Role Title: Advancing Gender-Sensitive Mental Health Care Intern : Support for Systematic Review Manuscript Development and Qualitative Research Design
Organisation: South Metropolitan Health Service
Internship Period: Semester 1 (February - May)
Location: Fiona Stanley Hospital or Cockburn
Project Background
South Metropolitan Health Service has established Australia’s first public women-only mental health inpatient service, providing trauma-informed, gender-sensitive care for women with complex psychiatric needs. This innovative model urgently requires rigorous research to evaluate effectiveness, document implementation insights, and inform national policy and clinical guidelines.
A core component of this program is a systematic review examining the implementation, enablers, and barriers of gender-specific mental health inpatient services internationally, and a qualitative study exploring staff and consumer perspectives on the women’s-only model of care.
Project Aim
To support SMHS Mental Health in generating high-quality evidence for women’s mental health service delivery by contributing to:
1. Manuscript development for a systematic review on gender-sensitive inpatient mental health models.
2. Design of qualitative research instruments, including development of interview and focus-group question guides for staff and consumers.
Key Tasks and Activities for the Intern
1. Manuscript Preparation for Systematic Review
• Assist with synthesising findings from extracted studies under supervision.
• Contribute to drafting sections of the manuscript (introduction, methods, results tables, discussion).
• Learn scientific writing conventions, referencing, and PRISMA-aligned reporting.
• Participate in iterative editing and revision for journal submission.
WA Health is Western Australia’s public health system. With a State spanning over 2.5 million square kilometres, it is the largest area in the world covered by a single health authority. Our strategic priorities are focused on ensuring that Western Australians receive safe, high quality and accessible health care, no matter where they live.