Early childhood mental health is about young children's social, emotional and behavioural wellbeing. This includes children's developing capacity to experience, regulate and express emotion; to form close, secure, satisfying relationships; and to explore and discover the environment and the world around them.
Dr Dave Pasalich is a Senior Lecturer and clinical psychologist in the Research School of Psychology, Australian National University. His research and clinical expertise is in evidence-based practice to promote child and family mental health and wellbeing, particularly in families exposed to adversities.
This has involved partnerships with child welfare services to deliver and trial parent interventions in out-of-home care. He has received several awards for his work, including the ACT Young Tall Poppy Scientist of the Year Award and an ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award.
Read more >Megan Smith is completing a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Education at the University of Melbourne, researching the mental health care pathways that primary schools initiate to support their students. As well as being a qualified Occupational Therapist (OT), with a Bachelor of Science in OT from Curtin University, Megan recently earned a Master of Public Health from the University of Melbourne, and holds a Graduate Diploma in Mental Health Science, also from the University of Melbourne.
Megan has extensive clinical experience as a mental health OT, primarily in adult community mental health services, and chose to complete further training in public health due her desire to improve mental health outcomes at the population level.
Read more >Dr Shurong Lu is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Centre for Mental Health within The University of Melbourne. Shurong has strong research interests in the development, evaluation and dissemination of evidence-based early intervention approaches, such as Mental Health First Aid training programs.
She is passionate about creating a world where everyone, particularly children, adolescents, and those with culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, can receive timely and appreciate support when facing with any mental health challenges.
Read more >I am a clinical postdoctoral researcher in the field of child mental health at the Black Dog Institute, having received my Doctor of Philosophy (Medicine) from the University of Sydney, graduating in May 2021 for my thesis titled ‘The design, implementation and evaluation of a mobile application for insomnia’. I am currently a Post-doctoral Research Fellow in the Child Mental Health Research Team at the Black Dog Institute, The University of New South Wales.
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