Presentations & Publications

An important note prior to outlinining my presentation and publication history:

Colleagues, mentors, and friends, I am sharing this statement to apologise for the approach I took towards an article I wrote in 2014 and the later presentation of it in the same year. I published and presented this research as the sole author. This apology is overdue and important.

In publishing and presenting without any Indigenous authorship, I continued to centre the knowledge that I had gained as a white outsider rather than ensuring there was an equal power balance in the academic privilege and status that is gained professionally from academic publishing. One way in which institutional racism is present within academia is through white authors, such as my self, continuing to benefit professionally from the study of Indigenous culture while simultaneously taking away from Indigenous academics who have lived experience. It continues to sustain the practice wherein Aboriginality is the research subject rather than the research lens. It also left the research with the possibility of gaps in the knowledge from a lack of lived experience and a lens of whiteness. In attempting to contribute to the knowledge base on health care and cultural safety, I missed the key step of having an Indigenous author as a leader in this project and engaging in meaningful consultation, partnership, and co-creation. I am truly sorry for this.

In the future, I am committing to doing the work of decolonising my practice in more meaningful ways which contribute to an academic world and healthcare services where Indigenous people are centred as experts in their own communities, and where self-determination and decolonisation are important parts of all practices. I will listen to the voices of Aboriginal people, Torres Strait Islander people, and Indigenous people globally, and seek out research by these authors. I will not publish research on cultures I am not from without the invitation and lead of an Indigenous author, with a partnership that is equal and contributes to reconciliation, not only through the research content but through the research process with colleagues and participants. I will use my privilege to make space for and amplify voices that have historically been silenced and continue to be discriminated against. This process will be ongoing, and I will be a continual student working on decolonising myself and academia through non-racist research methodologies, community research ownership, and a commitment to true allyship that delves beyond the surface. I am so grateful to all of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who participated in this research and reviewed this research, and promise to do better in future.

I list these publications below and in communications about my academic and professional history, as removing these references would not acknowledge the ways I have contributed to a system that advances colonial perspectives, and would not allow for open conversation about the steps required from me and the systems around us to work towards reconciliation and learn from mistakes. These articles should not be referenced or drawn upon as appropriate sources of information regarding cultural safety.

PUBLICATIONS

Truasheim, S. (2014). Cultural safety for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults within Australian music therapy practices. Australian Journal of Music Therapy, 25, 135.

Truasheim, S., & Bonell, S. (2023). Does Social Media Engagement Influence Men’s Consideration of Cosmetic Surgery? Journal of Technology in Behavioral Science, 0123456789.https://doi.org/10.1007/s41347-023-00317-2

CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS

Truasheim, S., Bibb, J., & Shoemark, H. (2013). Supervision of Australian Music Therapists as Students and Professionals: Value and Effect of Critical Incidents.
– Recipient of Denise Grocke Award for excellence in presentation.

Truasheim, S. (2014, July). Music therapy and Australian Indigenous chronic disease: Feasibility and potential. [Paper presentation]. World Congress of Music Therapy 2014, Krems Austria.

Truasheim, S., McLaughlin, D., & Williams, T. (2014, August). “Jack of all trades, master of one”: An insider’s view into the workings of a transprofessional health care approach. [Paper presentation]. Australia Music Therapy Association National Conference 2014, Brisbane, Australia.

Gray, L, & Truasheim, S. The role of the leisure therapist supporting youth cancer care within a tertiary adult hospital. [Poster]. 6th Global Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Congress 2024, Melbourne, Australia.