Natasha is a HCA associate consultant who has committed to a long term relationship with the company. She specialises in mental health services and program evaluation but has a broader interest in health equity and vulnerable populations. After many years working in the community managed organisation mental health sector in front line service delivery, management to research and evaluation roles, she has been working on several HCA evaluation projects over the last two years. At the same time, she has been completing a PhD at the University of Newcastle where she is in her final year.
Her PhD research explores the wellbeing of young refugees who resettle in Australia. The first academic article from this project was published in July 2021 in a journal specialising in research protocols (see the paper through this link) and an overview of the research can be obtained through this video link. The full Scoping Review is currently under review.
First PhD paper:
Harding, N., McCormack, L., & Fitzpatrick, S. (2021). Mental Health and Wellbeing Impacts of Societal Attitudes Towards Forcibly Displaced Young People. Social Science Protocols, 4, 1–10. doi:10.7565/ssp.v4.5481 Available at: http://journals.ed.ac.uk/social-science-protocols/article/view/5481
Video link to a 3-minute blitz talk of the Scoping Review Protocol presented at the Centre for Brain and Mental Health Research (2021): https://vimeo.com/639786644
Natasha is using in-depth qualitative interviews and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) for this research. Though she is based in Newcastle, her research is Australia-wide, having interviewed people in Newcastle, Sydney, Brisbane, and Toowoomba so far. She is currently recruiting former refugees who came to Australia as young people and who have been in Australia for 20 years or more for her final study.
As part of this research, she has presented at several conferences and events including recently at the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Conference in March 2022 at the Gold Coast. Her presentation was, The unique voice of forcibly displaced youth: Resettlement, societal attitudes, mental wellbeing, and new beginnings.
In addition to her work with HCA and her PhD, Natasha is the Secretary of Cultural Diversity Network Inc, an organisation that supports refugees and migrants who have settled in Australia, and a consumer board member for Child UnLimited, an organisation that aims to improve the clinical care and quality of life of children, adolescents and young adults living with a chronic illness or disability.
If you would like more information about Natasha’s research or about participating in her final study, please drop her an email (natasha.harding@humancapitalalliance.com.au).
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