In the spotlight: Dr Lucille Kerr

POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH FELLOW, CABRINI MONASH UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF NURSING RESEARCH

Dr Lucille Kerr, Lucy, began her research journey as a nursing graduate in Tasmania. In her clinical career, Lucy worked in oncology and haematology, an area which she remains passionate about. Her research interests include cancer and palliative care, public health issues, marginalised communities, community-based approaches, health promotion and policy. The driving value that saw her embark on research was the ability to improve the health and wellbeing of communities through meaningful engagement. She believes strongly in the importance of research conducted by nurses, who have intimate knowledge and experience concerning patient care.

Lucy’s previous research centred on issues relating to health and cancer care access and utilisation for a marginalised population, the trans and gender diverse community. After moving to Melbourne for work and study, she completed her PhD at the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society at La Trobe University under the supervision of Associate Professors Christopher Fisher and Tiffany Jones. Another area in which Lucy has significant experience in is the sexual health education and promotion of young people, having worked on the National Survey of Secondary Students and Sexual Health, an ongoing longitudinal study that began in the early 1990s. Keen to pursue research, Lucy joined the Cabrini Monash University Department of Nursing Research towards the end of 2020. She is currently working on two projects, one exploring the experiences of people with cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic and another that is examining the effect on healthcare associated infection rates from infection prevention measures implemented to combat COVID-19.

Since childhood, Lucy has been an avid reader and this is reflected in her research life which trends more towards qualitative approaches, which she finds similar to the narratives found in books. Whilst also using quantitative methods, Lucy greatly appreciates the intricacies and depth that can be found in qualitative studies.

In the future, Lucy wants to help build the recently formed Department of Nursing Research. This includes involving more practicing nurses in research and supporting them to conduct their own projects to improve patient care, and ensuring that all studies conducted at the department are disseminated to the appropriate audiences.