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Learn what’s driving the high rates of burnout and mental ill-health in the Healthcare & Social Assistance Industry

Do you know the top psychosocial risks in your sector?

Over a nine-year period, the NSW Healthcare and Social Assistance (H&SA) industry lost more than 170,000 working weeks to psychological injury. For the past 18 months, the Design for Care team has been working closely with multiple aged care, disability care and out of home care organisations to better understand what’s driving the high rates of burnout and mental ill-health in this industry.


At the upcoming Design for Care State of Affairs event, ARC Laureate Fellow Professor Sharon Parker will showcase our latest research findings on the most common psychosocial risks for burnout and mental ill-health within the H&SA industry. She'll then unpack how organisations can set themselves up to address these risks through SMART work design.


Event attendees will:


  • have a unique opportunity to ask the industry and research panel members questions about promoting better health in your own organisation and your job through SMART work design

  • gain industry-specific cutting-edge insights into the key factors driving burnout and mental ill-health within the NSW H&SA industry

  • be at the forefront of understanding what the results mean for the future of the H&SA industry, what steps can be taken to build your workforce’s capacity to create mentally healthy workplaces for essential workers


Cost:


Free with complimentary breakfast. Supported by icare NSW.


Who should attend:


Leaders in the area of workplace well-being, mental health, workers compensation and psychosocial risk within the H&SA Industry.


About the keynote speaker:


ARC Laureate Fellow Sharon K. Parker is a John Curtin Distinguished Professor at Curtin University, Director of the Centre for Transformative Work Design at Curtin University, a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Social Sciences and a Fellow of the Society for Industrial and Organisational Psychology. She is a recipient of the ARCs Kathleen Fitzpatrick Award, the Academy of Management OB Division Mentoring Award and, in November of 2019, Sharon was named among the world’s most influential scientists in the Web of Science Group’s 2019 list of 2019 Highly Cited Researchers, and the only female in Australia appearing on this list in the field of Economics and Business. She has published more than 200 internationally refereed articles on topics such as work design, proactive behaviour, mental health, and job performance, and has over 39,500 citations. She was a past Associate Editor for the Journal of Applied Psychology and Academy of Management Annals. Sharon has attracted competitive research funding worth over $40,000,000, and has worked with a wide range of public and private organizations. She is the founder of the SMART model, cofounder of the Thrive at Work Initiative, and has contributed to policy on work design in Australia and internationally.


About the Design for Care project:


This public event is presented by the SMART Design for Care research project. The Centre for Transformative Work Design is leading the exciting Design for Care initiative in partnership with the University of Sydney Business School and Monash University. ARC Laureate Fellow Professor Sharon Parker heads an experienced team of academics and work psychologists, including Associate Professor Anya Johnson, Associate Professor Helena Nguyen and Professor Alex Collie who are passionate about SMART work design in the H&SA industry. The project is funded by icare NSW.


TO ATTEND THIS EVENT REGISTER HERE.


We are keen to connect with enthusiastic and willing partners within the H&SA industry that are insured by icare NSW to participate in our research. For more information and to express interest in participating in the Design for Care project, head to our webpage or email us.



Upon completing her Masters degree in Industrial and Organisational (IO) Pyschology, Cheryl found herself at crossroads: plunge deeper into the world of academia with a PhD, or jump into the workplace to tackle real-world problems head-on.


Cheryl found the best of both worlds at the Future of Work Institute. With its unique blend of academia and industry expertise, it allowed her to journey down both paths at the same time.


We spoke to Dr Cheryl Yam, our PhD alumni of 2021 who is now a Research Fellow at the Centre for Transformative Work Design, based at Curtin University’s Future of Work Institute (FOWI). She reflected on what inspired her to pursue a PhD, her experiences during her PhD at FOWI, and how her degree has shaped her career.


Cheryl’s curiosity into IO Psychology was first sparked during her Masters program.


"I was particularly interested that there are so many branches under IO Psychology – and all of them work in tandem to improve so many aspects of work – at the individual, team and organisational level," she shares.


FOWI became Cheryl's chosen destination for her PhD, due to its unique position as a world class research institution, paired with its really strong partnership with industry.


"My experience being involved in FOWI’s partnership with industry helped me to contextualise some abstract concepts in a more concrete manner – for example seeing how work design plays out in a real-world context really supported my learning."


One particularly memorable project for Cheryl was when she investigated how surgical teams can improve their performance in extreme surgical conditions.


"Picture a burns unit where surgical teams work in scorching 38°C temperatures, all for the safety of their patients," she explains.

"We know that working in these conditions have negative impacts on a whole array of performance and well-being related outcomes, and we were there to investigate how we might use work design to support surgical teams when their external environments deplete their psychological resources."


Cheryl is now leading a WA Government-funded project investigating mental awareness, respect and the safety of workers within the Western Australian mining industry: the Mental Awareness, Respect and Safety (MARS) Landmark Study.

"I think it is a really unique opportunity, to be able to progress research in a field that you care about, and at the same time having your research support a real-world organisation."


For anyone considering a PhD, Cheryl has some advice: "Speak to lots of people about their experiences, keep reading up on the research and maintain a healthy curiousity about why things work they way they do."


"Build up a really strong network and support system with your supervisors and colleagues," she adds.


Interested in embarking on your own PhD journey? Discover the scholarships on offer, read more inspiring stories and learn how you can kickstart your journey by visiting our 'Study with us' page.



We are thrilled to have welcomed Dr Susan Reh, Senior Lecturer at the University of Exeter Business School to our centre!


Our Senior Research Fellow Dr Daniela Andrei hosted Susan through the Australian Research Council (ARC) Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research (CEPAR).


Get to know Susan through our short Q&A and learn about research below.


⭐️Tell me a bit about yourself?

I am Susan, a senior lecturer in management at the University of Exeter Business School (UK). With a background in psychology and business, I research topics like social comparison and interpersonal behavior, age and well-being, personality, motivation, and diversity. Outside of work, I enjoy exercising and recently discovered stand-up paddleboarding and aerial yoga. I am really passionate about squirrels, and I love to travel and explore new places.


⭐️What will you do / are you doing at CTWD / FOWI?

At FOWI, I am collaborating with Daniela Andrei and Lucinda Iles on a project investigating social comparison processes among older workers and how they affect their engagement and withdrawal behavior at work. Besides that, I am having lots of inspiring conversations about research with other FOWI members and I enjoy working in such a productive, inspiring, and friendly atmosphere.


⭐️How did you find the experience?

It has been great so far, both on a professional and personal level. Daniela and I started our project during the pandemic, fully online, and it has been fantastic to now have personal meetings and discussions. These meetings have not only been enjoyable and inspiring but have also helped our project gain momentum. It's also wonderful to connect with FOWI members, hear about their research, and get feedback and new ideas for my own projects. Everyone has been very welcoming, and I have enjoyed numerous tasty coffees during my meetings. Exploring Perth and its surroundings, like Rottnest Island, Whiteman Park, Fremantle, and Coogee Beach, has been a highlight.


⭐️What does the future of work look like to you?

Good question! I believe the future of work will likely be more hybrid and flexible than pre-pandemic. Hopefully, it will allow employees the freedom to capitalize on their strengths and work in ways that fit their needs in terms of tasks, resources, and preferences.


⭐️If you were a book or a movie, what would it be?

That’s a tricky one, and I’m not sure there is one that I would be. One of my childhood heroes was Paddington Bear. I still admire how he is so chaotic and runs into trouble all the time, but everything turns out fine in the end.


⭐️One thing not many people know about you?

I am really afraid of monkeys. Once, as a teenager, two relatively big and heavy monkeys jumped on my back during a vacation in Gibraltar. Ever since then, I try to avoid them as much as I can. Luckily, the animals I've met in Australia – kangaroos, koalas, and quokkas – have been much friendlier.





During her visit, Susan presented her research on the long-term emotional impacts of job demands on employees, in particular mature workers.


Here’s an overview of what was covered in her research seminar, titled ''Emotional Job Demands and Employees’ Long-Term Emotional Experience':


Many professions require emotional effort from employees to perform their job effectively. Research on emotional labor has investigated the consequences of these emotional job demands (EJDs) on employees’ own emotional experience with mixed findings on whether they are beneficial or harmful. Despite a large body of research, we still know rather little about:


  • The long-term effects of EJDs on employees' own emotional well-being

  • Their effects on the development of employees’ interpersonal emotions, such as their degree of sympathy

  • Factors that enhance or buffer these relationships, like employees’ learning goal orientation


Drawing on the model of strengths and vulnerabilities integration (SAVI) from the lifespan psychology literature, this program of research investigates these questions in two studies using publicly available data over 10 years from the Socioeconomic Panel Study (SOEP, Germany) and the Midlife in the United States survey (MIDUS), both in tandem with data from the Occupational Information Network (O*NET).


We thank Susan for her contributions in investigating social comparison processes among older workers and their effects on well-being at work. We look forward to continuing our collaboration and wish Susan all the best in her future endeavours.

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The Centre for Transformative Work Design

is part of the Future of Work Institute at Curtin University.

© 2025 Centre for Transformative Work Design​​

The Centre acknowledges Whadjuk Nyungar people who remain Custodians of the lands on which we research, learn and collaborate.

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