Assbi
Student events

ASSBI Student Events

The student ambassador teams have continued to organise several ASSBI student events throughout the year all around Australia!

Keep an eye-out for upcoming events hosted by ASSBI student teams in your region via ASSBI social media pages!

For any student enquiries please email nicole.feast@research.uwa.edu.au

You can read more about the student events below:

Newcastle Team

Trivia Night

In October, the Newcastle ASSBI Team hosted an exciting Brain Trivia Night at the Bar on the Hill, at The University of Newcastle, attracting more than 50 students across 8 teams from a range of disciplines including psychology, chemistry, medicine, and more. The event aimed to raise awareness about brain injury in a fun and engaging way.

The trivia night featured three rounds of questions: general knowledge, sports, and pop culture, all designed to challenge participants and spark some friendly competition. To keep things lively, we added three challenge rounds of true/false questions, covering topics such as brain anatomy, medical definitions, and even movie trivia.

The night was a great success, bringing together students from various disciplines to showcase their knowledge of brain science and brain injuries while enjoying a fun, relaxed atmosphere. Students had the chance to bond (and compete!) over interesting questions, share their expertise, and enjoy some great food and conversation. 

Melbourne Team

Free Workshop
ACT for Brain Impairment

The ASSBI Melbourne Student Ambassador team hosted an "ACT for Brain Impairment" Speaker Panel Event on 19 August 2024 (the start of Brain Injury Awareness Week)! This was held at Monash University, Caulfield campus. Approximately 60 students from various universities and disciplines including allied health, medicine and nursing attended the event.

We had the pleasure of having three fantastic speakers with experience using ACT/values-based approaches in both research and clinical practice: Dana Wong, President of ASSBI, Associate Professor and Clinical Neuropsychologist; Reuben Lowe, Mental Health Therapist specialising in ACT and mindfulness-based therapies; and Clare Douglas, Speech Pathologist at the Victorian Neurorehabilitation Network, specialising in acquired brain injury. Our speakers provided valuable insights into using ACT/values based approaches whilst working with people with ABI, and provided interesting and relevant tools and case discussions to show how they integrate these principles into practice.

A huge thank you to our speakers for generously sharing their time and knowledge with us, and to all the students who attended and made this event possible. Well done Melbourne Team (Kimberly Chew, Lara Piccoli, Madeline Gibson) for organising such a wonderful event!

Adelaide Team

Free Workshop
Creative Therapies for Brain Injury Recovery

On August 22nd at Flinders City Campus, ASSBI students will lead a workshop that will introduce Adelaide's future practitioners to a fascinating type of therapy that has been growing in importance for those who suffer with brain injury: creative therapies! To help us on our mission, we will have licensed art therapists, diversional therapists and others on board to share their insights and experiences, providing informative presentations on their respective therapies. Not only that, but our event will have a hands-on, interactive arts workshop where our therapist guest speakers will guide us through the process of creating art in their creative therapies, and how they help people with brain injury. Our event will be a multi-disciplinary showcase of Adelaide's future of practitioners; if you're studying anything like psychology, medicine, speech pathology, health and medical science, nursing, OT or neuropsychology, then we encourage you to attend! Alongside being a great opportunity to learn more about brain injury, you'll also have time to network with speakers, socialise with like-minded students, enjoy the free food, and learn what the future of Australia's health industry looks like! 

So, what are you waiting for? Register for a ticket now, and prepare to learn about the fascinating world of creative therapies in brain injury!

Register Now!

Sydney Team

Event Recap – Sydney Lived Experience of Brain Injury Panel

On the 21st of May 2024, the Sydney ASSBI Ambassador team hosted a ‘Lived Experience of Brain Injury: Talk and Q&A’ event at Hermann’s Bar, University of Sydney. The event was attended by students from a variety of disciplines including allied health, neuropsychology, medicine and nursing.

Three guest presenters spoke about their lived experience of a brain injury; Ian Roberts, former Rugby League star & actor who spoke about concussion in sports; and Gabrielle Webster and Jayden Alexanderson both spoke frankly about Traumatic Brain Injury following road accidents, physical and ‘hidden’ injuries, rehabilitation challenges and brain injury advocacy. Following these incredible stories, Dr Melanie Moses (Speech Pathologist), Samantha Grant (Clinical Psychologist) spoke about the role of rehabilitation professionals, and facilitated a thoroughly engaging and fascinating Q&A session.

A huge thanks to the lived experience presenters and clinician speakers at this event. Well done Sydney Team (Kylie Southwell, Alex Manea, Ashna Nadan, and Jasmine Sandilant) for organising such a wonderful event!

Melbourne Team

Event Recap – Melbourne Team Movie Night!

The student movie night took place on 12/04/2024 and provided a casual yet enriching atmosphere for attendees. Networking opportunities allowed students from different disciplines and universities to connect with peers over shared interests. Awakenings, the film chosen for the event, struck a chord with attendees, offering relevance to their experiences in clinical placements. Discussions based on the movie's themes were engaging and thought-provoking. Overall, the evening provided a relaxed setting for students to unwind while also reflecting on their professional journeys.

Well done Melbourne Team (Kim Chew, Maddie Gibson and Lara Piccoli) for organising such a fantastic event!

Student Initiatives at the ASSBI Conference

Representatives from the ASSBI Student Network were involved in several aspects of the planning and delivery of the 47^th Annual Brain Impairment Conference, including a student social and a ‘Meet the Researcher workshop’. 

‘Meet the Researcher’ Event
This lunchtime event, chaired by Sydney Team Leader, Ky Southwell, was a wonderful opportunity for students to speak and connect with leading researchers working across multiple disciplines in brain impairment. There were nine fantastic speakers from across Australia and New Zealand, with research experience spanning topics including enhancing the quality of life, communication skills, social and psychological wellbeing, and outcomes for individuals with neurological disorders. 

A huge thank you to our volunteer speakers for being involved in this event: A/Prof Libby Callaway (Monash University), Dr Lee Cubis (Summer Foundation), Dr Sophie Brassel (University of Sydney), Dr Kate D’Cruz (Summer Foundation), Dr Rachael Rietdijk (University of Sydney), Dr Petra Avramovic (University of Sydney), Dr Josh Faulkner (University of Wellington, NZ), Prof Olivier Piguet (University of Sydney), and Dr Kate Gould (Monash University).

Student Social
We also held a student networking event over drinks at Eve’s bar in Sydney, which was a fun-filled evening for students to interact and foster connections in a casual setting.

Student Volunteers at the Conference
A big thanks to our volunteers from the ASSBI Student Network who travelled from Melbourne, Newcastle and locally in Sydney to help Margaret and Matt with ensuring that the conference ran so smoothly – Kim Chew, Ky Southwell, Emma Gifford, Alex Manea, Ashna Nadan, Jack Towsey, Jasmine Sandilant, and Maddie Gibson.

Welcome to the new Adelaide Team for 2024!

Following an additional recruitment drive for the ASSBI Student Network earlier this year, we are delighted to announce that we have an Adelaide Team for 2024! A huge thanks to the students in Adelaide who, after expressing interest in being involved in ASSBI, spread the word via their peers and student networks to be able to gather some additional interest and build a full team.

Team Leader: Chester Baluyot (Master of Occupational Therapy, Flinders University)

Student Ambassadors:

• Bill Kazis (Honours in Psychology, University of Adelaide)
• Eliza Le Mire (Honours in Psychology, Flinders University)
• Clare Vorel (Master of Occupational Therapy, Flinders University