PANEL: Screen time, screen use, supporting parents

Dr Anthea Rhodes

Screen time: what’s happening in Australian homes-findings from the National Child Health Poll

Dr Anthea Rhodes is the founding Director of the Melbourne Royal Children’s Hospital’s National Child Health Poll, and seeks to put the voice of the public at the heart of discussion on child health.

She’s a paediatrician with clinical interests in the health needs of the vulnerable child, and with expertise in child development and behaviour. Dr Rhodes undertook her paediatric training at The Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, where she has worked since 2004. She has postgraduate training in medical education and is a lecturer at the University of Melbourne. Dr Rhodes has been involved in a number of research projects across the fields of health service delivery and health professional education.

Brad Marshall

The tech diet: clinical observations

Brad is the clinical director of the Internet Addiction Clinic @ Kidspace, which was established in 2010 and is widely regarding as one of the leading treatment clinics in the field. In his clinic, Brad specialises in the treatment of young people experiencing excessive internet use and related disorders such as Gaming Addiction, and he helps families find a balance between healthy screen time and problematic overuse.

Under his new project – The Unplugged Psychologist – in collaboration with HarperCollins Brad has published a recent book titled “Tech Diet for your Child and Teen” with the goal of helping parents cut through heavy research and statistics and apply practical strategies in their home. Brad is a well-respected presenter and guest speaker, providing professional development to teachers and health professionals, and running seminars for parents, school students and teachers. He also runs seminars and workshops in the corporate space, speaking to staff about the benefits of healthy internet use at home and in the family, and how to be productive and balanced when at work.

Brad previously held positions at the University of Notre Dame Australia and in various public hospitals, including Royal North Shore Hospital, Bankstown Hospital and Ryde Hospital, working with children and families as part of the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service.

Associate Professor Julie Green

Enabling parents in their children’s digital worlds

Associate Professor Julie Green is Executive Director of the Raising Children Network and a member of the Raising Children Network Board. She leads a team of very clever knowledge translation, communications and digital professionals who develop online content that supports parents from pregnancy right through to raising teenagers.

Funded by the Australian government, raisingchildren.net.au is an initiative of the Parenting Research Centre and Murdoch Children’s Research Institute.

Julie’s background is in nursing and midwifery and her postgraduate qualifications are in adult education, public health and health literacy. An enduring theme and anchor point throughout her work always has been and still is: connecting parents and families with quality information, care and support.