RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MENTAL ILLNESS AND MENTAL WELLBEING
Dr Matthew Iasiello, Head of Data and Research Translation, Be Well Co,
SAHMRI (South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute) &
Post Doctoral Researcher, University of Adelaide
RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Adelaide, South Australian | December 2024
Since 2015, Dr Matthew Iasiello has been working on the development and dissemination of mental wellbeing interventions across the Australian community at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI). His PhD research was designed specifically to strengthen the translational work conducted by SAHMRI, and to solve problems that represented gaps in the literature that were arising when delivering mental wellbeing interventions into the community. The impact and relevance of Dr Iasiello’s work has been demonstrated with invited presentations at international academic conferences, and multiple media stories with significant online engagements.
Dr Iasiello’s research investigates the dual-continua model, an innovative model of mental health. The dual-continua model of mental health suggests that mental illness and mental wellbeing reflect distinct continua, rather than the extreme ends of a single spectrum. This novel conceptualisation of the relationship between mental illness and mental wellbeing has significant implications in the way we promote mental health, and prevent, treat, and recover from mental illness. However, little is known about the evidence validating the model, and whether this evidence supports the implications that have been proposed in the literature.
Dr Iasiello’s PhD project synthesises the relevant evidence supporting the model, provides further evidence of the role of mental wellbeing in the recovery of mental illness, and addresses important limitations in the current assessment of mental wellbeing in the context of psychological distress and mental illness.
He is engaged in the development of mental wellbeing services and products that emerge directly from the new knowledge generated from his PhD, translated into the community via SAHMRI. This has resulted in the development and evaluation of the Be Well Plan (https://www.bewellco.io/bwt), and evidence-based wellbeing intervention (over 5,000 participants since 2020), and the Be Well Tracker https://www.bewellco.io/be-well-plan, a free online assessment platform that Australians can use to assess and monitor their mental health (20,000 users since 2019).
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Targeting chemotherapy resistance in ovarian cancer patients
Dr Alex Cole, from the Centenary Institute’s Centre for Biomedical AI, is now leading the research focused on developing a new treatment to counteract a protein called follistatin (FST), known for making ovarian cancer cells resistant to chemotherapy.
By employing cutting-edge molecular biology and directed evolution techniques, the project aims to create nanobodies—small, precise molecules—that can block FST. If successful, these nanobodies could enhance the effectiveness of chemotherapy and improve ovarian cancer treatment rates.
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CASE STUDY High blood pressure and shorter sleep may worsen brain decline
People with high blood pressure who also lack sleep may be at increased risk of reduced cognitive performance and greater brain injury, Monash University research has found.
Published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, researchers assessed whether the combined effect of hypertension and short sleep duration had a negative impact on brain health.
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Health impacts of donor milk for pre-term babies
Professor Alice Rumbold is Theme Leader of SAHMRI Women and Kids, managing a multidisciplinary research team focussed on improving health outcomes for women, babies and families. She also holds an affiliate position as a Research Leader within the Robinson Research Institute at the University of Adelaide.
An epidemiologist and health services researcher, she is internationally renowned for her leadership of large-scale clinical trials, epidemiological studies and systematic review activities to improve perinatal and reproductive health care. She is passionate about improving health outcomes for women and babies, particularly those experiencing vulnerability. Her current research interests include preterm birth, breastfeeding, human milk banking and infertility
