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Presentation: Racial diversity in biomedical and health research: challenging conversations and situating solutions

Presenter: Dr John Noel Viana is a research fellow at the Australian National Centre for the Public Awareness of Science at the ANU and a visiting scientist at the Responsible Innovation Future Science Platform of CSIRO. Initially trained as a molecular biologist and neuroscientist, he shifted his research to bioethics for his PhD and to science communication and social studies of science for his postdoc. He is currently exploring equity and diversity issues in precision health research, from systems biology for COVID-19 prognostication to digital health status monitoring for end-of-life care. He has also recently published book chapters on queering science communication and on science communication with racial minorities during pandemics.

Abstract: The underrepresentation of people from the Global South and of racial/ethnic minorities in multicultural societies in biomedical and health research can lead to knowledge, interventions, and policies that may not fully address the needs of particular populations. While there are numerous calls from researchers and healthcare professionals to increase participant diversity, translating these conversations into actions can be challenging. Drawing from our research on brain and mental health, infectious diseases, and palliative care, I will highlight why it is important to acknowledge both the specific condition and the context in which research is conducted to actualise calls for diversity. First, I will highlight how cultural perceptions of neurologic and psychiatric disorders can discourage research participation of people from particular backgrounds. Second, I will draw from semi-ethnographic work on a COVID-19 study to illustrate how spatial, temporal, and institutional arrangements of a research project can impact participant diversity. Finally, using multi-omics and digital health for end-of-life care as an example, I will discuss how research and healthcare infrastructures can limit the evaluation and adoption of prognostication technologies in several countries. Overall, this talk will highlight why calls for diversity need to be situated and why solutions have to be co-created with researchers from multiple disciplines, healthcare workers, policy makers, and people with lived experience, especially those from minority and minoritised backgrounds.

Presentation: Drug testing as a part of a broader harm reduction approach

Presenter: Associate Professor Anna Olsen works in the Social Foundations of Medicine at SMP. Her interdisciplinary program of research combines practical and critical approaches to public health, with a particular interest in marginalised populations and qualitative methodologies. Current research includes: pill testing; opioid overdose prevention; methamphetamine use; drug use and motherhood; domestic and family violence; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health; and ethical practice in social research. She values collaborative approaches to research and has extensive experience working with government and community on evaluation and research projects.

Abstract: ACT is the first Australian jurisdiction to trial drug checking (also known as pill testing) as a part of a broader harm reduction approach. Illicit drug markets are unregulated, meaning that the type and quality of substances available can vary widely. Variability in illicit drug composition (e.g., dose, presence of adulterants) can elevate risk of harm, including overdose. Without objective information on drug contents, people have limited capacity to understand the potential risks of use and to modify behaviour accordingly. Drug checking services undertake chemical analyses to provide qualitative (i.e., presence or absence of substance) and/or quantitative (i.e., amount of a substance) information on contents of illicit substances provided by members of the public. Established with the aim of reducing harm, drug checking service return findings of chemical analyses to the service user alongside a tailored intervention about reducing the potential harms associated with drug use, and providing information on trends in illicit drug markets. CanTEST, based in Civic, is the first government-sanctioned fixed-site drug checking service in Australia, and one of the first globally to be independently evaluated. This presentation will detail key evaluation findings.