Emeritus ProfessorSusan Balandin

Initially trained as a speech pathologist in the UK, Professor Balandin
completed her PhD in the Department of Linguistics at Macquarie University,
Sydney. She has published over 110 articles in peer reviewed international
journals and 20+ book chapters. Her research interests centre on adults with
lifelong disability with a particular focus on participation of those with
little or no functional speech who require augmentative and alternative
communication (AAC) and those who are ageing. She has conducted research into
health interactions for adults who need AAC including several studies on
interactions between this group of adults and staff in hospitals. She has
studied the impact of dysphagia on those who are ageing with cerebral palsy
and has also explored a range of issues around friendships and loneliness for
both adults and children who use AAC.

She was a lead investigator on an ARC linkage grant that investigated
transition to retirement for adults with lifelong disability and also explored
how Norwegian seniors viewed the inclusion of adults with intellectual
disability in their senior centres.

With Norwegian colleagues she conducted the first studies in the affordances
of Virtual Worlds for fostering friendships and new leisure experiences for
adults with disability and also how such virtual environments can be utilised
for teaching students about disability. This study built on her previous
research on teaching with people with lifelong disability in tertiary
education.

She is currently one of the chief investigators on two NHMRC projects, one
exploring safety incidents in hospital where the patients has little or no
functional speech and one investigating the use of personally controlled
electronic health records (PCEHR) by adults with disability.

Professor Balandin has supervised more than 20 doctoral students whose topics
have included 'The experiences of older parents of adults with autism' 'End of
life issues for adults with intellectual disability and those who care for
them', 'Participation of students who use AAC in Norwegian secondary schools'
and 'Experiences of grief and loss of adults with cerebral palsy and little or
no functional speech'.

She has strong research links with the UK, Norway and the US.