Marita McCabe

Marita McCabe is a Professor in the School of Health Sciences at Swinburne University of Technology. Her research focuses on ageing, body image disorders, depression, and sexual health, with a particular emphasis on improving outcomes for older adults in aged care settings. She leads a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)-funded project evaluating a staff training program to implement Consumer Directed Care (CDC) in residential aged care, aiming to enhance resident autonomy and staff satisfaction.

Education: Adjunct Professor in the Department of Nursing and Allied Health at Swinburne University of Technology. Research includes over 400 refereed publications and $12M+ in NHMRC funding over the past decade. Awards include Fellow of the Australian Psychological Society.

Key areas of research include depression among older adults transitioning to aged care, sexual health in mid-to-later life, and psychosocial interventions for stroke survivors. She collaborates extensively with aged care providers to address dementia-related behavioral challenges and improve care quality.

Recent publications highlight her work on support-seeking strategies among older adults, cross-country analyses of eating behaviors, and validation of assessment tools for aged care transitions. Her projects emphasize translating research into practical interventions to enhance quality of life for vulnerable populations.

Grants include NHMRC-funded studies on CDC implementation and psychosocial interventions, as well as a National Heart Foundation initiative for midlife men’s cardiovascular health. Her work aligns with UN Sustainable Development Goals 3 (Good Health) and 4 (Quality Education).

Labs/Teams: Leads multidisciplinary teams in aged care research, collaborating with nursing homes and clinical partners. Supervises PhD candidates exploring topics like sexuality in later life and dementia’s impact on relationships.