Wellbeing in Ageing Team (WiAT)

Group Leads

Prof Nicola Lautenschlager; nicolatl@unimelb.edu.au
A/Prof Kathryn Ellis; kellis@unimelb.edu.au

Overview

The Wellbeing in Ageing Team (WiAT) is an interdisciplinary research and clinical group within the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Melbourne focused on improving cognitive health, mental health, and quality of life in older adults. The team’s work spans areas including ageing and aged mental health, dementia risk reduction, and cognitive impairment and dementia, using diverse research approaches including clinical trials, observational studies, guideline development, surveys, systematic reviews, and qualitative research. WiAT has a particular emphasis on implementation science and translating evidence into real-world practice.

Core Members

Terence (Terry) Chong
Eleanor Curran
Alissa Westphal
Amit Lampit
Jenny Southam
Holly Carey
Luella Mageean
Rebecca Leahy
Nicola Dunlop

Select Current Projects

CogCoach Health
CogCoach Brain
RECOVER-D
MATCH
ENGAGED

Select Key Papers

Ellis, K. A., Lai, R., Curran, E., Southam, J., Moorhead, R., Cox, K. L., Mancuso, S. G., Westphal, A., Chong, T. W. H., Rego, T., Palmer, V. J., Anstey, K. J., & Lautenschlager, N. T. (2026). Tailored Online Physical Activity Coaching for Middle-Aged and Older Adults With Cognitive and Mental Health Concerns: Single-Arm Pre-Post Intervention Study. JMIR aging, 9, e80040.
Chong, T. W. H., Rego, T., Lai, R., Westphal, A., Pond, C. D., Curran, E., Kootar, S., Peters, R., Anstey, K. J., & Lautenschlager, N. T. (2023). Preferences and Perspectives of Australian General Practitioners Towards a New "Four-in-One" Risk Assessment Tool for Preventative Health: The LEAD! GP Project. Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD, 94(2), 801–814.
Curran, E., Palmer, V. J., Ellis, K. A., Chong, T. W. H., Rego, T., Cox, K. L., Anstey, K. J., Westphal, A., Moorhead, R., Southam, J., Lai, R., You, E., & Lautenschlager, N. T. (2023). Physical Activity for Cognitive Health: A Model for Intervention Design for People Experiencing Cognitive Concerns and Symptoms of Depression or Anxiety. Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD, 94(2), 781–799.
de Witte, M., Nategh, L., Antipas, H., Westphal, A., Lautenschlager, N. T., Baker, F. A., & Lampit, A. (2024). The effects of music-based interventions on behavioural and psychological symptoms of people living with dementia: a systematic review and network meta-analysis protocol. Aging & mental health, 28(12), 1726–1732.