foundation and Colac Community Enterprise. Sustainable Dairy Farm Families™ - Future Directions is expected to be completed and reported on by June 2012.
     

Doctoral research

Farm work and family health

Investigator: Susan Brumby

This is a study on farming family health across selected agricultural industries in Australia. The study will explore the attitudes of farming families towards health, well-being and safety. This research investigates success of the Sustainable Farm Families program at implementing and evaluating interventions that protect and enhance the health, well-being and safety of farmers and their families.

The project will work from the health promotion, occupational health and safety, extension and social science disciplines and explore the relationship between agricultural industries, interventions and the changes in farming family health outcomes and attitudes.

Peer reviewed publications

  1. Kennedy, Alison, Mellor, David, McCabe, Marita, Ricciardelli, Lina, Brumby, Susan, Head, Alexandra and Mercer-Grant, Cate (2013) Training and Experience of Nurses Responding to Alcohol Misuse in Rural Communities, Public Health Nursing

  2. Brumby, Susan, Kennedy, Alison and Chandrasekara, Ananda (2013), Alcohol Consumption, Obesity, and Psychological Distress in Farming Communities - An Australian Study, Journal of Rural Health, Vol.29, no. 2, pp.1-9  

  3. Mellor, David, McCabe, Marita, Ricciardelli, Lina A, Brumby, Susan, Head, Alexander, Mercer-Grant, Catherine, and Kennedy, Alison (2012), Evaluation of an alcohol intervention training program for nurses in rural Australia, Journal of Research in Nursing, Vol.17, no. 6

  4. Brumby, Susan, Chandrasekara, Ananda, McCoombe, Scott, Kremer, Peter and Lewandowski, Paul (2012), Cardiovascular risk factors and psychological distress in Australian farming communities, Australian Journal of Rural Health, Vol.20, no. 3, pp.131-137

  5. Willder, Stuart and Brumby, Susan (2012), Health Status and Behaviours of Australian Farming Men, New Male Studies: An International Journal, Vol.1, pp.34-48

  6. Mercer-Grant, Cate, Brumby, Susan, Hatherell, Tracey and Harper, Tracey (2011), Exploring and improving farmer health across Victoria - a response to drought, 18th International Farm Management Congress Vol.1, pp. 224-234

  7. Brumby, Susan, Chandrasekara, Ananda, McCoombe, Scott, Torres, Susan, Kremer, Peter and Lewandowski, Paul (2011), Reducing psychological distress and obesity in Australian farmers by promoting physical activity, BMC Public Health, vol. 11, no. 362 

  8. Brumby, Susan, Kennedy, Alison J., Mellor, David, McCabe, Marita P., Ricciardelli, Lina A, Head, Alexandra and Mercer-Grant, Cate (2011) The Alcohol Intervention Training Program (AITP): A response to alcohol misuse in the farming community, BMC Public Health, vol. 11, no. 242

  9. Baker, Tim, McCoombe, Scott, Mercer-Grant, Cate and Brumby, Susan (2011) Farmers with acute chest pain are uncertain how and when to seek help : A pilot study, Emergency medicine Australasia, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 1-9

  10. Brumby, Susan, Chandrasekara, Ananda, McCoombe, Scott, Kremer, Peter and Lewandowski, Paul (2011) Farming fit? Dispelling the Australian agrarian myth., BMC Research Notes, vol. 4, no. 89

  11. Brumby, Susan, Willder, Stuart and Martin, John (2010), Milking their health for all its worth? Improving the health of farming families through facilitated learning, Extension Farming Systems Journal, vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 1-10

  12. Blackburn, Justin, Brumby, Susan, Willder, Stuart and McKnight, Robert (2009), Intervening to improve health indicators among Australian farm families, Journal of Agromedicine, vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 345-356

  13. Brumby, Susan and Smith, Andrew (2009), ‘Train the trainer’ model: implications for health professional and farm family health in Australia, Journal of Agromedicine, Vol.14, no. 2, pp. 112-118

  14. Brumby SA, Willder SJ, Martin J.The Sustainable Farm Families project: changing attitudes to health. Rural and remote health 9 (online), 2009: 1012 PMID:1929570

  15. Eversole, R, Brumby, Susan and Jack, E (2007), Toward responsive community services: consumer participation in rural counselling service, Rural Social Work and Community Practice, vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 15-22

  16. Brumby, Susan, Eversole, Robyn and Watt, Leanne (2007), Rural youth and multimedia: an interagency approach, Youth Studies Australia, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 29-36

Published reports

  1. Brumby, S.A., Wilson, B., & Willder, S. (2008). Living longer on the land - sustainable farm families in broad acre agriculture. Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, RIRDC Publication No 08/048Canberra

  2. Brumby, S.A., Martin, J. & Willder, S. (2008). Living longer on the Land - case studies of the SustainableFarm Families Program in the Sugar and Cotton Industries. Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, RIRDC Publication No 08/049Canberra.

  3. Boymal, J., Rogers, P., Brumby, S., and Willder, S. (2007). Living longer on the land: A health program that works. An economic evaluation of the Sustainable Farm Families Program. Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, RIRDC Publication No 07/094Canberra.

Evaluations

Sustainable Farm Families Impact Evaluation
Roberts Evaluation Pty Ltd was contracted by the Department of Primary Industries in 2008 to provide an external evaluation of the Sustainable Farm Families program.  A qualitative apporach was taken to explore in depths the impacts the program has had on participants and to attribute how the program has created or contributed to any changes observed in the data on health outcomes.

The SFF program is also regularly evaluated through a number of different frameworks:

 

Conference presentations 2012

  1. Improving the health and wellbeing of at-risk farmers: the Farming Fit study
    Presenter: Susan Brumby
    International Federation of Home Economics XXII World Congress
    Melbourne, 17th-21st July, 2012
     
  2. Sustainable farm families
    Presenter: Susan Brumby on behalf of co author Cate Mercer- Grant
    International Federation of Home Economics XXII World Congress
    Melbourne, 17th-21st July, 2012
     
  3. The most important aspect to a healthy Australian farm - a healthy farm family
    Presenter: Susan Brumby
    30th International Congress on Occupational Health
    Cancun, Mexico, 18th - 23rd March, 2012
     
  4. Agricultural Medicine Education, the AgriSafe Network, and the Certified Safe Farm: A U.S. model providing structure and service for occupational health in agriculture
    Presenter: Susan Brumby
    30th International Congress on Occupational Health
    Cancun, Mexico, 18th - 23rd March, 2012
     
  5. Alcohol Consumption Behaviours and Psychological Distress in Australian Farming Communities
    Presenter: Ananda Chandrasekara
    ASBHM (Australasian Society for Behavioural Health and Medicine).
    Melbourne, Victoria, 8th – 10th February, 2012
     
  6. The Hamilton Charter for Farmer Health
    Presenter: Cate Mercer-Grant
    ASBHM (Australasian Society for Behavioural Health and Medicine).
    Melbourne, Victoria, 8th – 10th February, 2012
     
  7. Participation and improvement in hard to reach places
    Presenter: Cate Mercer-Grant
    ASBHM (Australasian Society for Behavioural Health and Medicine).
    Melbourne, Victoria, 8th – 10th February, 2012

 

Conference presentations 2011

  1. Sustainable Farm Families™ – better health, better understanding, better business
    Presenter: Susan Brumby
    PLAN.FARM. SAFETY. Canadian Agricultural Safety Association (CASA) annual conference.
    Vancouver - Canada, 16th - 18th November, 2011
     
  2. Sustainable Farm Families™: How it works and how it's making a difference to farmer health outcomes in Australia
    Presenter: Susan Brumby
    Better Farmer Health Better Farm Business Forum
    London, Ontario - Canada, 10th November, 2011
     
  3. AgriSafe - 'Improving health in agricultural communities'
    Presenters: Rachel Verschuren and Elizabeth Lawrence
    2011 CRANAplus Conference
    Perth - Western Australia, 11th-14th October, 2011

  4. AgriSafe – 'Promoting Best Health'
    Presenter: Rachel Verschuren
    Best Wool Best Lamb Conference
    Bendigo - Victoria, 28th - 29th June, 2011
     
  5. The Alcohol Intervention Training Program – arming ‘new generation’ health professionals assisting the farming community to reduce alcohol misuse
    Presenter: Alison Kennedy
    11th National Rural Health Conference
    Western Australia, 13th - 16th March, 2011

Conference presentations 2009

  1. Respiratory health of farm families
    Presenters: Susan Brumby, Ananda Chandrasekara, Scott McCoombe and Pamela Trigg.
    Australasian Pacific Extension Network Conference, 5th International Conference Busselton, Western Australia, 9-12 November 2009

  2. Milking their health for all its worth: dairy farming families learning together
    Presenter: Susan Brumby
    Australasian Pacific Extension Network Conference, 5th International Conference Busselton, Western Australia, 9-12 November, 2009

  3. Mining partnerships for explosive results
    Presenters: Cate Mercer-Grant, Susan Brumby S, and Emily Moule
    Australasian Pacific Extension Network Conference, 5th International Conference Busselton, Western Australia, 9-12 November, 2009

  4. Coming together: following the herd leads to better health outcomes
    Presenters: Cate Mercer-Grant, Susan Brumby and Stuart Willder
    Australasian Pacific Extension Network Conference, 5th International Conference Busselton, Western Australia, 9-12 November, 2009
     
  5. Pen to paddock: educating workforces in farm family health
    Scott McCoombe, Susan Brumby, Cate Mercer-Grant, Pamela Trigg, and Ananda Chandrasekara
    Australasian Pacific Extension Network Conference, 5th International Conference Busselton, Western Australia, 9-12 November, 2009
     
  6. Reassessing our values to include the health and well-being of our farm families
    Presenters: Cate Mercer-Grant and Susan Brumby
    Farm Health and Safety Conference, Swan Valley, Western Australia October 13 -15 2009
     
  7. Healthy farm families, helping farming families make changes for better health
    Presenter: Susan Brumby
    Healthy Farms - Healthy Food Conference
    Warragul, Victoria, 7 October 2009
     
  8. Case study for preventative engagement - health promotion in hard to reach places
    Presenter: Susan Brumby, 2nd Annual Preventative Summit
    Sydney, New South Wales, June 2009
     
  9. Listening, reflecting and involvement in rural care
    Presenter: Susan Brumby
    9th Biennial National Rural & Remote Social Work Conference
    Geelong, Victoria 30-31 July 2009
     
  10. Sustainable dairy farm families plugging in, charging up and powering on
    Presenters: Susan Brumby and Stuart Willder
    Victorian Dairy Conference Warrnambool, Victoria March 2009

Presentations

2007 

Brumby S, Martin J and Willder, S. Early Intervention in farming family health: making informed life choices for sustainable family farming
9th Rural Health Conference Albury, March 2007


2006

Brumby, S, Martin J & Willder, S. The Sustainable Farm Families Project: Changing Farmer Attitudes to Health
Australian Pacific Extension Network
Beechworth, Victoria, March 2006

2005

Brumby, S, Martin J, & Willder, S. Sustainable Farm Families - the human resource in the triple bottom line
National Rural Health Alliance
Alice Springs, Northern Territory, March 2005

National Conference on Farmer Health was held on 11th - 13th October 2010, Hamilton, Victoria, Australia

Sowing the Seeds Health of Farmer Health Conference was held on the 17th - 19th September, Hamilton Victoria 

 

 

Last reviewed: 
14-June-2013

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National Centre for Farmer Health in partnership with Western District Health Service Deakin University
© Farmer Health, 2013. All rights reserved. ABN 47 616 976 917.