Major grant for Deb Raphael

Dr Deborah Raphael

Dr Deborah Raphael has earned a highly competitive Health Research Council NZ early career researcher grant. Deb’s $245,000 award will allow her to work with an existing online intervention designed to decrease distress in cancer survivors. She will be adapting the Australian Finding My Way (FMW) intervention to the New Zealand context for haematological cancer survivors. Finding My Way uses a multi-pronged approach that includes psycho-education, cognitive behaviour therapy and survivor testimonials.

Her focus on the topic stems from her PhD research in which she explored haematological cancer survivors post-treatment distress. She found that many reported being significantly distressed and needed more support from the health system. Deb’s project includes scope to adapt FMW in a culturally appropriate way for Māori. SoN researchers Professor Merryn Gott, Dr Rosemary Frey, Dr Tess Moeke-Maxwell and Dr Lisa Williams will join her as co-investigators. Associate Professor Lisa Beatty from the College of Education, Psychology and Social Work at Flinders University in Australia is also joining the team.