DrClaire Hayes

Dr Claire Hayes is a Senior Lecturer in Mental Health Nursing and Course Director for Deakin University’s mental health courses. She provides academic leadership across the mental health course portfolio, with a focus on curriculum quality, contemporary mental health nursing education, student experience and workforce responsiveness.

Claire’s research focuses on mental health, vulnerable populations and safer systems of care, spanning youth mental health and models of care, family and domestic violence, filicide risk, mental health nursing education and simulation, and health service evaluation. She leads and contributes to externally funded and industry-partnered research with health, community and university partners, including Refuge Victoria, HealthAbility and the Libraries of the Australian Technology Network Universities (LATN).

Claire supervises PhD and Honours students and contributes to the development of emerging academics and clinician researchers through research mentoring and capacity building. She is Associate Editor of the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing and Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Prior to academia, Claire held senior clinical nursing leadership positions, including Nurse Unit Manager. Her work brings together research, education, clinical expertise and external partnerships to strengthen mental health nursing capability and improve outcomes for people and communities experiencing vulnerability.