Prof Samantha Thomas

This study highlights how culture plays a central role in how health information is accessed, interpreted, and acted upon, affecting service use, communication with providers, and the application of care beyond the clinic through compliance, adherence, and follow-up. Word of mouth, though trusted, can both support and misinform, reinforcing the importance of distributed health literacy within families and communities.

🔔 NEW
 
Health literacy needs and community-based solutions for African Australians in NSW and Victoria at the point of care 
 
✍️ Abela Mahimbo, Salma A E Ahmed, Zoe Trabe-Templeton, Sheila Uyirwoth, Cordelia Oyekan-John, Michael Camit
 
OPEN ACCESS doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daag021

Public health advocates say more transparency needed in debate over illicit tobacco as industry links questioned Former Australian Border Force officer Rohan Pike, who has been quoted extensively as an expert, also advises nicotine-industry-linked organisations A former Australian Border Force officer who has positioned himself before government inquiries as Australia’s “foremost law enforcement expert” on illicit tobacco also advises nicotine industry-linked organisations – leading public health advocates to argue more transparency is needed. Rohan Pike, who spent more than two decades in law enforcement and now runs a consultancy, has become a prominent media commentator on the illicit tobacco trade, promoting policies that align with those supported by the tobacco industry. Continue reading...

Public health advocates say more transparency needed in debate over illicit tobacco as industry links questioned

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The social nature of parks: associations between social interactions and park visitation and physical activity among children and adolescents
 
✍️ Elise Rivera, Benedicte Deforche, Venurs H Y Loh, Anna Timperio, Jenny Veitch
 
OPEN ACCESS doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daag027

Decision to allow row of five betting shops on street described as a 'shocker' The decision to allow a row of five betting shops on a city centre street has been described as a “shocker.”

Council rejects application for fifth betting shop on the same street, citing risks to public health.

Government planning inspector overturns the decision on appeal 🤦🏼‍♂️.

www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/2587956...

This study shows that meaningful community engagement provides deeper insights into the complex, interconnected health and social challenges faced by underserved populations. Addressing these issues requires integrated, multi-sectoral pathways, with local government tackling immediate place-based determinants and national policy addressing structural drivers, such as inequitable resource distribution, inadequate housing and gaps in essential services, a whole-of-government commitment.

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Community perspectives on health needs and assets in underserved Dublin areas: a participatory qualitative study
 
✍️ Eunice Phillip, Sally Griffin, Eisten Keogh, Amir Bachari, Talent Nyamakope, Fiona McDonnell, Joanna Kelly, Craig Smith, Debbi Stanistreet
 
OA doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daaf232

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The evidence of things not seen We hold many truths to be self-evident in public health. Truths on how to promote health or health for all, on the proportion of national budget that shoul

The evidence of things not seen

I wrote a short essay in @healthpromint.bsky.social to mark @ottawacharter40.bsky.social academic.oup.com/heapro/artic...

Watch my chat with editor @docsamantha.bsky.social on YouTube youtu.be/79i7TgalSPw?...

Or listen on Spotify open.spotify.com/episode/2AbP...

Given the lack of established willingness to pay threshold for physical activity implementation in early childhood education and care services, it is difficult to determine whether the Get Outside Get Active programme can be deemed as cost-effective. Economic evaluations of similar programmes in early childhood education and care services are recommended to enable comparison and identification of the most cost-effective programmes supporting physical activity in the setting.

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Economic evaluation of an implementation intervention to increase outdoor free play in early childhood education
 
✍️ Alice Grady, Luke Giles, Victoria McCreanor, Connor Ballinger, Nicole Pearson, Heidi Turon, Luke Wolfenden, Melanie Lum, Sze Lin Yoong
 
OA doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daag011

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Coping with heat: exploring psychometric properties and relationships of a heat-related health literacy scale
 
✍️ Julian Friedrich, Joachim Bachner, Simon Blaschke, Filip Mess, Jan Schmid-Ellinger
 
OPEN ACCESS doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daag020

Food-insecure participants reported less favourable perceptions of their local food environments, particularly with respect to affordability and accessibility, and demonstrated poorer dietary outcomes, including lower vegetable intake and higher consumption of discretionary drinks. These findings emphasize a need for multi-level strategies that address both the structural features of food environments and the lived experiences of households facing food insecurity.

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Linking food insecurity to perceptions of food environments and diet quality: implications for health promotion in regional Australia 
 
✍️ Alemayehu Digssie Gebremariam, Karen Charlton, Denis Visentin, Kelly Andrews, Katherine Kent
 
OPEN ACCESS doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daag014

Retraction Note: Influencer-Driven Gambling Content and its Impact on Children and Young People: A Scoping Study - Current Addiction Reports Current Addiction Reports -

Retraction Note: Influencer-Driven Gambling Content and its Impact on Children and Young People: A Scoping Study @retractionwatch.com

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Mandating health star ratings is a win. But food lobbies still have too much power over our health Our food environment has been built to put profit over health — Australians can’t overcome that without stronger regulation and accountability

Mandating health star ratings is a win. But food lobbies still have too much power over our health

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

A brilliant conversation. Reflections on poverty, power and attention that could really help steer all of public health in a better direction. #ottawa40

Read the latest in our #ottawa40 series at @healthpromint.bsky.social

A huge thank you to
@seyeabimbola.bsky.social for this brilliant editorial!

academic.oup.com/heapro/artic...

You can listen to my podcast interview with Seye here:

open.spotify.com/episode/2AbP...

Concerns ‘AI slop’ used by University of Sydney-based institute to lobby for $20m gambling education funding ‘Evidence review’ sent by OurFutures Institute to David Pocock and other politicians references studies that do not exist or make opposing findings

If a student at my uni submitted this as their work I’d have to start an academic integrity investigation…https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/feb/10/concerns-ai-slop-used-by-sydney-university-based-institute-to-lobby-for-20m-gambling-education-funding?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Concerns ‘AI slop’ used by Sydney University-based institute to lobby for $20m gambling education funding ‘Evidence review’ sent by OurFutures Institute to David Pocock and other politicians references studies which do not exist or make opposing findings * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Independent senator David Pocock says he is “deeply concerned” a report sent to politicians by a University of Sydney-based institute to support a $20m funding request for gambling education “appears to just be slop written by AI”. Pocock was among at least 10 politicians and officials sent a “Youth Gambling in Australia Evidence Review,” by the OurFutures Institute. The report was used as background to the institute’s budget submission for funding to deliver a gambling prevention education program aimed at 15- to 20-year-olds. Continue reading...

Concerns ‘AI slop’ used by Sydney University-based institute to lobby for $20m gambling education funding

Health Promotion International: four decades of impact From the first issue in May 1986, Health Promotion International (HPI) (Health Promotion until 1990) pursued an agenda of advocacy and action for healthy p

“Protecting academic freedom, integrity, and the right to question those in positions of authority and power (including within the academic and health systems in which we work) is not ancillary to public health, but central to its purpose.”
@healthpromint.bsky.social
academic.oup.com/heapro/artic...

Thank you for engaging! The marketing is relentless!

The ‘hot flush gold rush’: how women feel about being flooded with menopause marketing Women are frustrated at being bombarded with marketing for menopause ‘solutions’ that don’t work or overstate the benefits.

“Cutting through the commercial noise that has been created about menopause is essential. Only then can we create the social and structural changes need to support women’s health & wellbeing in midlife.”

My new article with Prof Martha Hickey @theconversation.com
theconversation.com/the-hot-flus...

Yay! 🥳

Excellent. Thanks to OUP for making this happen.

Health Promotion International | Oxford Academic Publishes papers on major themes and innovations in the health promotion field. The journal publishes contributions from sectors beyond health, and seeks to promote theoretical, methodological, and ac...

Oxford University Press has lifted the paywall on the entire 40 year archive of @healthpromint.bsky.social as part of our flip to fully open access!

Check out the amazing work of our authors - free to read - here:

academic.oup.com/heapro

Younger women are paying for the cost of living crisis with their health: New research Dr Simone McCarthy asked more than 500 women how the cost-of-living crisis affects them. The results should be a wakeup call.

You can read an article about the research from @simonemccarthy.bsky.social here

womensagenda.com.au/latest/young...

“Help young women to survive”: the cost-of-living crisis and the well-being of younger Australian women Abstract. The increased pressures associated with the cost-of-living crisis (CoLC) have been demonstrated to impact population health. Research has shown t

We asked more than 500 women about how the cost of living crisis has affected them. Our findings should be a wakeup call to policymakers, with women reporting they’re struggling to afford basic essentials, food, rent, medication and doctor appointments.

academic.oup.com/heapro/artic...

BUGA UP in Australia YouTube video by Simon Chapman

Me in 1983 on BBC TV on the civil disobedience graffiti movement BUGA UP www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVM7.... My new 425p 50yr memoir looks at highlights across tobacco & gun control, defending windfarms, some heretical critiques of unethical policies +much more ses.library.usyd.edu.au/bitstream/ha...

Please share: One of my counselling psychology students is looking for Muslim women who are working in the UK to share their workplace experiences and any engagement they've had with workplace wellbeing initiatives. Click on the following link to find out more: uwe.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

Thank you!

The Pink Test is a feel-good story, but does it help where it’s really needed? | The New Daily

Ahead of Day 3 of the "pink test"

In 2022-23 the McGrath foundation spent about $8.8m on “foundation-funded breast care nurses”, but more than $9.1m on fundraising and marketing, and a further $2.2m on administration."
www.thenewdaily.com.au/opinion/2024...

NEW 🔔 The Taichung Statement on Health Literacy (2025): sustaining action on health literacy to promote health for all

✍️ Peter Chang, Tuyen V Duong, Enny Rachmani, Terrence Min-Che, Stephan Van den Broucke, Diane Levin-Zamir, Samantha Thomas

🔗 FREE doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daaf220

Enabling sustainability through co-adaptation: a process evaluation of a school-based physical activity program Abstract. Schools represent strategic settings for adolescent health promotion across multiple domains, including physical activity (PA). Despite the devel

I would also like to thank @docsamantha.bsky.social and the editorial team at @healthpromint.bsky.social for their invaluable help throughout the review process.

🔗 doi.org/10.1093/heap...

#HealthPromotion #ImplementationScience #CoCreation #Schools #Sustainability #HPS