Written By
Michael Thompson
College
College of Healthcare Sciences
Publish Date
26 July 2024
Related Study Areas
One moment can change everything
Please be advised that this story describes graphic scenes of domestic violence, which may be distressing.
JCU Nursing academic Ashton Kline is determined to live each day in the moment, because he knows the world around you can change instantly.
Ashton’s mother Viola was murdered when he was 15 years old. His father lured Viola to his caravan under the false pretence of needing her to collect some belongings.
His father had doused the caravan in petrol. Once Viola arrived, he pushed her inside the caravan and locked the door, setting it alight.
Ashton’s younger brother Grant, who was six years old at the time, had joined his mother for the visit and witnessed the horrific scene. Incredibly, Viola escaped the inferno, however she suffered burns to 99 per cent of her body and had no chance of survival. She died later that night.
Ashton, Grant and Viola had all suffered immensely in the lead up to the murder. Ashton had previously come close to death when his father tried to strangle him, the incident that prompted Viola and her sons to leave.
For nine months the family had lived free from their constant experience of domestic violence, until that horrific day.
Imparting his wisdom
Twenty-three years on, Ashton is passing his passion and knowledge for nursing to students at JCU Mackay, where he started in April.
He gained his inspiration for nursing while his brother Grant was being treated for chronic kidney disease after their mother’s murder. The compassionate care Grant received during his treatment in hospital left a lasting impression on Ashton. “I wanted to have an impact on peoples’ lives when they were at their most vulnerable,” he says.
Ashton says his experience with domestic violence, and the care he received in the years that followed, has had a profound effect on the way he educates future healthcare workers.
“It really enables me to teach from an empathetic perspective. I empower my students to see the person behind the patient they are caring for,” he says. “We need to provide a patient with an empathetic ear and look at the situation from the patient’s perspective. I like to instil a sense of personalised care and that comes through in my teaching.
“Students can’t learn to nurse solely from a textbook, and I find they really enjoy the empathetic and personalised approach I take drawing on my life experience to challenge them and help them excel.”
This personalised approach extends beyond his students. Ashton also works to spread domestic violence awareness across the JCU community, recently leading a webinar for his fellow staff across all JCU campuses.
Breaking the cycle
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, an estimated one in four Australian women - and one in seven Australian men – have witnessed violence toward a parent by the age of 15.
Government reviews of domestic and family violence in Queensland and New South Wales have found that women are most at risk of being killed or seriously harmed during or immediately after separation from their male partner.
Between 1 July 2016 and 30 June 2022, 50.6 per cent of Queensland victims of intimate partner homicide were known to have separated (40.5 per cent) or intended (10.1) to separate from the perpetrator.*
As of July 2024, 33 women have been killed as the result of domestic violence in Australia, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has labelled domestic violence a national crisis. Ashton believes the cycle of domestic violence can be broken despite the grim statistics.
Ashton says his life represents reason for optimism when addressing that cycle. “I was able to finish high school, get a degree, a postgraduate degree and have some sense of normality in my life,” he says. "I have worked really hard on my personal journey and I recognise the impact that childhood trauma has had on me.”
“I was able to regain a sense of control over my life. "
JCU Nursing Lecturer Ashton Kline
Ashton is careful not to impart too much advice, recommending that victims of domestic violence seek help from professionals, although he believes victims can be better understood by sharing their stories.
“I think you have to keep at the forefront that people haven’t lived your life,” Ashton says. “People have never experienced what you have, so to put them in your shoes you need to shed some light on what you’ve experienced and allow them an insight into your experiences.
“We certainly can’t be aware of everyone’s trauma and we don’t know what everyone’s background is, so the individual does have to take responsibility of that.
“It takes a lot of courage and a lot of personal work in order to take responsibility for your own experience of trauma.”
Brothers in arms
The memory of his mother’s murder will be with Ashton forever, but he has navigated his trauma and pain to be the person he is today.
Ashton’s Central Queensland location enables him to enjoy an active lifestyle that includes powerlifting and running. Ashton and Grant’s family unit also includes two cheeky chihuahuas, Lewi and Blaze.
In the days after their horrific experience the brothers relied on each other for reassurance and support, and they continue to lean on each other.
“If it wasn’t for Grant, I would be that person in the gutter using drugs, most likely,” Ashton says. “When I was 15, he was the one who kept me going. I knew I was solely responsible for his care.
“I didn’t have an opportunity to stop and think ‘why did this happen?’, and no doubt things would be very different if I had. We took a team approach to things, and we got through things together.”
Finding a voice
Ashton also credits the Alannah & Madeline Foundation for his passion for helping others. The foundation provides services and support to children who have experienced or witnessed violence.
It was the Alannah & Madeline Foundation who advocated for Ashton and Grant after their mother’s murder, and assigned a case worker to help the boys navigate the uncertain future ahead of them.
The case worker was also by their side in court when their father was sent to prison. He died two years into his sentence.
“That advocacy and support came at a really vital time for us when we were going through the courts,” Ashton says. “Just having someone with us who we could trust was important.
“They advocated for us and saw us as decision makers in our lives, and for children to be given that voice was quite unheard of at the time. Their support helped us get through that trauma.”
It's OK to be different
Ashton knows his experiences have shaped him into the ‘audaciously authentic’ person he is today, although he admits that people may perceive him as obnoxious. His past has taught him to live in the moment and with this comes a determination to live it in his own, unique way.
“I address things as they are and I can ask a lot of questions, because in my mind I’d rather ask the question than keep thinking about it,” Ashton says. “That’s how I choose to be and that’s how I’ve learned to live, because I’ve seen life cut short and I don’t want it to be cut short for me.”
JCU is committed to providing a learning and working environment that is safe and supportive of staff and students who may be experiencing the effects of domestic or family violence. A range of staff and student support services are available, including personal support, and safety and wellbeing. Help for those in the wider community can also be found at Lifeline 13 11 14 and 1800RESPECT 1800 737 732.