How does a person’s social environment impact upon help-seeking among people living with chronic respiratory illness?

The project will investigate how the social environment within which primary care patients manage their illness can buffer feelings of stigma and stress that contribute to patient experience of health care and its impact upon help-seeking. There is a distinct lack of evidence and poor understanding about the potential buffering role of social networks, social support, and socio-environmental quality for patients with chronic, non-communicable illnesses. The research will focus on people living in the community with chronic respiratory illness which are associated with a high degree of stigma in the Australian community. Mental health issues are common and there is a substantial social impact. The project will determine how social quality, including perceptions of isolation and loneliness, impact upon the experience and anticipation of stigma in healthcare settings for people living independently in the community with chronic respiratory illness. Our Research Environment As a research student in the Department of General Practice you will have access to supervision from international and national leaders in primary care research and education in a supportive and collaborative research environment. Research students are linked with a research group working within one of our areas of research excellence and able to draw upon expertise from across the department to support quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods research. You will have opportunity to develop primary care research skills and understanding of ethics through workshops and seminars while gaining exposure to a wide variety of primary care research methods and topics through attendance at a weekly Departmental academic seminar series. Funding is available to support research costs and professional development activities like conference attendance. An active early career research group in the department provides a structure for informal support and learning amongst peers.