Contemporary Health-Related Decision Aids: Tools for Social Work Practice

The escalating complexity in health-related decisions that people face have important implications for social work interventions. This article explores the nature of these implications within the context of decisional conflict, shared decision making, and the use of decision aids. In addition, the authors present the findings of a content analysis of 29 contemporary health-related decision aids. Emergent categories from this analysis are presented as a resource for social workers as they encounter, adapt, and create decision aids in their work to help address the health-related needs of their clients.     

Interpreting DNA Evidence in Paternity Cases

The ability of jurors and juries to comprehend and utilise scientific evidence in Australian criminal trials is discussed in the context of impediments which include legislation, proce-dural law, and the inherent scientific complexity of some evidence. Existing Australian and international literature on jury performance with expert evidence is examined, and recent doctoral research utilising mock juries, real jurors and forensic scientists, is highlighted.

“Good communication with the jury is afield in which anecdote, self-assurance and self-delusion abound, within the ranks of the legal profession and the judiciary.”