AAG would like to congratulate the following individuals on their successful applications for the RM Gibson Research Fund Grant:
Dr Katrin Gerber
Affilliation: NARI
Award: $7,000
Project: Lost in grief - An in-depth exploration of the effects of grief on older people’s healthcare use
This project aims to:
1) Examine how grief affects older people’s wellbeing and healthcare use,
2) Identify gaps in the existing service provision of bereavement support and
3) Provide clear and actionable recommendations on how to address these gaps. This project will be significant for increasing our understanding of grief in older people, and for structuring health services to cater for a population in growing need. As a result, this project strongly aligns with the aim of the RM Gibson Research Fund.
Specific research questions include:
What healthcare and bereavement services do older people use after the loss of a significant person in their lives?
How do GPs and practice nurses identify signs of grief in older people? Can they differentiate normal from complicated grief? How do they respond after identifying that an older person is grieving?
What are areas of improvement in the existing support of bereaved older people?
Dr Katrin Gerber is an end-of-life researcher and international scholarship recipient with a PhD in Psychology from the University of Melbourne. She is a research fellow at the National Ageing Research Institute, a casual fellow at Queensland University of Technology and an honorary fellow at the University of Melbourne. Through her work, Dr Gerber is continuously demonstrating her commitment to enhancing the fields of palliative care, end-of-life decision-making, bereavement support and mental health. Her passion for these areas of research stems from her work as a hospice volunteer and her personal experience as a family caregiver.
Please note that the awardee bios are correct at the time the awards are made and will not be updated