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Centre for Adolescent Health

Communities that Care Australia

  • Background and Aims

    CTC_phases Communities That Care (CTC) is an evidence based, prevention science process implemented at the community level to reduce youth health and behaviour problems and promote healthy development.   The CTC process was developed in the United States and is backed by three decades of rigorous research. In 2000, the CTC process was initiated in Australia across three ‘pioneer’ communities: Mornington Peninsula and Ballarat in Victoria and Bunbury in Western Australia. It has since expanded to other communities nationwide.

    CTC uses a 5-phase evidence-based, community-change process which provides guidance for communities to identify and understand their local needs, set priorities and implement effective tested strategies to address those needs.  

    Collaborators

    In Australia delivery of the Communities that Care system and youth survey are licensed to Communities that Care Ltd, a not-for-profit organisation which was established in 1999 under a joint initiative of The Royal Children’s Hospital and the Rotary Club of Melbourne. Current research partners involved in disseminating CTC within Australia include Deakin University; The Centre for Adolescent Health, Murdoch Children’s Research Institution and the University of Washington.

    Funders

    The Communities that Care process is currently being trialled in 14 communities across Victoria, Western Australia and Queensland and is supported through funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and the Victorian Department of Justice and Regulation. The trial is due to complete in 2021.

    Key Papers

    Torok, M., Rasmussen, V., Wong, Q., Werner-Seidler, A., O'Dea, B., Toumbourou, J., Calear, A. (2019) Examining the impact of the Good Behaviour Game on emotional and behavioural problems in primary school children: A case for integrating well-being strategies into education. Australian Journal of Education. 63(3), 292-306. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004944119878480

    Berecki-Gisolf, J., Rowland, B., Reavley, N., Minuzzo, B., Toumbourou, J. (2019) Evaluation of community coalition training effects on youth hospital-admitted injury incidence in Victoria, Australia: 2001–2017. Injury prevention. https://doi.org/10.1136/injuryprev-2019-043386

    Toumbourou, J.W. Rowland, B., Williams, J., Smith, R., & Patton, G.C. (2019) Community intervention to prevent adolescent health behavior problems: Evaluation of Communities that Care in Australia. Health Psychology. 38(6), 536-544. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/hea0000735

    Burn, M., Lewis, A., McDonald, L., & Toumbourou, J.W. (2019) An Australian adaptation of the Strengthening Families Program: Parent and child mental health outcomes from a pilot study. Australian Psychologist. 54(4), 261-271. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ap.12385

    Kremer, P., Crooks, N., Rowland, B., Hall, J., Toumbourou, J.W. (2018) Underage alcohol sales in community sporting clubs. Drug and Alcohol Review. 37, 879–886. https://doi.org/10.1111/dar.12858

    Heerde, J.A., Toumbourou, J.W., Hemphill, S.A., Le, H., Herrenkohl, T.I., & Catalano, R. F. (2018) Prevent crime and save money: Return-on-investment models in Australia. Trends & Issues in Crime and Criminal Justice. No. 545. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. https://aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/tandi545.

    Rowland, B., Abraham, C., Carter, R., Abimanyi-Ochom, J., Kelly, A. B., Kremer, P., ... & Renner, H. (2018). Trial protocol: a clustered, randomised, longitudinal, type 2 translational trial of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm among adolescents in Australia. BMC public health, 18(1), 559. Link

    Rowland, B. C., Williams, J., Smith, R., Hall, J. K., Osborn, A., Kremer, P., ... & Toumbourou, J. W. (2018). Social marketing and community mobilisation to reduce underage alcohol consumption in Australia: A cluster randomised community trial. Preventive medicine, 113, 132-139. Link

    Toumbourou, J. W., Rowland, B., Ghayour‐Minaie, M., Sherker, S., Patton, G. C., & Williams, J. W. (2018). Student survey trends in reported alcohol use and influencing factors in Australia. Drug and alcohol review, 37, S58-S66. Link

    Digital media

    Further information on CTC can be found on the CTC website.

    You can also follow CTC on Facebook and Twitter.