ISSUE 1 - SEPT 2022
SECTOR SNAPSHOT TAIMI’S BACKTRACKDIGITALRAWGRIEFOLOGYLEGACYCONVERSATIONSHEALTHTOSUCCESS
Contents
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Mental Health news from around Australia and New Zealand Taimi Allan’s lived experience leads the way in New IndigenousZealandleader Rosemary Wanganeen creates a new model of care Encouraging men in Tasmania to have a seat at the table How clinicians can use digital mental health Wraparoundservices care helps young people get back on track
3 282624223032 SAFE HAVEN HUBS LAUNCHED EQUALLY WELL Q&A WITH ANZMHA’S AMBASSADORS BREATHE EASY ENDING HEATHERVIOLENCENOWAK Open door policy for four new community Howhubs practitioners can encourage clients to focus on physical health Steps to avoid burn-out for mental health BennypractitionersBerry (cover picture) recommends using breathwork for self-care Full Stop Australia calls for more resources Bringingnationwideher lived experience to SA’s Mental Health Commission Contents
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Disclaimer The information published in Mental Health Matters is intended to provide readers with resources and information which they may find useful and of interest. While we take all reasonable steps to keep the magazine content current and accurate, errors can occur. The information is therefore provided as is with no guarantee of accuracy, completeness or timeliness. All thoughts, opinions or views expressed in the magazine belong to the Theauthors.digital version of Mental Health Matters may include hyperlinks to third-party content, advertising or websites but ANZMHA does not endorse any advertising, products or resources from external sources. All editorial material is protected by copyright and can only be reproduced with the express permission of ANZMHA.
Sam Stewart CEO ANZMHA
Welcome to ANZMHA’s new magazine Mental Health Matters – written specifically for our members, subscribers and anyone interested in the latest happenings in the Australian and New Zealand mental health profession.
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Mental Health Matters is published by the Australian & New Zealand Mental Health Association (ANZMHA), a non-for-profit association established in 1999 to unite mental health leaders.
Welcome
It is particularly exciting to launch ANZMHA’s new magazine at the 23rd International Mental Health Conference, the flagship event in our ca Thelendar.aim of Mental Health Matters is to showcase industry news, views and research, with a focus on best practice in our region. We want our ma gazine to promote practitioners and innovations in our field, with an emphasis on practical case studies of programs and services that deliver tangible benefits to the community. Most of all, we want to provide support for men tal health practitioners themselves, many of whom continue to be at the frontline of psycho logical support during the Covid-19 pandemic. We would greatly value feedback on our ma gazine and welcome submissions for our next edition which will be published in March 2023. You can contact the editor, Melissa Le Mesurier, directly via editor@anzmh.asn.au
The magazine is published twice per year in September and March. The deadline for the March 2023 edition is 22 January 2023 for both editorial submissions and advertising bookings. Editorial submissions can be sent to editor@anzmh.asn.au. Advertising enquiries and bookings can be sent to partner@anzmh.asn.au.
By then, hundreds of people will have taken part in the Making Connections for Your Mental Health and Wellbeing forums held in 37 urban, rural and remo te communities across Australia.
Ramsay Mental Health will work collaboratively with the South Western Sydney Local Health District to ensure smooth pathways into and out of care, to minimise the time that young people with mental health concerns need to spend in emergency de partments awaiting care.
Based on the WHO-5 index, data also showed that people aged 35–44 years had a low mean men tal wellbeing score of 14.3 out 25 (compared with 15.0 out of 25 for the total population). In contrast, people aged 65 years and over fared better, with a mean score of 16.0.
The proportion of people with poor mental wellbe ing increased from 22 percent in 2018 to 28 percent in “We2021.found that rates of poor mental wellbeing have risen significantly across many age groups,” Becky Collett from Stats NZ said.
National Mental Health Commission conducts listening tour
Public Private Partnership tackles adolescent mental health Adolescents and youth in South Western Sydney now have access to more mental health services thanks to a new $3 million Public Private Partners hip between NSW Health and Ramsay Health Care. The partnership provides new beds and day pro gram spaces for patients at Ramsay Clinic Macar thur.
“We now have three inpatient beds and three new day programs at Ramsay Clinic Macarthur for 1424 year-olds experiencing complex trauma, eating disorders and certain mood and anxiety disorders,” clinic CEO Natalie King said. “Unfortunately recent data shows youth and ado lescents are overrepresented in emergency de partment admissions for complex disorders inclu ding deliberate self-harm.”
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While each service, town and person is unique, Commission CEO Christine Morgan said there were already common themes emerging.
Members of the National Mental Health Commis sion will finish their three-month ‘listening tour’ in Kununurra in WA at the end of September.
“I think that it is a result of the pandemic where more people started talking about how they were coping with their mental health.” The forums will provide critical insights as the Com mission develops a framework for future mental health and suicide prevention recommendations.
People who cannot attend a forum can also share their thoughts and experiences with the Commis sion online.
Newly released data from the 2021 General Social Survey showed that New Zealanders’ overall men tal wellbeing has declined since 2018.
SNAPSHOTSECTOR
“One of the positives we’ve seen is people are ge nerally more comfortable with recognising that mental health is as central to overall wellbeing as physical health,” she said.
Disabled people, single parents, and people who identified as LGBT+ or belonged to a sexual minority were amongst those who experienced higher rates of poor overall mental wellbeing.
One in four New Zealanders report poor mental health
Paramedic Tessa Williamson said that instead of patients spending an extended time in an ED, the mental health nurse can sit with the patient in their environment to conduct the assessment within about 90 minutes.
“Residents in aged care are four times more likely to have depression and nine times more likely to have anxiety disorders compared to the general popu lation of older Australians,” study lead author and psychology registrar, Dr Monica Cations, said.
While the authors acknowledge that residents may have received mental health services in ways not captured by the dataset, people living in residen tial aged care deserve equitable access to public “Mentalservices.health care is a pillar of the publicly-funded health care system in Australia and the low use of publicly-funded services among those living in re sidential aged care is indicative of major barriers to service access and uptake,” says Dr Cations.
Ambulance service assesses mental health patients at home
A new at-home program initiated by the Queens land Ambulance Service is pairing paramedics with mental health nurses to provide tailored treatment to people experiencing a mental health crisis. Once the responders are despatched, the nurse can review the patient in their home and decide the best course of treatment, rather than parame dics automatically transferring patients to a hospital emergency department (ED).
With the ambulance service receiving about 60,000 mental health-related calls a year, she said the pro gram not only gives the patient better care at home, but it also eases pressure on the hospital system.
The program was piloted in South East Queensland in 2019, and there are now mental health co-res ponder teams in 12 locations across the state.
“Despite this, less than 3% of residents with a men tal health condition in our cohort accessed funding subsidies for mental health services provided by GPs, psychiatrists, or allied health professionals, in contrast to almost 10% of the general population.”
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6 - 10 September Women’s Health Week 8 September R U OK? Day 10 September World Suicide Prevention Day 1 - 7 October BPD Awareness Week 10 October World Mental Health Day 9 - 17 October WA World Mental Health Week 24 - 25 October Indigenous Wellbeing Conference 9 - 11 November Australian Rural & Remote Mental Health Symposium 30 November - 2 December STOP Domestic Violence Conference FOR YOUR DIARY
Poor access to services for aged care residents Less than 3% of people with mental health condi tions living in Australian residential aged care faci lities access government-subsidised mental health services, new analysis from Flinders University and the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute has found.
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“So, a lot of what I do is just plant that seed that it is not inevitable, and you can recover.”
She prospers in the role and even works in the faci lity where she once was an inpatient.
Taimi Allan creates a legacy in NZ mental health
The Commission is now called Te Hiringa Maha ra, which better represents its purpose of “igniting minds through positive energy and thoughtfulness” and “improving mental health and wellbeing outco mes, especially for Māori and whanau (family*)”.
The organisation is unique in its position as a stand-alone entity focused on working across agencies and evaluating the effectiveness of pro Itgrams.hasalso contributed to the new Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) bill which is currently before Parliament.
An unfortunate accident 20 years ago, when Taimi Allan broke her leg, ended up killing her career as an international Qantas flight attendant. But Qantas’s loss was definitely a huge gain for the mental health sector – not just in New Zealand –but Auckland-basedglobally.
Taimi is a recognised leader and award winner who has brought her lived experience and practical wisdom to her many roles. But it has been a long road to get to this point. Despite a happy childhood, Taimi says she strug gled to find her place in the world. “I had a very loud inner voice that pretty much con trolled my life…so between the ages of 15 and 30 I got five or six different diagnoses including depres sion and psychosis,” she said. “I even died and was brought back to life after a suicide attempt…so I had a pretty extreme range of experiences.”
Back home in New Zealand without a job, Taimi sees an advertisement to work in Mental Health –the only qualification required is to ‘have a personal lived experience using Mental Health services’.
“I spend time hearing perspectives divergent from my own because I truly believe we all want the same thing: to make life bearable for others; to hold hope when it’s too heavy to bear; and eventually, when someone begins to look forward instead of back, to become redundant.
“Unlike cancer patients, for example, we think it is ok to not give people in psychiatric services that sense of hope, to say ‘this is not the way it’s always going to be’.
Over the following years, Taimi serves on the Natio nal Suicide Mortality Review Committee and other strategic governance groups, and her expertise is formally recognised when she is appointed to New Zealand’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Commis sion in February 2021.
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About halfway through that period, she was told she was ‘treatment resistant’, and hospital admis sions, electroconvulsive treatment and medication would always be part of her life. In short, she was given no hope for recovery. No one (including herself) could have foreseen her fu ture role as a pioneering mental health leader. But her life pivots when she leaves her job at Qan tas, not just due to her leg injury, but being concer ned about the impact of international travel which involves long and irregular hours and the need to cover up the mental ill-health it exacerbates. “Ironically, I received an award from Qantas for sa ving a passenger’s life and I travel to Sydney to co llect it,” she says. She had already decided to resign so when asked to say a few words at the award ceremony, she uses the platform to express her concern about the mental health challenges that she and her collea gues encounter.
“Each year around one in five of us experience men tal illness or significant mental distress. We estimate 50 to 80% of New Zealanders will experience men
are those places on every street corner that you can just go in and get a cup of coffee and sit down and have a talk to someone?” she asks. “Why is it we can’t have a beanbag in the corner of Bun nings or a phone you can pick and talk to someone if things are tough?
A perfect example of this is their work promoting and supporting the work of innovators such as glo bal software engineer Elliot Taylor who has created Throughline, which uses advanced algorithms to connect anyone searching online for mental health crisis support with agencies in their local area. Backed by Google and other global tech compa nies, ThroughLine co-ordinates the world’s largest verified network of crisis hotlines and helplines. It also makes it easy for mental health organisations to measurably support any user struggling with sui cidal thoughts or self-harm, and collects data about what kind of keywords people are typing in, so that can feed into the bigger system of prevention. Services that promote creative pursuits, and anything else which eases the mental distress of people, are also encouraged by Ember Innovations. But perhaps the initiative that Taimi would most like to see is for every community to have a safe space where anyone seeking mental health support can do “Whereso.
“I think having peer support [in these spaces] is part of the answer, as it will not only help fix our current workforce shortage but address our need for more humans speaking like humans [instead of like clini It’scians].”agrand ambition, but with Taimi’s lived expe rience, her ability to network in and beyond the mental health sector, and her unquenchable curio sity, I would not be surprised if this is part of Taimi’s mental health legacy. Thank goodness she broke her leg all those years ago!
“Why is that so hard for all of us to do? There are great examples of that happening around the world with crisis cafes, but it should be on every street corner, it should be normalised.
*whānau translates as family, but in practice it is actually the family you choose, not always the one you are born into About Taimi Taimi serves on the Te Hiringa Mahara (NZ Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission), National Suici de Mortality Review Committee and advises the Ro yal Commission into Abuse in State Care, bringing a lived experience voice to sector and service impro vement, policy development, and suicide preven tion. She was honoured by the Australasian Mental Health Outcomes and Information Conference with Mental Health’s “Emerging Leader” award in 2019 and was a 2021 Local Hero Medallist in Kiwibank’s New Zealander of the Year Awards. Outside work, Taimi and her soulmate have two adult children and she enjoys glassblowing as a hobby.
10 tal distress, or addiction challenges, or both, in their lifetimes,” Taimi said. “Every year, 20,000 people attempt to end their lives. The Pae Ora Bill should not only provide an opportunity to enshrine the mental health and ad diction system transformation proposed by the He Ara Oranga inquiry report in law, but also ensure that the voices of people experiencing mental dis tress and other challenges are heard and acted upon appropriately.”
Taimi said people with negative health experien ces want more power in their decision-making and “Astreatment.aCommission, we are here to ensure that their views are heard; that this happens in a timely, cul turally-sensitive and appropriate manner; and that there is a cohesive, well-resourced and collaborati ve health and wellbeing system at the heart of this work,” she says. Taimi says the power of indigenous knowledge and storytelling is incredible and we need to apply that knowledge to help create person-centred care. “Indigenous knowledge is inherently innovative be cause basically it puts the person and their whānau at the centre and you deal with a problem by wor king any way you can with the tools you have avai “Thislable. includes looking at the entire context of that person’s life, connections and history,” she said. “Of ten there is trauma that has happened over gene rations, so the solution is not going to be a single, quick fix.”
More recently, in March, Taimi became a Director of Ember Innovations which provides services, su pport and innovative solutions for mental health or ganisations and clients. Here their focus is on designing and delivering in novations and supporting entrepreneurs working on well-being approaches, especially those that embrace technology, creativity and connection.
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MHM: How does your approach to treating grief/trauma differ from traditional psychological approaches? RW: The Seven Phases to Integrating Loss and Grief© model I designed evolved into a newfound model I call GriefologyTM and the significant difference between it and psychology is that Griefology ‘integrates’ ancestral losses. This is how I define it: Griefology is understanding the human relationship between (Aboriginal) ancestral major losses and their suppressed unresolved grief that has compounded and complicated their contemporary (Aboriginal) descendants’ losses and suppressed unresolved grief, guaranteeing human (Aboriginal)
ental MattersHealth(MHM) editor Melissa Le Mesurier talks to Rosemary Wanganeen, a proud South Australian Aboriginal woman with ancestral links to Kaurna of the Adelaide Plains and Wirringu from the West Coast. Having worked in Indigenous health, welfare and social justice for nearly 30 years, Rosemary has become widely recognised for her expertise and successes in bicultural training and Griefology. Her work is gaining growing attention and respect from academics and health professionals alike.
termSimilarly,right(Aboriginal)processes(system)Griefologyunderstandinginter-generationally!disadvantage,However,thisrelationship,isaholisticapproachtoreclaimgrievingtohealingthatwillrestorehumanprosperity,whichistheofallhumanbeings.Griefologydoesnotusethetraumaasit’sconfusing.GRIEFOLOGY uniqueabringsWanganeenRosemary well-beingIndigenoustoapproach M
RW: I’m an award winning and published author. Griefology has evolved from my personal lived experiences of ‘mission life’, inhumane policies and practices, alcohol-fuelled childhood and adult family violence and every form of violation during my time in Stolen Generation. I was a research officer in the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, and I asked myself: where are Aboriginal families going to talk about the death of their loved one? And how many of the 99 deaths were of people removed from their families? I realised there was nowhere for them to seek counselling that was culturally safe and appropriate, so it meant they had to suppress their grief emotions and had been for over 200 years! Restoring my intuitive intelligence through my personal grieving processes, I set-up the Healing Centre for GriefologyTM (2021) which was preceded by the Australian Institute for Loss and Grief P/L (2005) and the Sacred Site Within Healing Centre (1993). As a Griefologist, I had a responsibility to reframe the deficit western construct of Aboriginal disadvantage under the umbrella of Griefology as the missing link to achieving Aboriginal prosperity. Throughout this journey, there have been many highlights including:
• Zonta Club of Adelaide – Women of Achievement Award South Australia (2000).
MHM: What are you most proud of in your area of work?
• Licensing the Seven Phases System • Train the Trainer • Tertiary Education • Registered Training Organization • Diploma in Loss & Grief Counselling • Develop a degree in the Seven Phases • Primary and high school curriculum • Further research & development • Loss and grief respite centres • Loss and grief rehabilitation centres • Franchising (national & international potential)
MHM: What changes do you hope to see in the mental health sector over the next 5/10 years?
RW: Training, training and training. With the belief that Griefology is missing from multiple sectors it has a right, a role and a responsibility to train all who have an interest in this newfound model in the following areas:
MHM: Is it effective with both Aboriginal and nonAboriginal clients?
• Finalist SA Health Mental Health Excellence Awards (2016).
• Winner - Outstanding Health Project/Program. Aboriginal Health Council (SA) (2016).
MHM: Our readers are mostly counsellors/ psychologists and other mental health practitioners. Informed by your experience/ research, what different approaches could they consider when working with their clients?
RW: With 30 years as a Griefologist, I have a strong commitment to the Seven Phases to Integrating Loss and Grief© model which will equip psychologists with a uniquely different model to help prevent mental health challenges from escalating into mental illness. There are too many different approaches to address in this ‘forum’ but when presenting to the SA Psychiatry Branch Training Committee in 2020, one of the participants said Griefology provided an “awareness of a different perspective of the genesis of mental Statisticsdisorders.”are valuable but thus far they haven’t been ‘front and centre’ throughout our training programs. However, post the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, statistics confirm how Aboriginal suicide rate, imprisonment rate, diseases and disorders are killing our loved ones and I’m claiming that this is because Griefology is missing from multiple sectors, namely the health and justice Conversely,systems.Griefology applies the lived experiences behind decades of statistics in the hope that psychology can use Griefology to reduce these statistics. In partnership, we could close the gap between Aboriginal disadvantage and Aboriginal prosperity.
• Canditure for a Masters of Philosophy at Adelaide University
RW: Absolutely! The Healing Centre for Griefology is strongly committed to Aboriginal communities, however Griefology knows no barriers to sectors, it doesn’t shame, blame, demonize or vilify as it is a human experience! My model, derived from personal lived experience, is an evidencebased model which asserts that loss and grief is a human experience that does not discriminate! No human being can ‘come into’ being human without ancestors. Likewise, Griefology describes how ancestors’ losses, and their suppressed, unresolved grief can compound and complicate their contemporary’s losses and suppressed unresolved grief.
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• Recipient of (Aboriginal Elder) Gladys Elphick Award (2011) • Winner - South Australian of the Year –Community Award (2009)
Through the partnership, RAW’s Community Pro grams manager Kristy Mayne is hopeful that con versations around mental health for men become normalised in a practical and tangible way. “The Men’s Table programs aligns closely with the work RAW does across Tasmania in rural communities.
Ms Mayne said that after prolonged periods of iso lation throughout COVID, initiatives like The Men’s Table were crucial to ensuring people reconnected and continue to rebuild social norms and habits which may have lapsed over the last two years due to lockdowns and restrictions.
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RAW conversations to flow for rural communities through The Men’s Table
Local Tasmanian not-for-profit, Rural Alive & Well (RAW) has partnered with The Men’s Table to create more spaces within rural Tasmania where men can have a place to connect with other men, and talk about the highs and lows of their lives.
RAW Conversations.
Ben Hughes, co-founder of The Men’s Table and re cent Launceston resident said, “Men need a place where they can just talk to other men, not just about footy and shit, but about what is really going on. We set up communities of men called ‘Tables’ where men can support each other and be supported.
“Connection is a critical factor when it comes to in dividuals maintaining positive mental and physical wellbeing and is a key protective factor for anxiety and “RAWdepression.isexcited to be on the front foot partnering
We have four Tables in Launceston, one in George Town and are now looking to start Tables in the nor th of Tassie and then work south.”
“As a team we love the work Ben is doing and the impact each group is having,” she said. “If we can help create more Tables and make it more accessi ble for men to be provided with a connection point within their communities, then we know we can be making more of an impact within our rural and re mote communities.”
RAW is passionate about helping to break down obstacles which exist in people’s lives, so they can engage in real, genuine, honest and ultimately…
ABOUT THE ORGANISATIONS: Rural Alive & Well (RAW) is a Tasmanian not-forprofit organisation, providing specialised psychoso cial mental health support to build mentally heal thy and resilient rural communities and reduce the prevalence of suicide. RAW offers these services to individuals, families and communities without cost and no wait times. Rural Alive & Well is available to speak with 24/7, 365 days a year via 1800 729 827 (1800 RAW TAS). For more information: www.rawtas.com.au
The Men’s Table is a national organisation with 60 Tables across Australia. The first Table was started in 2011 and is still meeting. The Men’s Table contri butes to the emotional and social wellbeing of men whilst being a powerful support to individual mem bers who get to sit in a community of men. If you would like more information on how to join or start a Table, please contact Ben Hughes via ben.hughes@themenstable.org or 0424 99 33 66 RAW is passionate about helping to break obstaclesdownwhich exist in people’s lives, so they can engage in real, genuine, honest and ultimately, raw “conversations.”
15 with The Men’s Table to create Tables filled with li ke-minded people, in a safe non-judgemental set ting and without any set agendas other than being present in the moment.”
About one in 10 – or 2.2million – Australians disclosed having a mental health condition in the 2021 census, making it the most prevalent chronic health issue across the country, according to data released last month. The finding comes amid 2021 APS data revealing that a staggering one in three psychologists were forced to close their books to new clients last year due to overwhelming demand.
If ever there was importantan time to it’stransitions,throughyoursupportpeoplelife’snow. Living WeLL. Working WeLL. www.transitioningwell.com.au
Psychologists specialising in e-mental health research say the situation highlights the need to rapidly roll out alternatives to overblown waitlists that leave many people without care for long periods and health professionals at risk of rapid Oneburnout.option
Dr McMahon is a senior research officer at the eMHPrac (e-Mental Health in Practice) service – a specially convened, independent group of mental health experts and organisations headed by QUT, tasked with raising clinician awareness in a range of Australian evidence-based, free or low-cost dMH Theservices.federally funded initiative also provides free training and resources that help practitioners
Here’s how the eMHPrac project is helping clinicians use digital mental health services to meet the challenges of Australia’s mental health crisis.
“Online treatment makes a great option for patients on waitlists, giving them a head start on therapy, as well as patients who can’t access face-to-face help at all because of distance, cost or time – but we’re still very far from clinicians being fully aware of it and confident in helping clients engage with it,” she says.
with an established body of evidence now behind it is digital mental health (dMH), says clinical psychologist, Dr Tania McMahon
As the mental health continues,crisishow can quality of care be sustained? The answer could be digital
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you unsure where to start and which would be most helpful for your clients?
17 integrate digital interventions into practice as part of an organised national plan to bridge mental health care gaps. From apps, telephone support lines and selfguided education modules to in-house cliniciansupported online programs, and moderated online peer support communities – an antidote to social media that can be unsafe, Dr McMahon cautions –the field has experienced prolific growth in a bid to meet demand.
Find us at site P105 www.emhprac.org.au online Are We digital mental
for more information Do you feel confused by the growing range of
According to insights from the first cohort of the National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing (NSMHW), over 600,000 Australians accessed these services for their mental health in 2020-21.
health resources!
or visit our website
The e-Mental Health in Practice (eMHPrac) project is funded by the Commonwealth Government and provides free training and support in the use of evidence-based digital mental health resources to primary care practitioners nationwide.
While Dr McMahon notes that it won’t be for everyone, she says there is now ‘tremendous’ evidence demonstrating that for many clinical conditions the right dMH can be as effective as face-to-face treatment. In a 2010 meta-analysis of 22 RCTs looking at computerised CBT for major depression, social phobia, panic disorder and generalised anxiety disorder in more than 1700 patients, researchers reported superior outcomes over waitlist control groups and comparable outcomes to treatment as usual controls. Describing the effect sizes as ‘substantial’ despite the significantly reduced amount of contact with clinicians, investigators said dMH has the capacity to provide ‘effective, acceptable and practical health care’ for those who might otherwise remain untreated. But the volume of services now available, questions about safety and efficacy, and uncertainty about how to prescribe them remain barriers against more widespread dMH referral by clinicians, explains Dr MeetingMcMahon.the need for credible guidance, eMHPrac has developed a comprehensive online hub of resources for clinicians. Through the eMHPrac website clinicians have access to podcasts profiling new dMH services and how they work, online training modules and webinars for health professionals interested in learning more about what types of services are available and how to prescribe them as well as videos and quick-read fact sheets. Clinicians can also access a directory of rigorously tested and validated dMH programs and websites that can be used to match patients to credible services. To start integrating dMH into your practice visit www.emhprac.org.au
can help you navigate the world of
mental health resources?
“If you don’t work on improve.”willhealththeirissues,underlyingthementalnot
toBackTracksuccess
“The longer a counsellor or other mental health professional can keep a connection with a young person the “Webetter.also need to talk to them in their language with less of a clinical approach and if possible, meet them in their space rather than in an office.”
“If you don’t work on the underlying issues, their mental health will not improve.
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Bernie is acutely aware that most mental health services are not able to provide such wrap-around care, mainly because government funding is siloed, and counselling is often limited to short-term support.
“Six one-hour sessions with a counsellor is not enough. It’s like putting a Band-aid on a broken arm.
Bernie Shakeshaft, founder of youth support charity BackTrack, says the mental health of a nation’s young people is a barometer of its success.
During that time BackTrack provides everything from legal support and gaining skills and knowledge, to offering a feed, somewhere to stay, and mentoring in the workplace.
Being able to support a young person “for as long as it takes” is one of the keys to the success of BackTrack, which has helped more than 1000 youth fulfil their goals.
“We never turn anyone away and we keep working with them for as long as it takes,” Bernie said.
“Sometimes, a young person’s relationship with BackTrack may be the longest relationship they’ve ever had in their life.”
The average length of engagement between BackTrack and the young people they support is between two and six years. Currently, they are
He says a key to BackTrack’s success is that it tackles the underlying issues affecting some of the country’s most marginalised and disadvantaged young people.
“Our approach works because we wrap our services around the youth and we tackle all the fundamental issues such as housing, employment and education or training.
“The first thing we ask them is ‘what is the biggest problem in your life?’ and we focus on that. If a kid is living under a bridge, you have to help them solve their housing problem first. “Fix the broken pieces around the person and many times the mental health issues will start to sort themselves out,” he said.
He made this comment when he accepted his Australian Local Hero Award from Prime Minister Scott Morrison in 2020 and, sadly since then, he says that ‘barometer’ has gone from bad to worse, with one in four young people now reporting mental health issues and one in five not in employment or education.
Even if this is not possible, Bernie says the number one thing a counsellor can do is to have and to show empathy – especially towards Indigenous young people, whose family might have experienced complex trauma for generations including losing their language and connection to Country.
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working with some 70 young people including 35 who have secured paid employment on various projects through BackTrack’s social enterprise Manyarm.
“If we ask our young people ‘what does BackTrack give them that they don’t get elsewhere?’, they say it is a sense of belonging. Being connected to something that feels like a family,” Bernie said.
“These are the young people who have dropped out of school, been sacked four or five times and are now on the dole. Sometimes they come from families where there are generations of unemployment, so it takes time for them to find their feet and know we are not going to give up on “Investingthem.
time and trust in every young person brings rewards.”
The success of BackTrack, which has helped more than 1000 youth get back on their feet since the organisation was founded in Armidale (NSW) in 2006, is now being replicated through a range of satellite programs. Its Tracker Network comprises eight similar organisations that are now replicating the BackTrack approach in other rural communities.
Bernie sees this as the future of the program, and he recently stepped down from his day-to-day CEO role to focus on helping the organisation scale its operations and secure the funding needed for long-term viability. He likens getting funding from governments and convincing them to support BackTrack’s holistic approach to “dealing with a big ship that turns very slowly”. He knows it’s vital work to set BackTrack up for a sustainable future, but you get the clear sense Bernie would much prefer to be having a yarn to a young person in a paddock somewhere rather than working the halls of power.
of the supervisors on these projects are former BackTrack clients who were supported by the organisation some 10 years ago and are now mentoring other young people.
Pictured: Bernie Shakeshaft, seated front left, with some of his BackTrack team members.
And for the sake of all our youth, thank goodness for that!
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Established and funded by Healthy North Coast through the New South Government Northern NSW Flood Recovery Program, the four sites will be delivered and managed by local provider, The LocatedButtery.
Four new Safe Haven community hubs will offer residents across NSW’s Northern Rivers region free mental health support and counselling.
The hubs will be operated by The Buttery, a wellestablished, not-for-profit mental health and specialist drug and alcohol organisation.
Coast has been hit hard recently by the devastating floods, coming off the back of the pandemic and other natural disasters,” said Ms “WeSturgess.know
“The Buttery has been supporting the North Coast community since 1973 and has provided services to over 5,000 participants in its residential programs and 20,000 participants in its outreach services,” Ms Sturgess said.
“These Safe Havens are an approachable, welcoming alternative for people in distress who require acute mental health support and may be uncomfortable presenting to a busy emergency department,” Mrs Taylor said.
The Buttery CEO Leone Crayden said experienced mental health clinicians at each site will support
Coast CEO Julie Sturgess said the hubs would provide immediate, personalised and compassionate mental health support and “Thecounselling.North
NSW Minister for Mental Health Bronnie Taylor said the four centres have been specially designed to provide a welcoming environment and offer a wide range of services, including information, referrals and counselling support.
Four new Safe Haven hubs launched across NSW Northern Rivers
many people are focussing on the basics right now, but we are also seeing great demand for mental health support to catch those in immediate distress or who might be feeling overwhelmed.”
in Lismore, Murwillumbah, Mullumbimby and Woodburn, the Safe Haven hubs will offer a free ‘drop-in’ service that operates 7 days a week, from Healthy12-6pm.North
Bronnie Taylor (NSW Minister for Women, Regional Health and Mental Health), Robert Mustow (Mayor, Richmond Valley Council), Julie Sturgess (CEO Healthy North Coast), Dee Robinson (Director Mental Health and Alcohol and Other Drugs, Northern NSW Local Health District).
The response has been very positive with memberscommunityalreadydroppinginto Safe Havens to receive support. “ ”
“The response has been very positive with community members already dropping into the Safe Havens to receive support,” said Ms Crayden.
“Safe Haven staff are trained in crisis response, acute interventions, counselling and case management. Non-clinical supports, such as peer support from those with lived experience, are also available.
The Buttery Private is a social enterprise of The Buttery, located near the Byron Hinterland in a comfortable retreat setting. As well as regular one-on-one counselling with a dedicated counsellor and group sessions, participants can choose from a range of therapies including yoga, meditation, mindfulness training, exercise, massage, pilates, a spa circuit and nutrition. The four-week intensive residential program is followed by three-months of aftercare via phone or video. anyone who arrives and needs urgent mental health support.
Pictured from left, Leone Crayden (CEO The Buttery),
23 The Buttery Private uses best-practice, evidencebased psychological techniques to bring about lasting change for people experiencing: • Alcohol addiction • Drug addiction • Mental illness • Depression • Anxiety • Other addiction • Trauma / Post Traumatic Stress Disorder • Behavioural dependencies / gambling A four-week, user pays residential program The Buttery Private As a not-for-profit charity, surplus funds generated from The Buttery Private are applied to The Buttery’s charitable works. Participants must be aged 18 years or older. Contact The Buttery’s intake team. 02 6687 1111 intake@buttery.org.au buttery.org.au
“Staff can refer clients to other mental health support services in the region and connect them with community services to address underlying factors causing their distress. These factors could include serious mental health concerns, drug and alcohol conditions, and stresses related to housing, finances, relationships, unemployment – anything affecting their mental health and wellbeing.
Advise Did you know that smoking kills half of long-term smokers, and that people with mental illness can have the same success quitting as everyone else?
Are you up to date with your vaccinations? Do you have any health issues that are a concern for you?
PHYSICALLY FIT, MENTALLY FIT. YOURWORKOUTMIND
I am not a medico or nurse: What can I do about it?
4. Improved physical health results in far fewer hospitalisations,5 reducing pressure and costs to medical staff, services and facilities.
The premature death of people with mental illness is a national shame. Every day in Australia 64 people with mental illness die early of cancer, heart disease, respiratory disease, and other chronic physical health conditions.2 The life expectancy of people with severe mental illness is reduced by 23 years. Most of these deaths are preventable. For instance, the 13% of the population with mental illness comprise 55% of all premature deaths due to cancer,2 even though the incidence of cancer is the same or lower than the rest of the population. Why is the number of premature deaths so high?
When was the last time you had a skin/bowel/ breast cancer check? Do you smoke? Would you like to quit smoking?
Vaccination will help you avoid getting seriously ill and being hospitalised with the flu. Assist Would you like me to help you arrange an appointment with your GP/pharmacy? Can I help arrange a buddy to go with you to your appointment?
By Professor Russell Roberts, Charles Sturt University, Equally Well 1
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As a helping professional you can become part of the solution or part of the problem: Ask Ask some basic questions: How is your health? How long since you have had a full medical check-up?
So why should a mental health professional worry about physical health?
There are many reasons why health workers should pay attention to the physical health of people living with mental illness: 1. Holistic care is our job 2. Equity of access to healthcare and optimal health is a fundamental human right
3. Poor physical health is associated with a 4 times increase in incidence of psychological distress3 and with 47% of completed suicides4
Lack of access to health care, stigma, discrimination, poor health service coordination, medication sideeffects, smoking and “diagnostic overshadowing” (focussing only on the mental health diagnosis, and neglecting the whole person) all contribute to this life expectancy gap. As a result, people with mental illness are 10 times more likely to die of preventable chronic physical health conditions than suicide.
5. Sara G, Chen W, Large M, Ramanuj P, Curtis J, McMillan F, et al. Potentially pre ventable hospitalisations for physical health conditions in community mental health ser vice users: a population-wide linkage study. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences. 6.2021;30:e22.KaineC,Lawn S, Roberts R, Cobb L, Erski ne V. Review of Physical and Mental Health Care in Australia. Marden, South Australia: Lived Experience Australia Ltd; 2022.
4. Australian Bureau of Statistics. Psycho social Risk Factors as They Relate to Co roner-Referred Deaths in Australia 2017, Research Paper, Cat. no. 1351.0.55.062, Can berra. Canberra,: ABS; 2019.
digenousrelatinghy3.data.prescriptionof2.ney:tional-Consensus-Booklet-47537.pdfSydtent/uploads/2018/12/Equally-Well-Nahttps://www.equallywell.org.au/wp-conAustralia.NMHC;2016.AustralianBureauofStatistics.Mortalitypeopleusingmentalhealthservicesandmedications.Analysisof2011Canberra:ABS;2017.McNamaraBJ,BanksE,GubhajuL,JosG,WilliamsonA,RaphaelB,etal.FactorstohighpsychologicaldistressinInAustraliansandtheircontribution to Indigenous–non‐Indigenous disparities. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Pu blic Health. 2018;42(2):145-52.
25 Shall we call the Quitline now and have a chat? Advocate It can be daunting dealing with receptionists! Especially when people with mental illness already feel stigmatised and have experienced discrimination in their contact with health services. A call from an experienced health professional is often all that is needed to ensure your client gets the medical attention they need and deserve. Only 1 in 5 mental health workers even ask about their client’s physical health,6 but you can be the one to make a profound difference to your client’s life. Be aware of the risks, ask about physical health, offer assistance and, if necessary, advocate for access to health care. A few minutes of your time could be the difference between decades of chronic disease and a healthy happy life. People with mental illness deserve to be equally well.
1.References:National Mental Health Commission. Equally Well Consensus Statement. Impro ving the physical health and wellbeing of people living with mental illness in
Fundamentally, I always turn to friends, my dad and my therapist. Finding a therapist who genuinely empathises with my situation has been an infinite source of strength to help me cope with difficulties.
Many of us in mental health have likely chosen our career because we get a sense of purpose and fulfilment from helping people find light through their darkness, but it can be so hard to help everyone at the same time when we feel depleted and darkness begins to enter our world too. What I’ve learned to be the best way when providing support is by taking conscious care of myself and honouring the healthy boundaries I’ve set for myself.
The best advice I could give around burnout is to know the signs to look for in yourself and others and have a plan for early intervention. As we know with our clients, it’s always more manageable when we deal with things earlier rather than later. There is no end to the ‘to do’ list. There will always be someone in need. People will always want you to help them with something. Someone will always have something urgent to finish.
Shanna White - Psychologist, Family Therapist and Clinical Trainer who provides professional development programs and clinical supervision in trauma-informed practices
Q&A
with
ANZMHA’S ambassadors
David Titeu – Founder and Director of Linkmate, a social enterprise built around a digital platform that provides preventative support for those experiencing mental health challenges I can’t offer advice, since every mental health worker’s experience will be vastly different and there really is no blanket rule for managing burnout in the mental health space. What I can share is what patterns I’ve noticed in this industry and what seems to help me get through those exhausting days.
For example, even if a case worker wanted to help every client who called, they might limit their caseload to manageable numbers and decide not to open additional timeslots, no matter how difficult that might Conversely,be.sometimes working can serve as a coping skill as it can be fulfilling and offer catharsis during challenging periods. But other days, I might
feel burnt out and fatigued by it - at the end of the day, it’s all about finding that balance by observing how my stress language manifests itself and taking a step back when those signs present themselves.
If you are already feeling burnt-out and struggling to go on, try writing yourself two letters. The first one is to yourself before you were doing the profession you are now. Possibly as a teenager going to university. Or maybe like me, an adult who had a career but pivoted and found their niche later. Explore what motivated you to move into the caring space. Write about the things you are planning to achieve and experience. The second letter is from you now to that younger version of yourself. What advice, guidance and recommendations would you give them about working in this industry? What should younger you have known beforehand that you wish you could tell them now? And lastly about how, as an older, experienced and seasoned professional that they are aiming to be, you are going to look after that
What is your best advice to a mental health worker experiencing burnout?
This could be strictly adhering to flipping my laptop screen down at a set hour, respecting the agreed upon length of time for appointments/meetings and ensuring that I get a minimum of 7 hours sleep each night. Once I start doing this, my burnout level begins to balance and I bring a newfound sense of presence to everyone I work with and support.
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Providing comprehensive pathways of support for various mental health needs, our residential, outpatient, and hybrid programs are able to support people with co-occuring concerns.
younger version of yourself. What steps will you take as the compassionate, solutionfocused, resourced senior who is tasked with supporting the new, eager and somewhat ‘green’ student? Then go do it.
Mental supporthealthprograms
Time invested in me now equals a betterquality version of me to help others in the future. Setting personal boundaries and being accountable for keeping to them is important. It may sound simple but can take conscious effort to stick to.
Our multifaceted clinical treating team includes Psychiatrist Dr Sampath Arvapalli, Psychiatrist Dr Nathan Mueller, and Chief Psychiatrist Dr Anja Kriegeskotten, who work closely with our experienced team of psychologists and other allied health professionals. Our team
These include, sticking to start, finish and break times, we can often fall into the trap of finishing later, or regularly working through breaks. Include personal wellness foundations into your life and make them nonnegotiable, such as making time for regular exercise, hobbies, practicing mindfulness and gratitude journaling are all great ways to refill your emotional tank. Ensuring you have healthy eating and sleeping habits are also key components to monitor. Sometimes the hardest thing we may have to do is say “no”, we can often find ourselves taking on more than we are able to cope with without realising until it is too late.
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The first piece of advice I would give is to seek some professional support and take some time out to reset and recharge. We can often feel guilty for taking time off or reaching for support, however, I look at it as an investment for the future.
The best advice I could give around burnout is to know the signs to look for in yourself and others and have a plan for early intervention. “ ”
For more information on The Banyans, including employment opportunities, or how we can work with you and your patients, head to thebanyans.com.au/mhm or scan the QR code. ‘We work closely with referrers and the healthcare community, and can provide individuals with fast access to specialist services.’
James Hill – Award-winning Mental Health Advocate for Energy Queensland
As the demands on mental health professionals continue to escalate, it is imperative that all practitioners take care of their own well-being.
MHM: Has this been scientifically proven?
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MHM: What is breathwork and how did you get into it?
MHM: Would you recommend breathwork for mental health professionals and why?
In what will be a regular feature in Mental Health Matters (MHM), we will look at the various ways that you can practice self-care. In this edition, we discuss Breathwork with certified Wim Hof instructor Benny Berry who is based near Ballina in Northern NSW.
BB: Definitely! In my previous jobs, I found it hard to separate the people and the trauma involved in various incidents. Breathwork is a free and easily accessible practice that lets you process the profound experiences and trauma that you are exposed to.
BB: Definitely. The most famous practitioner of breathwork is Wim Hof from the Netherlands who has poured all the proceeds from his work into research. There is now a whole lot of proof and data around breathwork that demonstrates its mental health and physical benefits.
MHM: How does it work?
BB: In most instances, people get a benefit the very first time they practice breathwork. By doing three rounds of the Wim Hof Method (wimhofmethod. com) in the space of 11 minutes, you can experience deep relaxation or enter a meditative space. This takes place because your “thinking brain” has been replaced by your “feeling or emotional” brain. This even shows up in the brain scans of people practising breathwork and you can see the brain activity move from the back of the brain to the frontal lobe.
easyBreathe28toenhance
BB: Breathwork is a controlled way of breathing that has both physical and mental benefits. I first discovered breathwork in 2016. I previously worked in emergency services – as a lifeguard, then in underground search and rescue, and then as a firefighter. I got into breathwork to help alleviate my back pain which it did, but I also noticed the mental health benefits.
MHM: How have you seen these benefits in your clients?
self-care
MHM: If one of our readers wanted to try this where could they start?
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BB: I’ve had a local psychologist who has worked with me who described her first experience of breathwork as a profound experience. I’ve also worked with several military veterans with PTSD. The physiology of breathwork not only helps them physically but also mentally, emotionally and spiritually because as the thinking brain shuts down, the feeling and emotions come up. Athletes I’ve worked with also report benefits as they gain ‘the edge’ on their competitors because their mental well-being improves.
BB: If you take medication for high blood pressure, are pregnant or have epilepsy, I’d say that you would be best to be guided in your breathwork by a professional instructor. About Benny Berry Benny Berry is one of just 22 certified instructors in Australia of the Wim Hof method which comprises three pillars: exposure to cold, breathing exercises and mental commitment. Benny gained his certificate in 2019 after one year of study with the Wim Hof Academy and since then has worked with hundreds of clients.
MHM: Is there anyone who shouldn’t try breathwork by themselves?
BB: I’d suggest starting with the free online Wim Hof tutorial (www.wimhofmethod.com/free-mini-class) which is a 25-minute introduction to the process. If you want to work with an instructor, there are thousands of practitioners using various types of breathwork across Australia and New Zealand.
MHM: Why would you recommend breathwork to mental health practitioners? BB: I’d recommend breathwork to any mental health professional interested in improving their self-care. In their line of work, they are exposed to people’s pain every day – more than ever during Covid and they’re probably looking after clients at the more serious end of mental ill-health. Breathwork will help practitioners to look after their own mental health and show up better for their clients. It’s free, it’s easy and it’s accessible.
“There’s usually a web of issues at play.”
2. Upskilling the workforce dealing with complex trauma (mainly in mental health services), vicarious trauma and training focussed on responding to sexual violence and sexual harassment in a range of settings; 3. Advocacy
If a case is challenging or complex for a practitioner, Full Stop Australia can provide advice to them or if need be, provide trauma specialist support and/or help refer their clients to more specialist services.
In fact, when we interviewed Tara, she had just returned from a three day trip to Alice Springs, upskilling mental health professionals and others who work in this field. This included providing information on burnout and warning signs for practitioners to watch out for –especially as they can experience vicarious trauma (see breakout box).
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There are three arms to Full Stop Australia’s work:
Full Stop Australia’s mission is to support any person affected by sexual, domestic or family violence.
Full Stop employs a team of trauma specialist counsellors who believe every person deserves to be listened to and supported in their recovery. The team is led by Clinical and Client Services Director Tara Hunter, who is an accredited Mental Health Social Worker with over 20 years of experience working in the NGO and health sectors.
As part of their advocacy, Full Stop Australia continues to call for greater funding and public awareness of family violence services. In particular, they are pushing for funding of a “Healing Pathways” information hub, a website with educational resources and peer-supported services for those experiencing domestic violence.
Full Stop Australia is pushing for a new model and framework to promote client recovery – the fourth pillar of the National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children (see story p34).
1. Service delivery – predominantly supporting clients via 24/7 helplines or online, as well as some face-to-face counselling;
“Our number one wish is for greater integration of services putting the client at the centre.”
“We offer support to other practitioners who might have complex cases in the trauma space that are hard to “Usuallyunpack.these are long-standing issues and for those clients with mental health issues, if the original trauma is not addressed, any treatment is just putting a Band-Aid on the situation,” Tara said.
“We work across the continuum, not just support after an assault,” Tara said. “In most cases support needs to be ongoing – not just at the point of disclosure which can often be several years after the Taraassault.”saysthere is nothing worse than a client who has taken many years – sometimes decades – to disclose abuse, only to find there are no services to support them in their area.
Full Stop is also committed to upskilling mental health practitioners who are working with clients who have experienced violence or abuse.
“Australia’s trauma recovery network is ‘patchy at best’,” she said. “There are also numerous ‘black spots’ around Australia where specialist services and support are not available.
Originally known as the Sydney Rape Crisis Collective, the organisation was established in 1971 after 500 women met at Redfern Town Hall to find a way to provide support to women who had been raped. Over the past 50 years this service has evolved and expanded to provide nationwide support. In November, the service was renamed to Full Stop Australia with a commitment to putting a full stop to sexual, domestic and family violence.
Calling for a Full Stop to violence across Australia
Another recent initiative at Full Stop Australia is a
“There are definitely more conversations around these issues but we need to do more going forward. Even today we cannot answer all the calls to our helplines.
So, 50 years on from that first meeting at Redfern Town Hall, the fight to support victims of sexual and domestic and family violence continues. Sadly, it’s a community need that shows no sign of waning.
About Tara Tara Hunter is the Director Clinical and Client Services at Full Stop Australia and will be speaking at ANZMHA’s Stop Domestic Violence Conference on the Gold Coast from 30 November to 2 December 2022. She is an accredited Mental Health Social Worker with over 20 years’ experience working in the NGO & health sectors, including managing a NSW Health hospital based sexual assault service that provides a 24/7 psychosocial and medical response for people who have experienced a recent sexual assault.
“From the ground up, we are trying to incorporate survivors’ voices.”
• Be
“Having survivors actively involved in every part of Full Stop Australia’s work – from policy and advocacy to service development - is key,” Tara said.
31 survivor-led advocacy project.
They also provide support for survivor-led initiatives which include a peer-based group that meets at Full Stop Australia with a clinician present to provide debriefing, as needed.
Lastly, Full Stop Australia is advocating for ageappropriate services for children and young people who have experienced violence, especially as child sexual abuse survivors such as Grace Tame have brought many of these issues out into the open.
“When people finally develop the courage to disclose sexual abuse or have waited a long time before they are ready to deal with them, then it just doesn’t sit right that there isn’t always a service available to support them.”
Vicarious trauma is a workplace health and safety issue so be aware of your employment rights and responsibilities •
ready and willing to advocate for your own well-being • Have regular good quality clinical supervision • Build peer networks to debrief and share challenging cases (especially important for those working in small private practices) • Make sure your organisation has plans and budgets devoted to practitioner selfcare and well-being (not just yoga!) • Be clear about the different layers of psychological distress that you are working with • Take leave and holidays regularly • Access Full Stop’s resources for counsellors and health professionals)(https://fullstop.org.au/training/for-professionals Self-care tips for mental health practitioners working with trauma cases
Many years after Heather Nowak received treatment for multiple diagnosis, she runs into one of her psychiatrists at an event, and he expresses surprise that she is still alive.
Clearly, he did not hold much hope for her recovery.
“I was treated in both the private and public systems and sometimes I think more harm was done than good,” she said. “I had so many things done ‘to me’ such as medication, ECT and treatment orders. I never realised I could not be ‘fixed’ and that it would require a great deal of work and effort on my behalf to reach some level of recovery.
For Heather, it was a GP who helped set her on the path to recovery.
Heather says that if people with mental illness are treated as humans first, and that their mental illness and the trauma that sits below it, is understood in terms of environmental factors, then people can start to recover.
Heather bringingNowak:thestrengths of lived experience to SA’s Mental Health Commission
Heather then gained a position in the “Champion’s” program to do the certificate and then went on to deliver the qualifications as an educator in both NSW and SA. She is also a member of the National Consumer and Carer Forum and sits on many mental health reference groups at a national level.
Her advocacy began when she lived in Mt Gambier (South Australia) and joined the local hospital’s consumer advisory group, before getting involved in community-based mental health support services.
Thankfully, Heather did commence her recovery journey, after escaping from the emotionally abusive marriage that was at the root cause of many of her issues. She is now remarried to a wonderful man and uses her many skills and lived experience to help others with mental illness.
“The practical support that she provided was just fantastic and I really started to find who I was again….and that’s when I decided I wanted to turn that horrible journey into something to help people similar to myself,” she said. “My GP did not look at me as an ‘illness’ but was curious about who I was before the onset of my illness,” she said.
This led to attending a conference where she heard peer support leader Sherry Mead speak and she became determined to use her lived experience to support others.
“A friend told me about a group that was advocating at a state level, so I applied and became part of that, and my interest just grew,” Heather said.
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“No one ever asked me what had changed in my life to become so unwell.”
“I gained a position as a peer worker and then I became passionate about getting a qualification. Ultimately, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to inform the development of the national accredited curriculum for peer support.”
“We need to understand that someone’s mental health is impacted by not only how they think but whether they have a roof over their head, whether they have financial stability, whether they have friends. Mental illness has a whole-of-life impact, but we often try to fix it from just a clinical “Aperspective.personwith
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Fast forward to 2020 and Heather was appointed as one of three Mental Health Commissioners for South Australia, playing a vital role in highlighting the value of lived experience and peer support as part of the state’s Mental Health Strategic Plan and Mental Health Services Plan.
the trauma someone has been through, to listen to them and validate their experience, is very important,” she says. “I often tell people that ‘what you are experiencing is a very normal reaction to a life event that may be very However,abnormal’.”
Heather would also like to see more emphasis placed on reducing the stigma around mental health, both in the health sector and amongst the general public. “Even now when I talk about parts of my story in depth, I really struggle, so that self-stigma stays with you forever.”
She would also like services to be more focused on the whole person and their situation, not just their mental illness.
Heather says that in every meeting, conversation and encounter she is “always thinking about what the impact would be on the person receiving this service or information”. She also draws upon her brother’s suicide, and what she has learned from her own experience, to inform suicide prevention “Understandingservices.
“I would like mental health professionals to know that people with lived experience are not a threat to their existence, or someone they need to support. Lived Experience workers have learned and lived resilience and a skill set they can utilise to work alongside them. Lived Experience workers see things through a different lens and should be valued as part of the allied health team.”
lived experience can assist with determining a person’s hierarchy of needs - what problem do we actually need to address first, or at the same time, as their clinical treatment.
One of the most rewarding parts of Heather’s journey has been walking alongside others as a peer worker and training TAFE students undertaking a certificate in peer support.
“We make sure we are getting people at the right point in their recovery to do the training, and just seeing the transformation in some of the students is the best thing ever because they’ve come from a place of being ill and having little hope, to actually realising that they have all these skills that they can apply to helping someone else,” she says.
Heather says a person with lived experience brings more than just empathy and “Ifunderstanding.we’relooking at the mental health lived experience workforce in particular, we bring a human rights and social justice lens, we assist people to make sense of the journey that they have been on, we help them navigate which parts of the system might be helpful and always hold hope that recovery is possible,” she says.
And there is no better living proof of that than in Heather Nowak herself.
Understanding the trauma someone has been through, to listen to them and validate their experience, is very important. “ ”
“GPs and other health professionals should have clear referral options for their patients to access the violence and trauma-informed care they need, and this should wrap around the individual, so they don’t have to go from service to service and retell their story.”
Of particular interest to practitioners working in the domestic violence space will be what funding is dedicated to implementing initiatives under the new National Plan to Reduce Violence Against Women and their Children.
All eyes will be on the Albanese Government when a second Federal Budget is handed down on 25 October 2022.
“At a local level, access would be enhanced through the development of services or “spokes” which are co-located within existing community organisations.
The new National Plan is currently being finalised with the states and territories, after a draft was released for consultation in January 2022.
The new National Plan, which will replace the current plan which expires this year, will be built around the 4 pillars of prevention, early intervention, response and recovery, However, a commitment to promote the recovery pillar of the plan, has been found wanting by a range of mental health and trauma experts including Full Stop Australia chief executive officer Hayley Foster.
“There is a vital need for better access to trauma recovery services for victim-survivors,” Ms Foster said. “We need a national, integrated trauma prevention and recovery model of care for people of all ages and genders impacted by sexual, domestic and family violence.
The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) Violence Psychiatry Network Chair Dr Manjula O’Connor said there was a need to ensure all key health professionals working with survivors of sexual, domestic and family violence, including trauma-trained psychiatrists, are engaged in the further development and delivery of such a model at both the local level and central policy level.
“We need to make sure that women are not being failed yet again and do truly receive the expert help they need to recover in a way that meets their individual needs,” Dr O’Connor said.
Funding gap in ‘recovery’ support for women and children affected by violence
“Similar to our national approach to suicide prevention and response, the proposed model would include a national ‘hub’ which would act as a 24/7 trauma counselling, referral and information gateway providing online resources, as well as workforce training, development and clinical consultation.
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There is now a real recognition that we need to integrate our national plan to end violence against women and children with our national mental health and suicide prevention plans,” Ms Foster said.
Our program is carefully curated for professionals and industry workers to share best practice, encourage multi sectoral collaboration, facilitate meaningful connections, and give real solutions to advance mental health in rural and remote areas Empowering First Nations Australian, Māori and Pasifika Community-Led Change in Social & Emotional Wellbeing Indigenous Wellbeing Conference OUR 2022 CONFERENCES 24 25 Oct 2022 Adelaide Oval SA 10+ hours towards CPD Our mission is to bring First Nations Australian, Māori and Pasifika leaders, mental health professionals and people with lived experience together to progress the wellbeing and mental health of their communities Australia's Leading Event to Improve Mental Health Access & Services in Regional and Remote Communities Rural & Remote Mental Health Symposium A Safer Future is Everybody's Responsibility: How We're Continuing Our Mission for Change STOP Domestic Violence Conference With thousands of Australians at risk of sexual, physical, mental and emotional abuse, it is crucial for our sector to come together as one and provide a unified voice for change Join professionals working in all realms of domestic and family violence at the 2022 STOP Domestic Violence Conference Together, we can break the cycle 9 11 Nov 2022 Hilton Adelaide SA 12+ hours towards CPD 30 Nov 2 Dec 2022 RACV Royal Pines Resort, QLD 12+ hours towards CPD Planning to attend more than one event? Whether you want to attend events in person, online, or opt for a combination, our Silver and Bronze passes give you the flexibility to tailor your mental health conference experience Call our team at +61 7 5502 2068 or find out more at anzmh.asn.au.
linkedin.com/company/anzmha ftwitter.com/anzmha acebook.com/anzmha Follow us on socials: Join Australia's biggest mental health workers network. THE SECTOR FOR THE SECTOR BY
