It is also a time to ask for help, an opportunity to lean on your support network and share how you are feeling. A conversation can change a life and knowing there are people who care and want to help can make all the difference.

Macquarie’s Chief People Officer, David Ward, says, “at times, maintaining mental health and wellbeing can be challenging for everyone. A willingness to look out for each other is part of what makes Macquarie such a special community. I know from personal experience that checking in with a colleague, friend or family member can make a real difference to a person who is struggling with something big or small but who might be keeping those difficulties hidden below the surface.”

Professor Mariella Herberstein, Dean of Students, says, “it can be challenging to ask if someone is ok and, if asked, to also answer from the heart. To all of you who are asking with genuine interest and concerns and to all who are answering: thank you!”

If you work with students, it’s worth noting these resources:

• Wellbeing – Student Support
• Counselling – Personal Support

On R U OK? Day, students can have a quick chat with a psychologist, bookings are required.

Campus Life R U OK? Day Offers

Maxi is a bichon-toy poodle cross who just happens to be owned by Taleen Biberian, Macquarie’s Wellbeing Services Coordinator. For the week of R U OK? Day it feels right to spotlight Maxi’s boundless commitment to MQ students. His employment is backed by science too, with research showing canine cuddles can release oxytocin, and lower the heart rate and blood pressure.

Something you’d like staff to know about

I LOVE belly rubs, any day, any time. So I beg you to come visit.

Something you feel proud of

Following in the footsteps of the late, great Snowy, dec. 2017.

A person you admire at Macquarie, and why

Student Wellbeing staff, they do such important work supporting students. They are my real role models in this job.

What you need to do your best work

Look, it’s a truth universally accepted that a small dog, in possession of a large sleep mat, must be in want of nothing else. So, if I know said sleep mat awaits me at the end of the day… I can play and snuggle for Australia.

The coolest bit of equipment you use in your work, and what it does

My staff ID – it means I’m a real boy!

Something people usually ask you when they find out what you do for a living

Do you have the best job at Macquarie? Ahh, yup.

Something you’ve read recently that has had an impact on you

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles. It strengthened my resolve to champion canine emancipation.

A favourite photo from your camera roll

The selfie published here. This year I’ve been working on my bikini selfies. #nailedit

A website or app you can’t live without

Puppr. obvs

Something you’re trying to do differently in 2022

Learning to do tricks, without treats

Celebration activities and events are planned already, with more to come during June. Check out the list below for what’s on around campus to get involved and be sure to keep an eye on the Macquarie University Students Facebook page and This Week for updates.

MQ Pride Wall

The Ally Network has launched the MQ Pride Wall – a digital installation that celebrates Macquarie’s LGBTQ+ staff and student community. Come and check it out in the Arts Precinct Intercultural Foyer (Level 3, 25b Wally’s Walk) before the end of the month.

Tuesdays in June at Esc and Library Cafes

Cupcakes $4.50 Tuesdays 7, 14, 21 and 28 June. Available until sold out.

16 June Thursday 5.30pm Drag Queen Trivia at Ubar

Drag Queen Charlamaine is coming to host trivia! Entry is free and there will be great prizes. Gather your friends, family and colleagues! Register now

15 – 17 June Pride Month Night Festival at MUSAC

The Sport & Aquatic Centre is having great fun with themed group fitness classes. They’ve had one already and there’s more to come: 15 June at 5.30pm, 16 June at 5.30pm, 17 June at 6.30pm. Keep an eye on their social media to book your spot.

22 June Social Sport Competition Pride Month round

Players and officials will be donning their rainbow attire, with rainbow socks and armbands supplied to teams by the University.

26 – 30 June Indigenous National University Games

This multi-sport indigenous event is held annually between 43 Australian universities and tertiary institutions. Walanga Muru athletes will be wearing Pride armbands for the tournament. Follow the team on Facebook.

Throughout the month, student residents of our on-campus accommodation will be having fun with rainbow pancake making, rainbow milkshake making and face-painting, while receiving rainbow cupcakes and rainbow facemasks.

There’s going to be plenty of great photos by the end of the month, which we look forward to sharing.

Find out more about LGBTQ+ inclusion, what it means at Macquarie to be an Ally, and how to join the Ally network:

Workplace Diversity & Inclusion

Be Brave, Be Strong, Be You – be your authentic self.

At the Wednesday night event in Melbourne, Macquarie was also one of only five Australian sporting organisations to achieve the Gold Tier in the Pride in Sport Index (PSI), a national benchmarking instrument used to assess LGBTQ inclusion within Australian sport.

“I am really proud that we have won these awards. Universities play an important role in the Australian sporting landscape, especially when it comes to supporting anyone who wants to participate in sport and wants to feel welcome to do so.  We are blazing a trail for other universities to follow,” says Campus Life CEO, Pete Boyle (pictured below with fellow staff members, Brett Morley and Sophie Curtis).

Pete says that Campus Life don’t do this work to receive awards, but the recognition validates the efforts of very dedicated staff and students.  The work done over the past two to three years has positively contributed to how the University designs and delivers inclusion strategies across the entire University.

“We are proud to create safe spaces for everyone, but our work isn’t done.  We will continue to try and be better and we remain committed to ensuring that sport is available to all. All Macquarie people can lead happy, healthy and active lives, while being exactly who they are,” says Pete.

The annual Australian Pride in Sport Awards brings sporting organisations from across the country together to celebrate the work and effort towards ensuring LGBTQ people are more included in all aspects of sport. Pride in Sport is the sport inclusion arm of ACON, and the world’s first and only membership and benchmarking program specifically designed to help include people with diverse genders and sexualities in sport.

The Pride in Sport Awards acknowledge sporting organisations’ achievements and hard work in increasing LGBTQ inclusivity across all areas of their operations and programs, with a range of sporting endeavours honoured, from individuals and coaches, to media, and community sporting teams, as well as state and national sporting bodies. Sporting Organisation of the Year is awarded to the organisation that records the highest scoring across all sporting bodies that enter. Macquarie University has been an active member of Pride in Sport since 2019 and has now won Gold two years in a row.

Find out more about Macquarie University Sport’s LGBTQ+ inclusion, including resources and their inclusion policy.

Macquarie University Workplace Diversity & Inclusion Ally Network intranet resources and information.

Pictured above in main photo: Macquarie University’s Brett Morley, Manager – University Sport (at front, crouching), Sophie Curtis, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging Lead (behind Brett in black top), and Pete Boyle, CEO – Campus Life (third from right). Photographed with other 2022 winners from around Australia.

Associate Professor Sanjyot Vagholkar, MQ Health’s GP Clinic Director, says that while flu rates have dropped dramatically during the pandemic, flu vaccination is especially important this year.

“The public health measures that have protected us from COVID-19 – lockdowns, social distancing, improved hand hygiene, and the fact that we have been staying home when we feel unwell – have all contributed to there being very few cases of flu for the past two years,” says Associate Professor Vagholkar.

“Now that we are all out and about again, that is likely to change.”

The flu virus mutates frequently, so the vaccine is not 100 per cent effective, but much like the COVID-19 vaccine, it is the most effective way of protecting against severe illness.

With cases of COVID-19 still high in the community, there is also the possibility of contracting both the flu and COVID-19 at the same time.

This could leave even a young, healthy person feeling significantly worse, but could have severe consequences for vulnerable people, including adults over the age of 65, children under the age of five, and anyone who is immunosuppressed or has a chronic illness like heart or lung conditions.

Associate Professor Vagholkar says flu vaccination is most important for these vulnerable members of the community, but as many people as possible should be vaccinated.

“You have to remember you’re not only looking after yourself by getting your flu vaccine,” she says.

“It protects you, but it also has a vital role to play in protecting others.”

If you are a continuing, fixed term or casual employee of Macquarie University (including U@MQ and MQ Health employees) you are eligible for FREE flu vaccination at the MQ Health Vaccination Clinic from Monday 2 May to Friday 3 June.

Book your appointment today

The Vaccination Clinic is located in Suite 402, Level 4 of the Clinic Building, 2 Technology Place.

Flu Vax Facts

Did you know….?

• The flu vaccine isn’t a live vaccine, so it’s not possible to get the flu from vaccination.
• People aged 65 and older receive a specially formulated dose that includes an extra component to produce a better immune response. If you fall into this category, make sure you let the clinic know so you receive the right shot.
• The flu vaccine is usually well tolerated, though some people may experience minor side effects like a sore arm or aches and pains.
• Children can be vaccinated against the flu from the age of six months. The first year they are vaccinated, they require two shots, six months apart.

The Our People Program Board would like to review the different types of flexible working.  This would incorporate the different ways people work to complete tasks, and how to balance the needs of staff, their teams, our students and the University, with the aim of positioning Macquarie University as a future-focused leader and preferred employer within the higher education sector.

We know the approach to working flexibly is something that you are keen to explore.  Both the May 2020 and October 2021 University-wide staff survey indicated that hybrid approaches to flexible working arrangements are inevitable and essential for the success of Macquarie University post the pandemic.

When it comes to work, there is not one size that fits all, given our diversity of work. Each person will have their own ways of working, what works best for them and their teams, as well as for the University in general.

With that in mind, as part of the University’s Operating Plan under the Our People program, we have commenced a three-phase Flexible Work Project to help develop and implement a University-wide framework for working flexibly.

The three phases of the Flexible Work Project are:

Phase 1:  Develop and consult on a draft flexible work framework

Phase 2:  Develop training and support tools to enable flexible work

Phase 3:  Support and embed flexible working in University-wide culture

We are now in Phase 1 of the Flexible Work Project.  Under Phase 1, the draft flexible work framework sets out proposed guiding principles for working flexibly and examines different types of flexibility from location, time, different work modes and platforms.

But to understand how this could work for you and your teams, we require your input on the draft flexible work framework.

In the next few weeks, you will receive a request to take part in Phase 1 of the Flexible Work Project.  We encourage you to take part in this project and help co-design a Macquarie University flexible work framework.  Your feedback is important to us, and more importantly gives you the opportunity to help shape the way you work with your colleagues, and the broader University community including students, in 2022 and beyond.

You are invited to complete the Inclusion@Work survey.

By taking the survey you can help us:

• understand your experiences of inclusion at Macquarie
• gain better insights into the diversity profile of our University community
• identify areas for improvement in the Workplace Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging Strategy.

All responses are confidential and anonymous, and the survey will take only 15 minutes to complete.  All staff (continuing, fixed-term and casual) are invited to complete the Inclusion@Work survey.

“Our University has a strong focus on diversity and inclusion,” says Nicole Gower, Vice-President, People and Services and executive sponsor for D&I strategies. “Over recent years we have made significant progress in building a culture that reflects and celebrates diversity. We have been fostering a genuinely inclusive workplace, so that our teaching, curricula, research, and staff engagement reflect the diversity of the world around us. To help us build on this progress, we are developing a new Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging Strategy. It is important that we hear from our staff about their experiences and expectations of diversity and inclusion to inform this strategy and help us to set meaningful priorities.”

Tell us about your lived diversity and inclusion experiences at Macquarie University via the confidential Inclusion@Work survey.

The survey is now open and closes  at 11.45pm on Friday 25 February 2022. For more information about the survey, refer to the FAQs.

To learn more about our Diversity and Inclusion strategies, priorities, provisions and networks see Macquarie’s Diversity and Inclusion website.

Who are you? 

We are the MQ Health General Practice, located at Suite 305, level 3, 2 Technology Place.

What do you do?

We provide a quality, evidence-based General Practice service for Macquarie University staff and students, Macquarie University Hospital and MQ Health staff, as well as members of the general public who live or work in the local area.

Why do you do it? 

We believe a high-quality GP service is an integral part of optimising the health and well-being of our patients.

Who do you most frequently work with?

We see patients from Macquarie University, Macquarie University Hospital and members of the local residential and business communities. We work with health professionals from MQ Health and Macquarie University Hospital, as well as people from a range of different University departments.

What are some recent achievements you’re proud of?

• We gave the ‘flu’ vaccination to more than 1200 University staff members!
• We have a Men’s Health Service that is allowing us to reduce the barriers that stop men from consulting with a GP.
• We have recently opened a satellite GP practice at Trafalgar Place, Marsfield which is proving very popular with the community.

What’s planned for the future?

We are increasing our commitment to educating future doctors with more medical student placements, two GP registrars starting in June, and an intern rotating through the GP clinic every 11 weeks.  We are also looking to provide more integrated services for our patients and so have formed additional agreements with the new dietitians, exercise physiologists and psychologists.

Where can we learn more?

You can learn more about us by visiting our General Practice page on the MQ Health website. We are happy to chat about our range of integrated health services when you visit us as a patient, or when you come to see us at the many campus events that we are involved in.

Men’s Health Week 12 – 18 June 2017

This year’s Men’s Health Week theme, “HEALTHY BODY – HEALTHY MIND: KEEPING THE BALANCE”, explores the different ways men and boys are managing to keep healthy, both physically and emotionally, in a busy and sometimes challenging world.

For more information, see Macquarie’s Men’s Health Services.

As an incentive, those who join the campaign have the chance to win an electric folding bike*.

Studies show it’s good for your brain to do something different. So, why not challenge your synapses by taking a different form of transport or a different route home.

For example, if you drive every day challenge yourself to take an active form of transport, such as riding or walking – even just for part of the way. Imagine the health benefits from jumping off the bus one stop earlier!

And by carpooling, riding your bike or changing to public transport on just one day per week, you’re actually helping to ease congestion on the roads.

Incentives for change

• Co-Hop is Connect Macquarie Park’s new transport planning and ride-share matching tool that rewards you and your buddies as you commute.
  Free for Macquarie University staff and students, you can use the system to find alternative routes to campus and even match with bike buddies or find or start a carpool.

• At Macquarie, car-poolers can get access to eleven priority parking spots on campus.
  Car-pooling parking permits are available to those who drive to campus in a vehicle with two or more people. The permit allows you to park in priority carpooling locations on campus.
  Visit mq.edu.au/about/contacts-and-maps/getting-to-macquarie/car/car-pooling to find out more and apply.

• Macquarie University has bike hubs, bike racks, bike repair stations, showers, lockers and filtered water drinking fountains to provide facilities for pedestrians and cyclists. Visit mq.edu.au/about/contacts-and-maps/getting-to-macquarie/bicycle .

To find out more about the one trip per week competition click here.

*Subject to competition terms and conditions

With memberships catering to everyone, including students, staff, alumni, community and concession, the Macquarie University Sport and Aquatic Centre is the place to be!

For the month of May we are offering all staff a 2 week free pass; simply come in to the Centre, flash your staff ID and and we’ll get you started.

We sat down with a few of Macquarie University’s staff members to get their opinions about the Macquarie University Sport and Aquatic Centre and the reasons they joined.

What is your name and your role here at Macquarie University Sport?
Nicola Dew
Catering and event co-ordinator for Crunch Events and Catering

Why did you join the Macquarie University Sport and Aquatic Centre?
I joined the Sport and Aquatic Centre to improve my overall fitness levels and found that the small group training and express classes were perfect for this goal. As my colleagues were already regular visitors to the health club, it made the decision to join the Macquarie University Sport and Aquatic Centre an easy one.

What are your goals and how are you tracking with them?
My goals are now mostly strength based. I have signed up to the Fit360 program which allows me to track my progress through testing at the beginning of the program and again at the end.

What do you enjoy most about Macquarie University Sport?
The enthusiasm and dedication of the trainers makes the experience most enjoyable. Also having a program such as Fit360 where you can track your progress is a great way to keep motivated.

If you were going to give a colleague one piece of advice on getting started, what would it be?
Know your goal, keep focused.

What is your name and your role here at Macquarie University Sport?
Koos Gruntjes
Assistant Operations Manager

Why did you join the Macquarie University Sport and Aquatic Centre?
Working at Campus Life gives us the opportunity to access the gym! Some of my colleagues invited me to come along to some of the “old” small group fitness classes. The trainer’s enthusiasm and fun environment triggered me to come back for more every time.

What are your goals and how are you tracking with them?
I wish I had clearer goals when going to the gym. It changes every other month or so and depends what race I have got coming up. At the moment I am in the FIT360 program and we have a testing session at the start and end of the 8-week program. Our goals here are simple, improve in strength and fitness.

What do you enjoy most about Macquarie University Sport?
The trainers make or break it for me. Their style of coaching and enthusiasm is super important. For the past two years or so Veronica Lee has been that person for me, keep it up!!

If you were going to give a colleague one piece of advice on getting started, what would it be?
It helps going with a training buddy. For me that has been my colleagues. We hold each other accountable and keep challenging each other.

So what are you waiting for?
Come and join the Macquarie University Sport and Aquatic Centre today!