School of Social Work and Arts
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BSW, La Trobe; MMH (Adult), NSWIOP; GCLTHE, Charles Sturt; PhD, La Trobe Associate Professor Belinda Cash is a social worker with clinical and academic expertise in mental health and social gerontology. Her research focuses on understanding and addressing issues that impact the health and wellbeing of rural Australians, particularly older adults and caregivers. Belinda’s collaborative approach to research involves working closely with lived experience and interdisciplinary experts across her strong network of academic, professional, and industry partners. She is an active leader of research initiatives focused on older people in rural and regional communities, reflected in her role as Chair of the Charles Sturt Ageing Well Research Group and as University Lead for Charles Sturt at the Manna Institute for rural mental health. Belinda is a Fellow of the Australian Association of Gerontology, awarded for her extensive contributions to the field. She is an active supervisor of research students across multiple programs, has led several international programs exploring social welfare and wellbeing in the international context and continues to support students completing field-based learning in social work. Belinda teaches into the social work and gerontology programs at Charles Sturt. Her teaching interests focus on social gerontology, mental health, and social research methods, though she has taught into a broad range of subjects within social work, allied health, and gerontology at Charles Sturt and previously at La Trobe University. Belinda supervises Honours, Masters and Doctoral research students and provides academic liaison for students completing field education placements. She is also an academic lead for student mobility programs, which provide opportunities for Charles Sturt students to explore social work in international contexts. Belinda's research primarily focuses on understanding and addressing psychosocial and systemic issues impacting the health and wellbeing of older adults and their caregivers in rural Australia. She is the University Lead for Manna Institute, where she also co-leads the Health and Wellbeing in Later Life research stream. Manna Institute is a collaboration of 7 regional universities working together to expand mental health research and resources across rural and regional Australia. Belinda has also led the Charles Sturt Ageing Well Research Group since 2019, a cross-faculty initiative that brings together around 40 academics from across the university who are involved in ageing-related research. She supervises research students at all levels, including current PhD candidates pursuing topics related to rural ageing and mental health.
Professorial Staff4280958
Associate Professor Belinda Cash
Associate Professor in Social Work and Gerontology
Albury / Wodonga
Building 763