Publications

Journal article | Peer reviewed

Decolonising Infection Prevention and Control ↗

by Peta-Anne Zimmerman, Matt Mason and Elizabeth Elder

3 February 2026
American Journal of Infection Control

No abstract available.

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Journal article

Preparing nursing and midwifery students to provide culturally safe care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients on clinical placements ↗

by Lynne Stuart, Ali Moloney and Matthew Mason

2026
Australian Nursing and Midwifery Journal

Clinical placements provide nursing and midwifery students an opportunity to apply and consolidate their theoretical and clinical nursing knowledge in live healthcare settings.

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Journal article | Peer reviewed

An investigation of Infection Prevention and Control professionals' experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic: A global perspective ↗

by Matt Mason, Jocelyne Basseal, Roslyn Walker and Peta-Anne Zimmerman

2026
Infection, Disease & Health

Background: Infection prevention and control (IPC) professionals played a vital role during COVID-19, yet their experiences remain largely unexplored. Understanding these experiences is crucial for strengthening health system preparedness for future outbreaks/ pandemic. This study investigates IPC professionals' preparedness, response capacity, knowledge base, and barriers/enablers during COVID-19 to inform future pandemic planning. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in 2024 among IPC professionals worldwide through WHO's Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network partners and professional IPC organisations. The survey was translated into five languages, comprising 30 questions that covered demo-graphics, professional preparedness, response capacity, and pandemic experiences. Quantitative data were analysed descriptively using SPSS, while qualitative responses underwent thematic analysis. Results: Eighty-six responses from 19 countries were analysed, with participants mainly from Australia (48.8 %), Canada (17.4 %), and the United Kingdom (8.1 %). Most worked in government hospitals (54.7 %) with dedicated IPC roles (57.0 %) and over five years of experience (73.2 %). Four interconnected themes emerged: establishing IPC as vital expertise, confronting the psychological toll of IPC work, navigating shifting guidance and policy, and managing resource scarcity and workforce strain. Participants reported a lack of recognition as " front-line " staff, significant psychological burdens including post-traumatic stress, challenges with rapidly changing guidance undermining staff trust, and overwhelming workloads without additional resources. Conclusions: IPC professionals showed remarkable dedication despite facing structural neglect and emotional difficulties. Findings highlight the urgent need to formalise IPC leadership roles within health * Corresponding author. School of Health University of the Sunshine Coast Sippy Downs,

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Journal article | Peer reviewed

Healthcare workers’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding standard precautions in low- and middle-income member states of the Pacific community: A scoping review ↗

by Naomi Howell, Akisi Nailaba Kasami Ravono, Matt Mason, Margaret Leong and Peta-Anne Zimmerman

2026
Infection, Disease & Health

Background Healthcare-associated infections are a significant burden in the Western Pacific Region, where diverse healthcare systems face challenges from emerging infectious diseases. Standard precautions form the basis of safe healthcare, and healthcare workers’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices are critical to effective infection prevention. Evidence shows significant gaps in compliance, with rates varying across countries and settings. This scoping review aimed to map the evidence base, identify gaps, and inform policy and capacity-building initiatives for low- and middle-income Pacific Community member states. Methods The review followed Arksey and O'Malley's framework and the PRISMA-ScR checklist. Searches were conducted in CINAHL, Web of Science, Ovid, PubMed, Scopus, Global Index Medicus, and the Cochrane Library, alongside grey literature sources with no date limiters. Results Of 77 studies screened, two met the inclusion criteria. These were assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool and mapped to the Theoretical Domains Framework. Relevant domains included skills and competence, beliefs about capabilities, environmental context and resources, social influences, and behavioural regulation. Conclusion This review highlights a critical lack of evidence on healthcare workers’ Knowledge, Attitudes, and practices regarding standard precautions in the Pacific Community. Despite limited studies, findings emphasise the importance of education, organisational support, and targeted health system investment to strengthen infection prevention and control. The Theoretical Domains Framework provided a structured lens to identify behavioural determinants and barriers, reflecting challenges reported in other low-resource settings. Building contextually appropriate evidence is essential to inform tailored policy and capacity-building, particularly with the growing threats of emerging infectious diseases.

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Journal article | Peer reviewed

Barriers and Facilitators to COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout among Health Professional Students: A Qualitative Study from an Organizational Stakeholder Perspective ↗

by Yingyan Chen, Marion Tower, Roslyn Prichard, Janice Layh, Matt Mason, Frances Lin, Peta-Anne Zimmerman and Vanessa Sparke

2026
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness

Objectives To explore barriers and facilitators experienced by Australian organizational stakeholders in implementing COVID-19 vaccine rollout for health professional students. Methods A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with organizational stakeholders, including senior health department staff, university clinical placement coordinators, and clinical educators across Australia from November 21 to December 20, 2022, via ZOOM. An inductive and then deductive thematic analysis was conducted, guided by the Theoretical Domains Framework. Findings Nineteen participants were interviewed. Five key domains were generated: environmental context and resources, attention, decision-making, and goals, professional role and identity, emotion, and optimism. Barriers included top-down communication, inconsistent messaging, and limited vaccine access, leading to negative emotions. Enablers included teamwork, adaptability, and optimism. Conclusions The findings offer insights into operational challenges and support during the vaccine rollout. These lessons should inform strategies to overcome similar barriers in future large-scale health interventions or emergency responses.

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Explore all Matt Mason's publications in UniSC Research Bank

Supervision

Doctoral Thesis Supervision - Current

Health System Governance in Papua New Guinea

Students: Research student (name withheld)

Associated Researchers: Barnaby J W Dixson and Matt Mason

2025

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Doctoral Thesis Supervision - Current

Midwifery care in rural Bangladesh: Challenges and opportunities to improve maternal and neonatal health outcomes.

Students: Research student (name withheld)

Associated Researchers: Florin Oprescu and Matt Mason

2024

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Doctoral Thesis Supervision - Current

Risks, Complications and Experiences of Peripheral Intravenous Catheters in Older Adults

Students: Research student (name withheld)

Associated Researchers: Alison Craswell and Matt Mason

2023

Awards and memberships

26/11/25

Partnership Award (Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research)

University of the Sunshine Coast (Australia, Sunshine Coast) - UniSC

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21/8/25

Associate Fellow (Indigenous Perspectives and Knowledges)

Higher Education Academy (United Kingdom, York)

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19/08/2019

Vice-Chancellor & President's Diversity and Inclusion Award

University of the Sunshine Coast (Australia, Sunshine Coast) - USC

Education

MRuralHlth

Monash University (Australia, Melbourne)

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MAdvPrac(InfCont)

Griffith University (Australia, Brisbane)

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BNursSci

Monash University (Australia, Melbourne)

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GradDipRemoteHlth

Flinders University (Australia, Adelaide)

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Doctor of Philosophy

Use of peripheral vein and intraosseous access devices in the pre-hospital setting

University of the Sunshine Coast (Australia, Sunshine Coast) - USC

Projects

Research

Overcoming Violence and Building Peace Amidst Conditions of Complexity in PNG and Beyond

Ali Moloney and Matt Mason

School of Health, School of Health - Nursing

Preventing and addressing violence is one of the most urgent challenges of our time. This interdisciplinary research project seeks to develop new ways of understanding how violence and peace emerge, circulate and interact, moving beyond narrow and siloed approaches to explore how different forms of harm and peacemaking shape one another.

The project focuses on three distinct but deeply interconnected forms of violence in Papua New Guinea (PNG): tribal fighting, sorcery accusation-related violence (SARV) and family and sexual violence (FSV). Each has been created or intensified through the legacies of colonialism and the pressures of globalisation. Together, they have profound and enduring consequences for women, men, elders, youth and children, cutting across social, economic and psychological dimensions of life. 

The impacts are generational and far-reaching. Communities experience deep psychological trauma alongside disrupted education, housing insecurity, loss of livelihoods, food insecurity and unsafe living conditions. These harms also place immense strain on already weakened health, welfare and security systems, compounding cycles of vulnerability and exclusion.

Despite sustained efforts, many formal, state-based initiatives have struggled to gain trust or achieve lasting change. As noted in the Human Rights Council’s 2021 Report on PNG, law enforcement institutions often lack both capacity and community confidence. 

This project starts from a critical but hopeful premise: while PNG is often described through narratives of conflict, it is also rich in practices of peace. Across the country, communities demonstrate remarkable innovation, adaptability and collective engagement in preventing and responding to violence – often outside standard criminal justice frameworks.

By documenting and analysing these practices, the project asks both how violence can be reduced in PNG and what PNG can teach other societies, including those in the Global North, about creativity, responsiveness and coexistence in the pursuit of peace.

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Research

“Hand hygiene knowledge, attitude, and practices in Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs)”

Matt Mason and Naomi Howell

School of Health - Nursing

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) remain a major challenge across Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs), where limited resources and varying access to infection prevention and control (IPC) infrastructure contribute to increased risk. Effective hand hygiene is the most important intervention to prevent HAIs and combat antimicrobial resistance, yet there is very little published evidence describing the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of healthcare workers in this region.

This project seeks to investigate factors influencing hand hygiene across selected PICTs by examining both healthcare worker perspectives and the capacity of existing IPC programmes.

Findings will provide the first multi-country evidence on hand hygiene KAP in PICTs and highlight how functional IPC programmes contribute to safer care. This research will directly support targeted intervention design, improved compliance, and strengthened IPC systems to reduce the burden of HAIs across the Pacific region.

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Impact

Review of the Registered Nurse Scope of Practice – Solomon Islands

Kelsie Fletcher, Ali Moloney and Matt Mason

Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research

Research Aim: To collaboratively review the registered nurses’ scope of practice in the Solomon Islands, including supporting policy, nursing legislation, regulatory documents, and professional standards.

Research Questions:

• How is the scope of practice for registered nurses defined and regulated across the Solomon Islands?
• What roles, responsibilities, and clinical activities are commonly included within the registered nurse scope of practice in the Solomon Islands?
• What factors (barriers or enablers) influence or determine the scope of practice for registered nurses in different healthcare settings in the Solomon Islands?

            

Research Objectives:

• To explore the registered nurse scope of practice policy, the Nursing Act, regulatory documents, and professional standards
• To identify gaps and challenges in the scope of practice policy, the Nursing Act, regulatory documents, and professional standards
• To develop recommendations and strategies to revise the nurse's scope of practice 
• To propose a revised scope of practice framework that is practical, context-specific and supports safe and effective nursing practice