Understanding sleep disturbance in clients seeking treatment for alcohol use disorder

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a leading cause of injury and chronic disease and mortality in Australia, and the leading cause of disability or death for those aged 15-49, the most economically productive sector of society. Despite advances in our understanding of the neurobiology of AUD, and in particular the role of the orexin system in the drive to seek and consume alcohol, the clinical treatment of AUD by psychosocial and/or pharmacological interventions has proven difficult. While treatment can lead to striking improvements in physical and mental health outcomes, often the results are poor particularly when comorbid conditions including sleep disturbances such as insomnia are present. This is problematic given that sleep disturbances are a prominent clinical problem in AUD, and are recognised as an important predictor of relapse. This PhD project will work on clinical trials and studies at Turning Point to investigate sleep disturbances in patients seeking treatment for AUD. The project will involve collection and analysis of both subjective and objective measures of sleep with outcomes of this work helping to delineate the role and impact that comorbid sleep disturbances have on the course and progression of recovery from AUD.

This PhD program would suit applicants with a background in psychology, psychiatry or sleep medicine.

Turning Point and Monash University

The successful candidate will be part of a multidisciplinary cohort of researchers and students based at Turning Point, Australia’s leading national addiction treatment, training and research centre, based in Melbourne, Australia. For more information about the important work that Turning Point does, please visit the website.

Turning Point is affiliated with Eastern Health Clinical School, within the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (MNHS) at Monash University, and undertakes close collaborative work with the Monash Addiction Research Centre (MARC).

Monash University is a member of Australia’s Group of Eight coalition, and is internationally recognized for excellence in research and teaching as one of the world’s top 80 universities. Embedded in an ecosystem of health, academia and industry, it delivers the research outcomes, skilled workforce, technology and partnerships to improve human health locally and globally.

Supervisory team

The principal supervisors will be Professor Dan Lubman AM, Professor Victoria Manning, Associate Professor Shalini Arunogiri and Dr Rowan Ogeil.

Prof Lubman AM is a Professor of Addiction Studies at Monash University, Executive Clinical Director of Turning Point, and has worked across mental health and drug treatment settings in the UK and Australia. His research is wide-ranging and includes investigating the harms associated with alcohol, drugs and gambling, the impact of alcohol and drug use on brain function, the relationship between substance use, gambling and mental disorder, as well as the development of targeted telephone, online and face-to-face intervention programs within school, primary care, mental health and drug treatment settings.

Prof Manning is a Professor of Addiction Studies at Monash University, and the Head of Research and Workforce Development at Turning Point. She is a chartered psychologist (UK), and holds a PhD on neurocognition and co-occurring disorders. Over the past two decades, she has worked as a clinical researcher in addictions in the UK, Asia and Australia. Her research portfolio includes clinical trials, intervention studies, training and prevalence and treatment outcome studies.

A/Prof Arunogiri is an Associate Professor of Addiction Studies at Monash University, Clinical Director of the Hamilton Centre, and a Strategic Lead of the Clinical & Social Research (CSR) team at Turning Point. As a clinical addiction psychiatrist, she has extensive experience working across alcohol and other drug (AOD) and mental health services, with a research focus on clinical research into novel treatments for substance use disorders.

Dr Ogeil is a Senior Research Fellow at Monash University, and the Strategic Lead of the National Addiction and Mental Health Surveillance Unit at Turning Point. In his role, he leads novel research projects centred around: I) the impact of AOD use on sleep and 2) understanding AOD, mental health and suicide and self-harm behaviours in ambulance data. He works closely with external stakeholders to ensure that policy makers are provided with evidenced-based resources to reduce AOD-harms across the community, as well as playing a significant role in teaching and community engagement at Turning Point.

Stipend

The successful applicant will receive a tax-free stipend at the current value of $35,013 per annum 2024 full-time rate, as per the Monash Research Training Program (RTP) Stipend, to undertake research in sleep disorders, alcohol use disorders and clinical trials.

Scholarship criteria

Please note that this scholarship opportunity is open to Australian citizens only. Internationally based applications are not being considered at this time.

Candidates will need to fulfil the Monash University minimum requirements for admission to a PhD detailed here:

www.monash.edu/admissions/entry-requirements/minimum.

How to apply

To apply, please send a CV, academic transcript, and a brief outline of your research experiences and interest in the position to research-turningpoint@monash.edu. All applicants will be reviewed. You will only be contacted if you are short-listed for the position.