Dr Luke Wolfenden

Biography

I am a behavioural scientist. In 2013 I commenced a NHMRC Career Development Fellowship. I graduated with a PhD in behavioural medicine in 2006. Since submission of my PhD I have worked with internationally recognised research institutions such as the UK Cochrane Centre, and was an invited visiting Fellow at the World Health Organization. Nationally, I have been primarily responsible for the evaluation of Australia’s largest ever child obesity prevention program (Good for Kids. Good for Life.) where I led a research collaboration between the Prevention Research Centres of the University of Sydney, Hunter New England Area Health Service and NSW Health My research seeks to reduce the burden of chronic disease in the community. Over the past 5 years my work has focused on i) trialling interventions to reduce modifiable chronic disease risks in the community; ii) trialling dissemination and implementation strategies to increase the adoption of evidence based chronic disease prevention practices by organisations in the community; iii) conducting methodological research to facilitate the translation of research into practice. The research I conduct draws heavily on social-ecological and social cognitive perspectives of reducing chronic disease risks. The primary modifiable risks my research addresses are obesity, diet, physical inactivity, alcohol and tobacco use. My research is typically settings based. I have conducted trials of health behaviour interventions or of population wide-dissemination and implementation strategies in hospitals, out-patient clinics, schools, child care centres, community organisations, and sports clubs. To ensure that the practice relevance of research outcomes and maximise the potential for successful translation, my work is informed through on-going engagement processes with end-users

Research Interest

Clinical Sciences , Public Health and Health Services, Policy and Administration