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Background: Early in the COVID‐19 pandemic, Australian donors aged 70 and over were advised to temporarily stop donating. The aim of this research was to understand the factors associated with some of these donors continuing to donate despite the advice, and whether adherence to the advice had negative implications for donor retention. Study Design and Methods: Survey data from 2078 donors were analyzed to understand the factors associated with donating blood during the first 6 months of the pandemic, and the impact of following stay‐at‐home advice during the first 6 months of the pandemic on donor return 6–12 months into the pandemic. Panel data were used to gain an overview of donation behavior before, during, and after the initial phase of the pandemic. Results: Donations by donors aged 70 and over decreased disproportionately to other age groups during the early stages of the pandemic. Sex, total donation count, awareness of stay‐at‐home advice from the Blood Collection Agency, the mode of receiving stay‐at‐home advice, donor risk perceptions and attitudes toward stay‐at‐home advice were associated with donation behavior in the first 6 months of the pandemic. Donors who did not donate in the first 6 months of the pandemic had lower odds of returning 6–12 months into the pandemic. Conclusion: Stay‐at‐home advice was partially successful in preventing older donors from donating; however, more tailored communication approaches may have prevented more donors from donating. Implementation of stay‐at‐home advice should be accompanied by strategies to prevent ongoing donor lapse in the medium‐ to long‐term. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction and Aims: Smoking is a major cause of preventable illness for Indigenous peoples. As most regular smoking is established during adolescence when other substances are often first used, effective tobacco prevention requires an understanding of the patterns of related substance use for Indigenous youth. Design and Methods: We reviewed smoking among Indigenous students through cross‐sectional analyses of the 2017 Australian Secondary Students' Alcohol and Drug survey and compared findings to non‐Indigenous participants. We used logistic regression to evaluate differences in prevalence of tobacco, alcohol and cannabis use, and how smoking and other substance use were related. Results: Past month smoking was strongly associated with alcohol and cannabis use for both Indigenous and non‐Indigenous students. The association between tobacco and cannabis use did not differ by Indigenous status, but the tobacco and alcohol use association was weaker for Indigenous students (P = 0.004). However, the prevalence of tobacco [odds ratio (OR) 1.91 (95% confidence interval; CI 1.55, 2.36)], alcohol [OR 1.44 (1.25, 1.66)] and cannabis [OR 1.97 (1.56, 2.48)] use in the past month was significantly higher in Indigenous than non‐Indigenous students. Even within the most socially advantaged sub‐group, Indigenous students were more likely to smoke than non‐Indigenous students [OR 3.37 (2.23, 5.09)]. Discussion and Conclusions: Cannabis and alcohol use are important predictors of smoking for all students. Tobacco policies and community programs must address common determinants of tobacco and other substance use, including resilience and social influence skills as well as broader family and community factors that may be different for Indigenous students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To examine the effect of a mass media campaign designed to increase bowel cancer screening participation. Methods: We assessed weekly participation, from January 2015 to December 2017, in the Australian National Bowel Cancer Screening Program in Victoria, where a seven-week campaign aired in mid-2017, and in the adjacent comparison state of South Australia. Participation, defined as the number of immunochemical faecal occult blood tests returned out of those invited by the Screening Program in the past 16 weeks, was analysed using negative binomial regression. Results: Compared with non-campaign weeks, there was an increase in the return rate in the campaign state during campaign weeks (adjusted return rates non-campaign weeks = 34.4% vs. campaign weeks = 45.3%, p < 0.01), not observed in the comparison state (38.3% vs. 40.3%, p > 0.05). The increase in the return rate was significantly greater in the campaign state (Rate Ratio of Campaign/Non-Campaign weeks = 1.31, p < 0.01) than the comparison state (1.05, p > 0.05, interaction p < 0.001), and did not differ significantly by age, sex or socio-economic area. The relative increase was greater among never-participants (Rate Ratio of Campaign/Non-Campaign weeks = 1.24) than previous-participants (1.16), interaction p < 0.001). Conclusions: This mass media campaign increased bowel cancer screening participation, including from never and low participation subgroups. To maximize participation and ensure equitable population benefit, repeated campaigns that reach eligible people about bowel cancer risks and potential life-saving benefits of screening should be standard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problems associated with eyewitness identification decisions have long been highlighted by memory researchers (e.g., Loftus, 1979), with overwhelming evidence that witnesses can err, sometimes with disastrous consequences. Guided by the rationale that witnesses have access to potentially probative memorial information not captured by the traditional categorical lineup responses, an alternative procedure was examined in 6 experiments with adult (N = 1,669) and child (N = 273) witnesses. Instead of witnesses being asked to identify the offender from the lineup, they rated their confidence in the match between the offender and each lineup member and then variations in the maximum (max) confidence values assigned (i.e., the highest rated lineup members) were examined. Specifically, we evaluated how well max confidence values predicted suspect guilt or innocence. When suspects (guilty or innocent) in a lineup received the max confidence rating, the probability of guilt increased with the max. When the suspect received a rating lower than the max, they were generally more likely to be innocent. Max confidence patterns also predicted guilt where a traditional positive identification would have been unlikely: for example, when the max was low, when the witness gave the max to multiple lineup members, or when a filler received the max but the suspect also received a high rating. The data indicate that witnesses have access to probative memorial information often not captured by the traditional lineup responses when identifying someone or rejecting the lineup. Guidelines for the use and interpretation of this theoretically informed futuristic alternative to existing lineup procedures are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Mental health lived experience organizations (LEOs) and their lived experience workforce are increasingly recognized as invaluable. However, a deeper understanding of the elements that enhance or inhibit LEOs' efficacy is required to learn how to sustain LEOs and support their workforce. Rapid international expansion has resulted in significant LEO growth and change, challenging many LEOs to adapt. With this rapid expansion, the field is evolving faster than many LEOs can keep pace with. This review, codesigned and coproduced in partnership with a LEO to draw on both lived experience and academic perspectives, aims for a deeper understanding of which elements within a LEO enhance or inhibit its efficacy, growth, and support for its lived experience workforce., Methods: A systematic search of peer-reviewed and non-peer-reviewed literature, following the PRISMA-ScR guidelines and JBI methodology, identified 60 records published in English between 2000 and 2022., Results: The results indicate general agreement regarding which LEO elements are important (e.g., culture, leadership, board composition, organizational structure, financial arrangements, and professionalization). However, considerable disagreements exist regarding the relative influence of several of these elements, especially funding arrangements, in which funder and LEO values often diverge; training for increased lived experience professionalization; and partnerships with medical model-focused mental health services., Conclusions: Organizational disagreements relate to managing future LEO growth and advancing the lived experience workforce while preserving LEOs' unique characteristics that make them valued mental health services. Further research should examine community differences among LEOs, including hybrid LEOs within services and non-LEO mental health organizations.