Ruth is a social gerontologist with a background in Public Health, Psychology and Rehabilitation Counselling. She is currently Associate Professor in Disability and Community Inclusion within the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Flinders University. Ruth is an expert in using qualitative methods to understand older people's experiences of ageing.  Her research particularly focuses on late-life transitions, family caregiving and the intersection between disability and ageing. She is currently leading a project funded by the Australian Research Council Linkage program titled: Choosing the way forward: addressing post-parental housing transition needs of adults with intellectual disability and their older family carers.

• Older parent caregivers
• People with disabilities who are ageing
• Age-related life transitions
• Care in the community and ageing in place
• Older people's experiences of dementia care
• The role of family and social relationships on experiences of ageing
• Gendered, life-course dimensions of ageing
• Migrant ageing

Current Research Projects:

• Choosing the way forward: addressing post-parental housing transition needs of adults with intellectual disability and their older family carers
• The support needs and future care plans of culturally and linguistically diverse ageing parents of adult children with intellectual disability
• End-of-life care needs for older adults with long-standing physical disability

2024

PhD – Principal supervisor: Ellen Fraser-Barbour (Disability and Community Inclusion, Flinders University) “Negotiating safety, belonging and agency in shared disability accommodation: An Australian qualitative study”. 

PhD – Principal supervisor: Julie Simpson (Nursing and Health Sciences, Flinders University) “The Voice of the Person with advanced dementia in residential aged care: an ethnography exploring what it means for the person to have their voice”.

2022

PhD – Principal supervisor: Justine Irving (Applied Gerontology, Flinders University) “What’s the point: Ageing with purpose”.

2019

PhD – Associate supervisor: Darryl Sellwood: (Disability and Community Inclusion, Flinders University) “An investigation into the experiences of people with Complex Communication Needs (CCN) in developing intimate sexual relationships– a phenomenological study” (Vice-Chancellor's Award for Doctoral Thesis Excellence).

2017

Master of Disability Policy and Practice – Associate supervisor: Viengsam Indavong (Disability and Community Inclusion, Flinders University) “The Lived Experience of Lao Families having a child with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)”

PhD – Associate supervisor: Leah Couzner (Department of Rehabilitation, Aged & Extended Care, Flinders University) “Measuring and valuing quality of care for older adults in sub-acute settings: a health economics perspective”.

PhD – Associate supervisor: Georgia Panagiotopoulos (Southgate Institute for Health, Society and Equity, Flinders University) “Exploring the impact of a range of social determinants of health on the well-being of older Greek widows and widowers in rural and urban Australia”.

2016

Master of Disability Policy and Practice – Associate supervisor: Emmanuel Bassey (Disability and Community Inclusion, Flinders University). “Adults with Acquired Visual Impairment: A Preliminary Study Focusing on Social Capital”. 

PhD – Associate supervisor: Annabel McNamara (Department of Rehabilitation, Aged & Extended Care, Flinders University) “Returning to driving post-stroke: Identifying key factors for best practice decision making over the recovery trajectory”.

2015

Master of Disability Policy and Practice – Associate supervisor: Wendy Campbell (Disability and Community Inclusion, Flinders University) “Carer support groups: A study of two support groups for carers of a family member with an intellectual disability”.

Master of Disability Policy and Practice – Associate supervisor: Kerstin Andersson (Disability and Community Inclusion, Flinders University) “Return to School following an Acquired Brain Injury: A qualitative study of parents’ Experiences”.