A TEAM of researchers from the University of Sydney are recruiting students to be part of a groundbreaking study on adolescent health and wellbeing.
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According to the senior lecturer at the University of Sydney’s school of rural health in Orange Dr Catherine Hawke, initially her team will undertake a small pilot study with focus groups of 10-15 year olds.
“We’ll look at their attitudes and understanding of medical research in an effort to find out the best ways to approach them,” she said.
Dr Hawke said it’s hoped that the information gleaned from these focus groups, which will be conducted in both Orange and Dubbo, will lead to more successful research practices in the future.
The team is also looking for students to be part of a number of larger studies, one of which look at teenagers’ hormones and examine the way they affect their health and well-being.
“There has never been any research done on this and we’ll be using some very innovative methods,” she said.
To be undertaken at the end of this year, The Sleep, Puberty and Depression Pilot Study will focus on the mental health of teenagers.
It will examine young people who sleep badly in puberty in an effort to determine whether they are at risk of developing mental health problems, including depression.
“We know that mental health problems among Australian teenagers are common,” Dr Hawke said.
“Up to one in five young people may have experienced significant depression by the time they reach adulthood.
“With this study, we want to precisely measure changes in sleep and sleep disturbances, and see whether they precede the development of depression and anxiety in adolescents and later puberty.”
While other studies have linked puberty, sleep and depression, Dr Hawke said this is the first study to accurately measure puberty hormones via blood and urine samples and sleep patterns using a number of methods including a wrist watch which records when the user is asleep.
Three focus groups will be held in Orange this week and gift vouchers as reimbursement towards time and travel will be offered.
Anyone interested in participating should call Dr Hawke or Mrs Karen Paxton 6882 0288 or email archer@med.usyd.edu.au.
