Program Supplement: Details of Break-out Sessions ... · partnership with the National Mental Health Commission, SANE Australia undertook an initiative to extend the reach of the

Program Supplement: Details of Break-out Sessions – alphabetical by session name

Session Presenter/s Description

A Program of

Substance –

changing

attitudes

through

changing

practice

Thursday 13 July

11.45am

3: Terrace foyer

city side

Donna Quinn, Maree Stallard, Vanessa Vidler WANADA

Maree is Sector Development Manager at WANADA,

drawing on a background in nursing, education and

community services management across WA.

Vanessa is Project Officer and Quality Manager at

WANADA. Vanessa holds a Master in Nutrition and

Dietetics from Edith Cowan University and works to

support AOD services to improve services.

Sector Engagement Coordinator, Donna, has worked

across a range of sectors in Australia and in the UK,

including homelessness services, youth services, mental

health projects and the alcohol and other drug sector.

Despite best intentions, research shows that stigmatised views of workers are a major barrier to

providing optimal and timely care for people with complex needs, including AOD use.

In this interactive workshop, WANADA will describe their Student Placement Program and showcase

the journeys of Allied Health students who will describe personal experiences concerning shifts in

attitude towards people who use alcohol and other drugs.

This presentation also aims to provide attendees the opportunity to explore their own values and

beliefs pertaining to the complex issues of AOD, mental health and stigma. Sharing of ideas, and

debunking myths, the session encourages participants to challenge and redress stigma in their own

practice. This journey is an important one to share as it offers valuable information and experiences

reducing the incidence of stigma. Providing a platform to develop and foster positive attitudes to

carry forward into future practice. Leading to better outcomes for consumers, reducing barriers and

offering more choice in treatment options.

A question of

gender?

Thursday 13 July

4pm

1: Auditorium

Russell Date, psychiatrist

Laura / Remus Short, advocate

Russell Date is a psychiatrist who has been working with

transgender and gender diverse people for many years

in his small private practice in Perth. Laura and Remus

is a transgender androgyne.

Laura comes from a writing background but he works

and volunteers in the community services sector. As

someone who has chosen to pursue their own preferred

level of social and medical transition, Remus now enjoys

being able to share her experiences and educate others

about the existence of transgender and gender diverse

people.

Service providers often perceive the issues that transgender and gender diverse people present with

to be complicated and difficult. Providing them with care in a respectful, positive, welcoming

environment can be a profoundly empowering experience, and can also be extremely rewarding and

satisfying. This session will provide participants with basic knowledge, demystify some of the issues

a ou d the a e of t a sge de a d ge de di e se people, a d i ease pa ti ipa ts a ilit to o k with these individuals.

An Integrated

Life - Lived

Experience of

Dissociative

Identity

Disorder

Friday 14 July

2pm

1: Auditorium

Norah Allison

Norah Allison has lived for many years with Dissociative

Identity Disorder and is works to raise awareness and

demystify the ambiguous and misleading presentation

in the media. She shares her personal insights into what

has worked for her in psychotherapy and will hopefully

work for others who are also living with this diagnosis.

She is currently working full time as a successful and

dedicated secondary school teacher.

The session will begin with a Pecha Kucha presentation that will immerse the participants in the lived

experience of Dissociative Identity Disorder. This will be followed by a brief outline of the reality of

living with the condition and some of the experiences that the presenter has dealt with as she has

experienced the Western Australian Mental Health system. Early treatment of the condition, before

much was known about it, will be explored and then contrasted with the approaches that she and

her clinical psychologist have developed over the course of their work together. A section of an

actual psychotherapy session will be shown to showcase the techniques and their effectiveness. This

session will provide an opportunity to learn more about an often misunderstood condition and the

approaches that have proved most successful in treating it.


Australia

Checked-in on

their Mental

Health - and we

learnt

something

unexpected.

Thursday 13 July

3pm

2: Wardle Room

Peta Slocombe, Vital Conversations

Peta has 20 years’ experience as a Psychologist and is

Director of Vital Conversations. With a passion for

conversations that create change, Peta has diverse

clinical and organisational experience and has lectured

at Post-Graduate levels.

Peta has published journal articles, and “The Vibrant

Workplace (TM) Approach”, described by US Journal

Editor Dr Judah Ronch as a unique and "profoundly

overdue" approach to resolving challenges.

Join us as we deliver the results of the Australia's Biggest Mental Health Check-in project - and

workshop the next steps of Mental Health is this ever changing environment.

Australia's Biggest Mental Health Check-in is a subjective and objective measure of mental health,

wellbeing and the factors that support mentally healthy functioning. Each person who completes the

Check-in received their personalised report with strategies, and education for better mental health -

however they were traveling.

Collectively, The Check-in data provides a snap shot of mental health and psychological function.

Join us as we uncover the data, and then workshop and plan for a future of where mental health is

everyone's business.

Benefits of

recreation

activities on

mental health

and wellbeing

Thursday 13 July

4pm

Wellbeing Zone

Crawford Olney, Brandt Mokaraka, Jonathon Michel

RUAH Community Services

The presenters are Recreation staff at RUAH.

RUAH Recreation Staff give overview of the RUAH Recreation project and how it operates to support

people on a mental health recovery journey to engage in regular recreation activities.

This participative session will include mind- appi g, a d a sho ase of the p og a s e pe ie es including how challenges are overcome and the long term benefits and how this impacts on a lie t s ability to maximized their individual potential. The presentation will also examine the significance of

individualised recreation plan and focused client support rather than a one size fits all approach.

Bringing Colour

to Life

Thursday 13 July

10.45am

Wellbeing Zone

Kalavani Chander, Ruth Foulkes, WHFS

Kalaivani is a single mother of Indian descent. She has

engaged with a variety of programs including fitness

classes, art therapy, CBT and mental health programs at

WHFS. She is engaged in ongoing volunteer work and

shares her life experience to support others through

speaking and peer mentoring. She has continually

identified and prioritised personal goals for recovery

and is an inspiring role model.

Ruth Foulkes (WHFS Social Worker/Counsellor Mental

Health Team), will co-present with Kalavaini and provide

a brief introduction and closing.

Kalaivani remembers wearing only black and being unable to get out of bed. Slowly, with support

from Women s Health and Family Services (WHFS) she began to heal. Kalaivani suffered domestic

violence which triggered PTSD, depression and anxiety. She was socially and culturally isolated but

was able to obtain culturally supportive help at WHFS. Kalaivani will talk about her journey and what

helped her to heal such as the non-judgmental, nurturing environment at WHFS.

Kalaivani vividly remembers how colour began to return to her life. Her first realisation of this was in

a WHFS art therapy session when her pictures started to change from black to colour. In addition to

verbally telling her story and using power point slides she would like to engage conference delegates

in an art activity that reflects the principles of her recovery. After a dark period, with support to feel

safe, Kalaivani reignited a sense of courage and hope and was once again able to invite colour into

her life. Resources will be provided for participants to join her in an activity that provides the

experience that fundamentally informed her recovery.


Building and

Sustaining a

Recovery

Community

Thursday 13 July

2pm

Wellbeing Zone

Amanda Waegeli; Donna Murray, Recovery Rocks

Amanda is the founder of Recovery Rocks Community

Inc. A lived experience practitioner with her own QLD

mental health recovery consultancy, she works

nationally. She won the Mental Health Good Outcomes

Award 2013 for consumer participation, was a national

peer champion and is a published author.

Donna Murray is a founding member of Recovery Rocks

and has lived experience of personal recovery. She is a

talented artist, facilitator and peer support worker.

Donna's dream to build a sustainable recovery farm.

Working together in good spirit, the diverse Recovery Rocks community have come together to

support each other on our recovery journeys. Predominately we have worked holistically under the

radar of larger mental health services in WA. On the fringes, we have just got on with building our

community. We are not a program, service or corporation, but an organic, grass roots community,

rich with real people of lived experience who carry hope that will support personal recovery.

Recovery communities can and do complement formal mental health services, but are seldom

recognised, or valued for what we offer.

In this workshop, we will share how we have successfully achieved positive outcomes through

relationships with each other. For us as a community, what we have created in spirit is a safe space in

which to build healthier relationships which supports lifelong wellness.

Participants, will be invited to explore practical ways of working together, towards creating future

pa t e ships to e ha e e tal health a d ell ei g fo all. We el o e a d alue e e o e s wisdom and input as we collate a collective learning of helpful ways of building and sustaining

recovery communities.

Building better

lives - bringing

the NDIS to

people living

psychiatric

hostels

Friday 14 July

9.30am

4: Terrace foyer,

river side

Kerry Stopher, National Disability Insurance Agency

Kerry Stopher is Director of Engagement at the National

Disability Insurance Agency. The NDIA is responsible for

implementing the National Disability Insurance Scheme

(NDIS). Kerry has worked in the disability sector for

many years in direct service, management and policy

positions. She assisted the Mental Health Commission

to de elop the st ategi f a e o k Me tal Health : Maki g it pe so al a d e e od s usi ess a d

has chaired the Collaboration Steering Group for the

NDIA Psychiatric Hostels Project.

There are five psychiatric hostels in the NDIS Perth Hills trial site. Many residents have severe and

persistent mental health issues and it is difficult to maintain community participation skills and find

decision-making opportunities in hostels.

A steering group of consumers and service providers advised the project in relation to engaging

residents with the NDIS, working collaboratively to assist people to develop and implement

individual plans and sharing learnings across Australia as the NDIS is rolled out.

This session will provide an overview of the project and share their journey and learnings.

Building

Thriving

Communities

Thursday 13 July

2pm

1: Auditorium

Dr Peggy Brown, National Mental Health Commission

Dr Michelle Blanchard, SANE Australia [late change]

Dr Peggy Brown is CEO of the National Mental Health

Commission after being involved in mental health

leadership and advocacy roles for 30 years. Prior to her

appointment with the Commission, Peggy was Chief

Psychiatrist with the Northern Territory Department of

Health. In addition to multiple roles with professional

bodies such as the Royal Australian and New Zealand

College of Psychiatrists, she has held executive level

positions in the public service for more than 20 years,

including 5 years as the Director-General of ACT Health.

Little is known about the impact of participating in online peer support for mental health. In

partnership with the National Mental Health Commission, SANE Australia undertook an initiative to

extend the reach of the SANE Forums and evaluate the effectiveness of this digital strategy.

The Building Thriving Communities initiative sought to build social connectedness and improve

mental health outcomes, with a focus on those living in rural and regional areas. Consumer and carer

expertise has been included at all levels of design and delivery. The initiative was promoted through

a national media campaign, capturing the common experiences of stigma and isolation often

experienced by people living regional and remote areas. The effectiveness of this campaign and the

impact of participation were evaluated in partnership with the University of Sydney. Evaluation

fi di gs ill i fo the Natio al Me tal Health Co issio s ad i e to Go e e t o the ole a d importance of digital health and peer support. In this session, we will co-present the key findings and

share the lived experience stories of those involved in the campaign.


Child Mental

Health:

Pathways to

Change

Thursday 13 July

3pm

3: Terrace foyer,

city side

Sue Jackson, WA Primary Health Alliance Linda Kohler, HealthPathways WA The presenters are all GPs and Clinical Editors at HealthPathways WA.

Sue works at the Kath French Secure unit with children at risk and has worked with Street Doctor + WA Ear Bus.

Linda has practised a range of medical disciplines and is involved in the Dept of Population Health at UWA.

Danielle has worked in paediatrics and is a Medical Advisor on the Medibank team working on piloting and a suite of chronic disease integrated care programs.

Participants will be given an overview of the child mental health pathways and how a pathway is

developed. They will then be divided into small groups and with the support of the HealthPathways

clinical editing team, be guided through the production of a pathway.

The results of these working groups will then form the basis of a published pathway.

Creative Tools

for Health and

Wellbeing

Friday 14 July

11.45am

Wellbeing Zone

Luke Be, Creative Expressionismsismmms

Luke is head misfit, of Creative Expressionismsismmms -

a not for profit organisation that provides a creative

approach to health and wellbeing. He uses his colourful

life experiences, to provide support and services to

different corporate, community and social groups.

In this workshop, we discuss what affects personal health and wellbeing. Then, through a series of

creative exercises, we explore techniques that can improve the way we feel.

Our own health and wellbeing is constantly changing and is influenced by a wide range of factors.

How we feel is a reflection of our own unique experience and an expression of our different wants

and needs. If neglected, these wants and needs will often express themselves through poor health

and longer term issues. To create health and happiness in our lives, we need to create a space to care

for our needs and develop a wide range of skills that will help us achieve our goals

Dear Someone:

Letters of Hope

Friday 14 July

2.30pm

Wellbeing Zone

Licy Be Licy is a rap artist, poet, musician, and peer educator with CoMHWA, Beyond Blue, Save the Children and Suicide Prevention Australia. Having topped Triple J Unearthed Charts, her music has been aired internationally and performed at the Sydney Opera House. She has released several viral suicide prevention videos. Li s ackground is in education, Psychology, and lived experience with depression and suicide.

This workshop engages evidence based music and poetry tools to aid recovery and communicate messages about suicide awareness, aligned with Suicide Prevention Australia messages, including suicide prevention being "e e o e s usi ess". Session includes a poet a d usi pe fo a e Aust alia s Natio al Poet Sla Fi alist – and an evidence based learner tool to prepare participants for conversations about suicide. Dea So eo e o kshops e gages audie e e e s i usi a d poet eatio as a a to e a le participants to overcome the challenges that can be involved in starting conversations about suicide, through self-exploration and a guided process. Participants will be supported to develop their own poe /so g o lette to so eo e i thei life that the eed to ea h out to.

Does

competition

enable or

undermine

mental health

services?

Learning from

Australian

Experience

Friday 14 July

11.45am

1: Auditorium

Amanda Bresnan, Mental Health Australia

Colin Penter, WAAMH

Amanda is the Executive Director of Community Mental

Health Australia and has worked in the non-government

sector for over 14 years. Amanda worked with

Co su e s Health Fo u of Aust alia and Mental

Health Australia. From 2008-2012 Amanda was a

Member of Parliament in the ACT Legislative Assembly.

Colin is a freelance social policy consultant, researcher

and adviser currently working with WAAMH. He has

worked in the not-for-profit sector, for over 30 years.

This session will present learnings from across Australia about the experience of the community

mental health sector with competitive tendering and procurement and individualised funding.

The consequence in many cases has been fragmented services, where the application of competition

a d o testa ilit has t i p o ed se i es. E ide e a out the ad e se i pa t of o petitio o community mental health services formed part of CHMA'S submission to the Productivity

Commission Inquiry on Competition and Informed User Choice in Human Services. Despite adverse

impacts, the use of competition is set to intensify at Federal and State Government levels.

The session will draw on learning from other states and local participants and engage participants to

develop a framework of principles and guidelines to minimise harms caused by competition.


Dramatic Shift:

Growing

mental

wellbeing and

resilience in

the classroom

Thursday 13 July

3.00pm

Conversation

Café

James Gill, Creative Teams Consulting

Since 2000 James "Fish" Gill he has been delivering

programs that grow empathy, resilience and

collaboration for schools, businesses and government.

With WA Dept of Culture and the Arts from 2013-2016

he delivered teacher PD in engaging youth through the

A ts. He oo di ated Ba ki g Ge ko Theat e Co pa s workshop program 2004-2006 including the Harmony

Project that facilitated conversations about racism

through drama and has worked at festivals and events.

Drama has an ability to enable us to try new realities, under the guise of make-believe. Through

dramatic play we can engage students in an authentic conversation about conflict. In simple terms,

resilience is bouncing back when we get out of shape. The session explores the role dramatic action

a pla i de elopi g ke o ditio s fo ou i g a k: a u de sta di g of the a ato o o to all conflict; a sense of empathy based on an understanding of othe s needs; the ability to

positively reframe the situation; the ability to creatively influence the outcome for all characters

involved; and the experience of having respectful relationships and belonging. The workshop models

a progression of drama activities for a year 5 classroom and creates a forum for a facilitated

discussion about a fictional, yet highly realistic conflict. The workshop addresses the Australian

Curriculum General Capabilities (critical and creative thinking, personal and social capability, ethical

understanding and intercultural understanding) and the year 5 Health and Drama curricula.

Effective

responses to

post-suicide

support

Friday 14 July

11.45am

4: Terrace foyer,

river side

Kelly Riley, Anglicare

Kelly Riley is the current Practice Coordinator of

Anglicares metro wide Suicide Prevention services. She

has worked in the social services industry for more than

10 years and has worked across a number of programs

in various roles. She is a qualified youth worker,

counsellor, and lecturer. Her work within the suicide

postvention space has been Integral in the continuation

and implementation of the ARBOR and CYPRESS

programs.

Timely, sensitive postvention helps to normalise grief after suicide, can facilitate identification of

people who may be at risk; reduce depression, complicated grief, and suicide amongst those

bereaved. It can also provide hope for family, friends and loved ones that they will survive the loss.

A gli a e s ARBOR a d CYPRESS p og a s o k to p ese e and maximise the lives of those

bereaved by suicide. There are 260 deaths by suicide each year in WA and an estimated 5-10 people

are intimately affected by each, making them vulnerable to experiencing complicated grief and

depression, heightening suicide risk. This presentation explores postvention approaches and

examples of how they are being implemented in service delivery. Rather than relying on self-referral,

CYPRESS and ARBOR take an active approach where the resources seek the people.

Providing support to those bereaved via an active outreach approach and the important role of peer

supporters (who themselves have lived experience of suicide bereavement) are important

component of postvention support that both services utilise. The presentation will also include

anecdotal evidence that talks to the benefits of using these approaches including a story from a peer

supporter with a lived experience.

E-mental health

care in practice

Thursday 13 July

1pm

5: Assembly

Room

Susanne Bahn, All of Me

Philippa Vojnovic, Anglicare WA

Susanne has lived experience as a carer. She is CEO of

All of Me, which develops mental health applications for

schools, workplaces and care workers. She is passionate

about reducing the negative impacts of mental health

and early intervention. Sue is widely published and a

Telstra Business Women of the Year finalist.

Philippa has lived experience and brings this knowledge

to content development. She is a PhD candidate, has

published on mental health topics and is a 2016 40

under 40 award winner.

Internet and applications are a key medium for reaching young people. Online health-information

seeking has huge potential benefits including:

• eas a essi ilit • a se e of geog aphi al ou da ies • f ee a ess • i te a ti it • pote tial social suppo t • pe so alisatio • a o it a d p i a • pote tial to add ess the gap et ee identified needs and limited resources.

E-mental health care does not hinder traditional treatment. Instead, it appears to be a step in the

help-seeking process. E-mental health care signifies a helpful form of accessing support, particularly

among young people. Growing awareness and recognition of this can enable professionals and policy

makers improve the quality of online information on mental health care as well as to use this fact in

clinical services. Applications that can be used autonomously and therapeutically provides additional

supports. This session includes an interactive component where the delegates may use applications.


Engaging our

Youth in

Mental Health

Care

Friday 14 July

11.45am

Conversation

Café

Chinar Goel, Talia Hayman, YCATT Fiona Stanley Hosp.

Dr Goel is a Consultant Psychiatrist who, prior to FSH

was a Consultant in Mental Health Services in UK, in

Acute Intensive Mental Health settings. She has special

interest in youth and has set up new Youth Community

Assessment and Treatment team (YCATT) at FSH which

has won Rotary Award for Excellence in Community and

Primary Health Care. She is aspiring to take this new

service to a benchmarking standard for other services.

This session will explore the Youth Community Assessment and Treatment team (YCATT) service,

including an overview, Appreciative Inquiry 4-D Process and discussion of issues.

Focus issues will be around 'Lack of engagement of 16-24yr olds with our youth mental health

service' and table discussions will focus on 'Creative ways of overcoming this obstacle'. We have set

up this new mental health Youth service for 16-24yr olds. This multidisciplinary team offers brief 6-8

weeks intensive intervention based on bio-psycho-social model. This has been up and running for 6

months and is the only Youth mental health service in WA. It is a pilot project funded to address the

gap between children and adult mental health services for this vulnerable age group. One of the key

issues we are facing is 'lack of engagement' with this age group.

First appointed

Suicide

Prevention

Coordinators in

Western

Australia:

Review of first

12 months

Thursday 13 July

10.45am

4: Terrace foyer,

river side

Kendra Grace, Shelley O’Brien,

St John of God Health Care

Kendra has Bachelor of Health Science, majoring in

Health Promotion and a Graduate Certificate of Public

Health. She is a JP and previous roles include road safety

and AOD sectors. She is currently the Suicide Prevention

Coordinator in the South West.

Previously a registered nurse working in Prisons and

Schools, since 2008 Shelly has worked as a coordinator

and connector in previous Federal and State Suicide

Prevention initiatives. She is also a facilitator for

Livingworks and Gatekeeper Suicide Prevention training.

Kendra and Shelley share the position of Suicide

Prevention Coordinator in the South West.

The Mental Health Commission has commenced the implementation of Suicide Prevention

Coordinators across the state with the coordinators fulfilling a number of actions identified in the

Suicide Prevention 2020 Strategy. The coordinators act as a central point for communication to

assist services on the ground to work in partnership improving the support and care for those

affected by suicide and suicide attempts. The positions aim to increase local community and service

capacity to identify and respond to suicide and related mental health issues at a local level and the

promotion and coordination of suicide prevention training and activities for at risk groups and

professionals. The SP2020 Strategy refers to the phasing in of coordinators across the state; the

placement of these positions has not been done before in Western Australia. While not working

directly with the community, the coordinators seek to improve coordinated service delivery; improve

postvention responses and care for those affected by suicide and suicide attempts and coordinate

available training programs for community and service providers. There are currently a significant

number of local and regional services providing mental health and suicide prevention programs

within our communities. The coordinators will support these services in working in a more

collaborative and coordinated manner to better meet the needs of our local communities.

Getting

comfortable

with being

uncomfortable –

co producing

government

policy.

Friday 14 July

9.30am

2: Wardle Room

Louise Howe, Mental Health Commission Margaret Doherty, Mental Health Matters 2 Louise is Consumer Advisor at the MHC. She contributes a consumer perspective and supports colleagues with consumer engagement. Louise was a member of the Contributing Life Project Advisory Group, National MHC, Chair of the (WA) Peer Work Advisory Group and currently a member of the Steering Group establishing the Recovery College of WA.

Margaret is the convenor of Mental Health Matters 2, a community action and advocacy group aimed at mental health reform. Margaret's advocacy work is informed by her family's experiences in the WA mental health physical health, drug and alcohol and criminal justice systems. She is a sought-after presenter and has a thirty-year background in education and training.

In reviewing their Consumer, Family and Carer Interim Engagement Policy in 2016, the Mental Health Commission embarked upon a new process of co-production. The previous policies had been drafted with limited input from consumers, families and carers.

How does a government department support the decisions made by a Steering Committee dominated by lived experience? Deliberate planning to understand the context, scope, purpose of the review process provided an effective foundation. Early stakeholder engagement involving lengthy discussions took place before Steering Committee members made solid tangible progress in reviewing the policy. Why was this so and why did it have to be this way? The co-chaired Steering Committee decided to make reviewing the paid participation a priority. Decisions around hourly rate and minimum time were enthusiastically and robustly debated. A description of each tier including practical examples of each tier role was nutted out. Feedback on the draft policy from the wider mental health sector provided the Steering Committee with several contentious issues to discuss and agree on. The policy was endorsed in full by the MHC Corporate Executive and implemented on time. The final result is a robust leadership document that is transferrable to other organisations looking to engage and remunerate consumers, families and carers in respectful way. The ripple effect the development of this policy has had across the mental health sector in continues to surprise.


Healing Out on

Country-

Standing Strong

Together in

Roebourne

Friday 14 July

9.30pm

5: Assembly

Room

Lesley Murray, Mentally Healthy WA

Lesley Murray: Based in Roebourne in the Pilbara region

of Western Australia, Lesley Murray is Mentally Healthy

WA s A o igi al P oje t Ma age . A Koo i o a f o Uralla NSW, Ms Murray has worked in Aboriginal Early

Years for over 11 years and understands the importance

of taking time to build positive relationships by listening

to Elders and the community.

Me tall Health WA s A o igi al P oje t Ma age , Lesle Mu a , ill a a out o ki g i good spi it to de elop Sta di g St o g Togethe i Roe ou e to p o ote emotional wellbeing on the

traditional land of the Ngarluma People. Modelled on Act-Belong-Commit an evidence-based best

practice model for mental health promotion in Roebourne was developed with Aboriginal people.

In collaboration with One Tree Child Community Services, the Healing out on Country project was

developed to provide opportunities for families affected by suicide, grief, and tragic loss. With an

unacceptably high number of suicides for such a small community, these family trips enable parents

to see the joy in their children again while providing agencies a chance to reach and build

relationships with families that would not normally access their services and programs. For many

families, these trips are the first time since the loss that they have spent time together laughing,

relaxing, and e jo i g ea h othe s o pa . Delegates will be asked to contribute to a collaborative

banner, a technique Lesley uses frequently with family and community groups to promote healing

through self-expression and working together. At the conclusion of the session delegates will be

asked to make a pledge to do something for their social and emotional wellbeing.

Hearing Voices

Audio

Simulation

Workshop

Friday 14 July

2.30pm

5: Assembly

Room

Jacqui Day, Corina McSwan, Julie Bairstow

Richmond Wellbeing (Hearing Voices Network WA)

Jacqui is the Coordinator for the Hearing Voices

Network of WA and works to grow the network.

Corina is a trauma survivor, peer worker and facilitator

who hears voices. Through her lived experience Corina

advocates, raises awareness & supports individuals.

Julie is a Peer Worker, facilitating HV Groups, linking in

with hospitals, services providers and carers; raising

awareness as well as overseeing the Psychiatric Hostel

project where residents engage in community activities.

The session will commence with short presentation outlining the Hearing Voices Approach and work

of the Hearing Voices Network. The audience will then be invited to take part in a number of

different hands on activities at various stations around the room. For example this may involve

placing a number of various objects into alphabetical order, following a series of instructions to

create something or answering a questionnaire. However all activities must be completed whilst

wearing a headset containing audio of various voices which are distracting, negative and derogatory

in content.

The aim of these exercises is to highlight how tasks that may appear to be quite simple and not need

an enormous amount of concentration can in fact be incredibly challenging and stressful when voices

are present. Towards the end of the session, we will make time for a brief discussion around how the

participants found the experience and will be able to answer any questions that may arise.

Homelessness

is the next

major MH

issue

Thursday 13 July

11.45am

Conversation

Café

Jonathan Shapiera,

South West Australian Homeless People (swahp)

Jonathan was a corporate IT Manager for over 20 years.

A health / family change left him financially depleted

and eventually he and his teenage son became

homeless, living in their SUV in Darwin, and Perth.

Dealing with homeless suicide issues he wrote a well

received paper to the Federal Senate Economics

Committee on Affordable Housing.

Now housed, Jonathan continues his advocacy,

predominately on the issue of homeless mental health.

Little is being done at the moment for post homeless survivors. Upwards of 80% of those who spend

several years on the street living rough, living in cars, couch surfing etc are finding a significant

problem with depression and anxiety after getting off the street. Many become unprepared to cope

back into the community and emotional depression of their misadventures haunts them post

homeless daily.

A large majority of returns to the street are happening because of the lack of support services and

the inadequate and incorrect follow up of services post homeless. Those who were homeless for

several years and remain in shelter or housing deal with severe depression and anxiety and a greater

sense of worthlessness and inability to fit back into the community because of where they have

been.


Hope HQ: Co-

producing the

Recovery

College of WA,

the journey

continues…………

Thursday 13 July

1pm

4: Terrace foyer,

river side

Pam Gardner; Lyn Mahboub, Richmond Fellowship WA; Louise Howe MHC Pam is an educator and carer who is the Chair of the Recovery College Steering Group + VP of WAAMH. Pam uses her experiences visiting Recovery College overseas to strive for inclusive, mainstream, accessible recovery.

Lyn is a senior manager with Richmond Fellowship WA, drawing on her academic training in Psychology and Cultural Studies and her own lived experience.

Louise is Consumer Advisor at the MHC and was a member of the Contributing Life Project Advisory Group at the National Commission + Chair of the Peer Work Advisory Group. Louise attributes the biggest strides forward in her own recovery to mutual peer support.

A dedicated group of people have been working to establish the Recovery College of WA. Building on

last ea s p ese tatio ; Co-p odu i g a Re o e College i WA , this sessio ill sha e e e t progress. The College hopes to utterly transform lives. It is the missing link between getting well and

living a contributing life. In keeping with co-production principles, every step of establishing the

recovery college has been driven by people with a lived experience. Building on this solid foundation

and supported by Curtin University, WAAMH, and the Mental Health Commission, a steering group

has been progressing the work. This work is underpinned by the values of collaboration,

empowerment, inclusion, inspiration and grace. To progress to the next stage of developing the

educational governance, the course content for the college curriculum needs to be identified. The

steering group is seeking potential students and trainers to identify what would attract them to the

Recovery College, what would create a safe learning environment and what the potential barriers

might be. The WA Mental Health Conference will provide a unique opportunity to work directly

alongside consumers, families and carers, as well as mental health professionals, to continue to co-

produce the Recovery College of Western Australia.

I don’t have a

mental illness –

How pure

advocacy works

for these

consumers

Friday 14 July

12.45pm

5: Assembly

Room

Mike Seward, Mental Health Advocacy Service

Mike Seward is a Senior Mental Health Advocate at the

MHAS. Mike manages 15 advocates for mainly

involuntary consumers. MHAS practices pure advocacy,

advocating for what the consumer wants, empowering

individuals and assisting in their recovery journey. Prior

to MHAS, Mike was the Mental Health Review Board

Registrar and worked for both Helping Minds and

WANADA as Executive Director and for two Divisions of

General Practice as CEO.

MHAS Advocates assist over 2,000 involuntary WA consumers a year. Each one of these interactions

i ol es ad o ati g fo a d suppo ti g o su e s to get, ot hat s i thei est interests (except

fo hild e , ut hat the a t. This is alled pu e ad o a a d fo the o su e it s e powerful. A number of i olu ta o su e s do t elie e the ha e a e tal ill ess. Ad o ates employ the ROC principle when talking to consumers Rights, Options, Consequences. For those who

do t elie e the ha e a e tal ill ess, telli g the the ha e ights to a eeti g ith thei psychiatrist, to a second opinion or to request a Mental Health Tribunal hearing is quite empowering.

The session will explain how MHAS does its pure advocacy. It will quote examples of how this has

assisted o su e s ho do t elie e the ha e a e tal ill ess to e o e and invite the audience

to share stories and views.

I give, you give -

showcasing

working in the

Kimberley

Thursday 13 July

10.45am

5: Assembly

Room

Jacob Tyndall, Anglicare WA

Jacob Tyndall has spent many years working with

remote WA Aboriginal communities and is currently

employed as StandBy Coordinator West Kimberley,

Anglicare WA. He has been fortunate to sit at the feet of

very special people, ngangkari – the clever ones and is

mindful of his responsibility to transfer this acquired

knowledge to facilitate the necessary healing.

Kimberley suicide rates are much higher than elsewhere in Aust alia.. A gli a e WA s Sta dB Sui ide Response Service realises that for Aboriginal people grief is not a solo journey but spans families,

language and skin groups. We also appreciate that trust is hard earned, but paramount.

This presentation will sho ase Sta dB Ki e le s p oa ti e app oa h to espo di g to sui ides, and how the team integrates community led solutions into service delivery. Responses are developed

collaboratively with Elders and steeped in respect. Since postvention is also prevention, actively

engaging with community organisations, reinforces positive messages about obtaining support after

a suicide. Community participation in culturally inclusive activities is another important strategy.

Jointly presented by the StandBy Coordinator and an emerging local Leader, Jacob and Steven will

use film and photos to tell their shared narrative of intervening to prevent more suicides.


Images of

Recovery:

Young people

tell their stories.

Thursday 13 July

2pm

3: Terrace foyer,

city side

Jennifer Griffiths, YouthLink

with multiple Youth Representatives

This presentation has multiple contributors.

All are young people aged between 13 and 24 years,

who are accessing Youth Mental Health services, and

are participants in the Youth Reference Group of YMH.

Australia's young people are diverse and come from a range of backgrounds, yet there are common

themes arising in the lives of young people who experience significant trauma and homelessness.

Youth Mental Health services such as YouthLink have a framework which supports diversity and

promotes participation of young people aged 13-24 from diverse backgrounds and with multiple

needs.

In this presentation we will outline some of the practices and environment within Youth Mental

Health Services which serve to enhance accessibility and responsiveness of youth services to young

people with complex mental health and psychosocial difficulties and barriers to accessing

mainstream mental health services. Such barriers typically include homelessness and transience,

trauma histories leading to chaotic and highly at risk lives, diverse gender and sexuality, and cultural

barriers including Aboriginal identity. The benefits of this accessible and responsive model will be

showcased with a PechaKucha presentation in which young people will describe their recovery

journey with photography images and storytelling. Their autobiographical journeys will document the

transitioning from mental health problems and homelessness towards empowerment and hope. The

images and stories will document the challenges of adversity and vulnerability and their process of

change to living life with authenticity and dignity, with the support acceptance and safety provided

by Youth Mental Health.

Improving

Mental Health

in Remote

Communities

Friday 14 July

11.45am

5: Assembly

Room

Tanya Finnie, RedHead Communications

Tanya is an expert in building relations and installing

confidence in individuals. She assists organisations to

grow their human capital and increase cultural

intelligence. Tanya has extensive lecturing and

facilitation experience, as well as conducting

professional development, implementing leadership

programs and executive coaching. She is currently doing

a Masters in cultural intelligence (CQ).

A practical Case study on changing the mindset in remote indigenous communities. The presenter

spent one year FIFO working with local communities and local Elders in the Fitzroy Crossing area with

the initial brief to create leaders and motivate communities.

Hear the stories on what worked and what didn't and why CQ (cultural intelligence) plays an

important role to create trust and rapport and ultimately create sustainable change. Get a better

understanding of our integrated lives as Government, local communities and corporates in remote

communities.

Innovative

Youth Mental

Health Service

meeting the

diverse needs of

Youth

Thursday 13 July

4pm

5: Assembly

Room

Jason Ellis, Youth Mental Health Program

Jason Ellis is a Youth Mental Health manager, with a

history of leading clinical services that make a

difference. He has previously worked in various Mental

health sector roles for both non-government and

government agencies. He played a key role in the

implementation of Youth Axis as the inaugural Team

Leader and the headspace Youth Early Psychosis

Program as the inaugural Operations Manager.

North Metropolitan Mental Health has provided services for at-risk young people with since 1993.

Through a range of clinical services, YouthLink, YouthReach South, Youth Axis, Youth HiTH a d Youth W apa ou d , p o ides a a ge of se i es such as early intervention, psychological therapy, acute

inpatient, assertive outreach, wrap around care and case management. These services work best in

collaboration with the young person, families and other service providers.

This presentation will highlight the innovative practices and service improvements in Youth Mental

Health in response to the emerging needs of youth in Western Australia. The presentation will

showcase the outcomes of a number of the se i es i ludi g the su essful Youth W apa ou d service and refer to the implementation of other key initiatives that have improved access and

service delivery to vulnerable and marginalised young people with mental health difficulties.


Is it PC or not

PC? Language

and its deeper

meaning

Friday 14 July

2.30pm

4: Terrace foyer,

river side

Lyn Mahboub, Richmond Wellbeing; Kerry Hawkins, WAAMH; Helping Minds; Emerging Minds Sophie Ridley, Dr Robyn Martin; Curtin University Lyn, Clinical/Professional Fellow, Lecturer & Lived Experience Academic Curtin University, is the Valuing Lived Experience Project (VLEP) Lead. Lyn draws on her lived experience and professional expertise.

Sophie has been a part of the VLEP since 2015 and her Social Work Honours research is in lived experience participation in tertiary education. Her current PhD is on culture change and reform in mental health services.

Robyn has been working to privilege learning from lived experience since 2010. Her teaching and research interests include personal recovery, homelessness, trauma, feminist approaches and coproduction.

Kerry s extensive MH experience, is complemented by her professional career, including as a project management consultant at KPMG, a school teacher, and an advisor for the National Native Title Tribunal. Kerry is the WAAMH Chair, vice president of Helping Minds and WA director for Emerging Minds.

While cries for reform of responses to mental distress have occurred since the 1800s the current

mental health consumer / survivor movement grew out of the 1970s Civil Rights Movement. Early

activists were driven by the desire to highlight oppressive psychiatric and legal practices.

Discussion and debate continues about the nature and language of mental distress. We seek the right

to a e ou o e pe ie es, e that e tal ill ess , ps ho-spi itual isis , e iste tial isis o ad ess . Mad p ide a ti ists e lai la guage i o de to u settle a defi it ased a d de alued

experience to one which proudly embodies diverse human experiences.

This o kshop ill d a f o Cu ti U i e sit s Li ed E pe ie e Edu ato s u it a d p o ide a opportunity to actively engage with, and reflect upon, the usefulness of highlighting and unpacking

contested language. Participants will engage in a series of activities which explore and unsettle

various terms while respecting and honouring individual choice in diverse frameworks of

understanding. A key principle underpinning this workshop is the recognition that we come to use

language via a number of routes. For example, we may have been enculturated into using certain

terms as a result of our experiences being interpreted and diagnosed by others, or we may have

chosen language based on its personal usefulness. We respect the right of all people to use the

language they choose. At the same time, we seek to highlight the background as to why certain terms

ha e ee a d a e o tested a d de ated. We a gue that it is ot a out ei g PC , athe it is a out having access to information surrounding the debate, the history and the meaning of words we use,

and questioning how dominant ideas and understandings came to exist.

Laughter as

Therapy

Friday 14 July

2pm

Wellbeing Zone

Janni Goss Jani.Goss.com

Janni is a speaker, wellbeing educator and author. A

former lecturer at the School of Physiotherapy at Curtin

University, her professional interests include child

health, o e s health, e tal health, A o igi al emotional wellbeing and Laughter Therapy.

With her own lived experience, Janni has worked on

outsmarting stress and improving wellbeing. Inspired

by Dr Patch Adams, Janni trained with Dr. Madan

Kataria (Laughter Yoga Intl) and is an accredited

Laughter Yoga Leader, Teacher and Ambassador.

We need to take responsibility for our own wellbeing throughout life, based on self-awareness, self-

respect and even just self-preservation! Our body is an amazing organism which deserves our best

care. However, when stressed, the healing and regenerative systems cannot work competently.

In this interactive workshop, learn the difference between red brain and green brain and how to use

mindfulness and neuroplasticity to strengthen the positive pathways in your brain. Healthy lifestyle

choices are crucial for our body, mind and spirit. Laughter is one of the most accessible, cost-

effective remedies to reduce stress, boost immunity and contribute to health. Research shows that

Laughter reduces the stress hormone, cortisol and provides a DOSE of hormones with positive effects

and enhances relationships and improves productivity in the workplace. The effects of Laughter Yoga

for PTSD will be discussed. We will explore the Laughter Prescription, so prepare to fully participate

in the benefits of Laughter Yoga! Is Laughter the Best Medicine? Try a dose and find out!


Lived

Experience In

Education: Our

"A-ha!"

Moment

Thursday 13 July

1pm

Conversation

Café

Patricia Tan, Valuing Lived Experience Project

The presentation is delivered by students who

completed the Lived Experience Educator unit from the

pioneering VLEP project, at Curtin University.

The group consists of individuals with lived experience

who come from a variety of backgrounds within the

mental health sector.

Through the emerging practice of utilising lived experience in education, a group of graduates from

the Project share about their experience of undertaking education through a lived experience lens.

Empowering the personal lives of students, the group reflects on the unit, which stretched their self-

concept and understanding of of recovery. Redefining mental distress and rebuilding the concept of

recovery within various frameworks, the group has learned to truly value their lived experience and

operate from their true selves.

The group share in an open panel about their lived experience and the various perspectives they

learned. The group provides an open and honest dialogue within a safe sharing space as they

encourage audience involvement and invite others to share their lived experience within the theme

of education. The session is interactive and allows consumers and professionals alike to ask questions

they might have about the process of learning for a consumer and how to acknowledge and utilise

the voice of lived experience within formal settings.

Low Threshold

and Change –

Responding to

the mental

health

challenges of

chronic rough

sleeping in

Perth

Friday 14 July

2pm

3: Terrace foyer,

city side

Niall Rhatigan, Trevor Norton, Kevin Bright

St Vincent de Paul Society WA

Niall Rhatigan is the State Manager for Practice

Development at the St Vincent de Paul Society of WA.

Trevor Norton is a Clinical Nurse Specialist for the

Mobile Clinical Outreach Team and a Nurse Practitioner

in Mental Health.

Kevin Bright is a Clinical Nurse Specialist for the Mobile

Clinical Outreach Team.

This presentation outlines the benefits of a relationship based approach to grass roots service

delivery. TFH and MCOT will talk about the development of the relationship between the services,

any stumbling blocks and how it works now.

Tom Fisher House is a twelve bed service offering seven nights of safe sleep. The service philosophy is

built around a Low Threshold and Change (DePaul International) approach to reduce the barriers in

accessing a safe place to sleep. For many service users this allowed them the space to take on some

of the challenges they face each day. By connecting with service users of TFH after two or three

nights of safe sleep, MCOT are able to formulate a plan of support with the person. The MCOT Team

is part of the Street to Home program and is the only service in Perth which provides treatment solely

with rough sleepers with severe and persistent mental illnesses. Members have therefore developed

a high level of expertise in the area of clinical care for this population. Although closely tied to the

public mental health system, clinicians are able to work flexibly to provide appropriate individual

treatment to its clients and provide support to the NGOs in the area.

Making the

lived experience

meaningful

within MHS –

The Peer

Workforce

Thursday 13 July

11.15am

2: Wardle Room

Patricia Tran, Hayley Solich

North Metropolitan Health Service - Mental Health

Hayley is Peer Work Coordinator + Consumer

Consultant, NMHS with her own lived experience, along

with being an author, and speaker. A member of the

National Register for MH Australia, Carers WA, WAAMH

and CoMWHA, Hayley is a Trustee for the Mazzella Trust

and Founder of Women Can International Inc.

Patricia is a Peer Wk Coordinator with lived experience.

She believes hope is the most important tool worker

has and has worked in various health roles including

tertiary, community, and aged care. Trish is also

completing her Cert IV in Mental Health (Peer Support).

This session will provide a lively overview of the Lived Experience (Peer) Workforce and provide

practical information for those considering implementing a peer workforce within their own

organisation. This will include a brief history of the workforce, the operational structures currently in

place, and the avenues the NMHS MH - Adult Program has undertaken to successfully embed these

roles within service delivery in the inpatient and community mental health services.

Presenters will reflect on the positive experiences and the benefits, the challenges and how they

have been overcome, as well as her thoughts on the broader workforce developments and vision for

the lived experience workforce in the future.


Marriage and

mental health.

Friday 14 July

9.30am

Conversation

Café

Dave Crispin, Valere Coaching Perth

Dave Crispin is an international coach and relationship

educator working globally both online and from his

offices in Perth and Hong Kong. A certified Psycho

education facilitator, therapist and relationship coach,

Dave is also a speaker and ambassador for Beyond Blue.

The pressures on a marriage when one or both partners are experiencing a mental health problem

are well documented, If left unchecked the situation can quite easily escalate leading to divorce,

separation or domestic disputes. How do you recognise that the relationship is becoming fractured?

Would you know what to do if the signs were evident? Understanding that a relationship breakdown

will further fuel the mental health problems, learn what to look for but also what steps to put in

place to offer help and support. The presenter has worked in the areas of both mental health and

relationship education across a diverse range of cultures both here and overseas.

Measuring

physical health

outcomes in

mental health

Thursday 13 July

4pm

2: Wardle Room

Adrian Munro, Richmond Wellbeing

Adrian has worked in a range of Human Service sectors,

including Hospitals, Private Practice and Community

Health Care in Aged, Disability and Mental Health.

Initially this was as a Physiotherapist, before moving

into managerial positions and urrently works as the

Executvie Manager of Operations at RW. He has sat on

the Sunshine Coast Mental Health Executive Council,

the Board of the Community Housing Coalition of WA

and the. Adrian currently sits on the National NDIS

Transition Reference group and the WA NDIS Advisory

Council. He is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of

Company Directors and has completed a Post graduate

Diploma in Health Service Administration. Adrian is very

passionate about social justice and supporting the most

marginalised and disadvantaged people in the

community.

RW has embarked on implementing a comprehensive physical health and wellbeing framework

across its services. This increases its focus on providing holistic services to consumers, in partnership

with a broad range of service partners. This will include GP's, Allied Health, preventative health,

condition disease self management and significant consumer health and wellbeing education.

Implementing these services is imperative to ensure better health outcomes for individuals, but in

order to affect cultural change an subsequently redirect funding, we must measure and analyze our

outcomes and report on these.

RW will be utilizing a range of validated and reliable assessment approaches to measure the impact

of this new framework and these will be discussed in the presentation. Some are profession specific,

such as increased mobility or cardiovascular endurance in Exercise Physiology, and some are broader

in nature, such as providing better coordinated services with greater service coverage. All of these

outcome measures work together to provide a complete picture of the physical health and wellbeing

improvements of consumers and validate the approach in evidence. Only through providing

evidence can we engage other sectors and professions in mental health and affect true and lasting

culture change in our services and redirect funding across health services.

Mental Health

& Post

Homelessness

Friday 14 July

2pm

Conversation

Café

Trevor Norton, MCOT

Trevor is Clinical Nurse Specialist with the Mobile

Clinical Outreach Team and Nurse Practitioner with

North Metropolitan TAFE.

When people talk about homelessness, phrases su h as e tal health , d ug use , fa il iole e , t au a , po e t et . a e o o . While these issues a e eal, the la els e o e

meaningless when working with them to escape their periods of sleeping rough on the streets.

This presentation will e a i e the o ept of e tal health issues i the p ese tatio s of homeless people. In order to assist an individual with their recovery, we need to first determine what

the illness is then design appropriate individualised treatment to aid their recovery. There is now

published research from Australia as well as data collected in Perth and Fremantle, around the

mental health of people who are sleeping rough. This data will be presented and questions from the

audience will work to further enlighten the experience of these people. The presentation will discuss

the most prevalent of mental illnesses experienced by people who are sleeping rough in Perth and

Fremantle areas. The experiences of two individuals will be presented. These will support the idea

of the necessity of a correct diagnosis being made prior to the appropriate provision of care. The

reality of past trauma in the lives of these individuals underlies much of their disconnectedness.


Mental Health

Complaints in

Western

Australia

Thursday 13 July

11.45am

5: Assembly

Room

Sarah Cowie, HaDSCO

Sarah has worked in the complaint handling profession

for over 15 years. Before her role as HaDSCO Director

she was Assistant Director at the Ombudsman WA.

Sarah recognises the inherent value derived from

effective complaints resolution and the opportunities it

brings. Given that for any single complaint,

recommendations can be made that provide far

reaching benefits for others who access similar services

in the future.

HaDSCO provides a complaints resolution service for complaints about mental health services in WA.

We also manage health and disability complaints too.

The session will provide an opportunity to raise awareness of our Office and ensure delegates are

aware of the services we provide.

Through the sharing of de-identified complaints information received by our Office, we will provide

an overview of the top issues, demographics of complainants and resolutions achieved. Case study

examples will be used to showcase the type of complaints received by our Office, and the outcomes

we achieve for the individual as well as wider service improvements.

Mental Health

Co-Response

Trial - WA Police

and Mental

Health

Practitioners

working in

partnership on

the frontline.

Thursday 13 July

3pm

4: Terrace foyer,

river side

Stuart Mearns, WA Police

Nikki Rajakaruna, ECU

Stuart Mearns is an Inspector with the Western

Australia Police and the Project Manager for the Mental

Health Co-Response Trial. He is responsible for the

delievery and management of the trial. Stuart has over

20 years policing experiencing in both metropolitan

Perth and Regioanl WA.

Nikki Rajakaruna is a researcher in the Sellenger Centre

for Research in Law, Justice and Social Change at Edith

Co a U i e sit . Nikki s p i a fo us in the Centre is

policing research.

WA Police Mental Health Co-Response Trial is a partnership between WA Police, WA Mental Health

Commission and WA Department of Health in response to calls to WA Police for assistance.

Evaluation by Edith Cowan University.

• Histo of poli i g a d e tal health. Wo ld ide p a ti es poli e i espo di g e tal health incidents.

• Cu e t u e s a d t pe of mental health tasks that WA Police respond to.

• D i e s fo ha ge D i e s fo ha ge a d i flue i g fa to s fo ha i g the Co-Response Trial

• T ial Ai s Suppo t de isio aki g, e ha ed a ess to e tal health assess e t, i p o ed collaboration, reduce risk of injury, early diversion and reduced recidivism.

• E pla atio of ea h ope atio al ele e t of the t ial • E aluatio p o ess to dete i e effe t of poli e a age e t of e ou te s • Results o ths of t ial esults. Both ualitati e a d quantitative.

• Futu e di e tio of the Me tal Health Co-Response Trial.

Mental Health:

The Lived

Experience

Friday 14 July

12.15pm

4: Terrace foyer,

river side

Chris Jeffery, Emeritus Professor Bob Ziegler, Jeanette Ward, Glenda and Bronte Parkin, COTA WA Bob has held positions in both medicine and education. He has worked at universities in USA and WA as a visiting Professor. He was also a Science consultant with UNESCO and with an Aid program in Pakistan.

James Ward passed away in 2015 after living for nearly ea s ith Pa ki so s Disease a d the de e tia.

His daughter Jennette became his primary carer and advocate. After taking a career break in 2016, Jennette is now working for COTA WA.

Glenda Parkin was diagnosed with dementia 7 years ago. She and husband-carer Bronte are Dementia

Advocates fo Alzhei e s Aust alia AA . Gle da is a former teacher, lecturer and school principal; and Bronte was a senior education official.

COTA would like to present a 60 Minute World Café based on the lived experience of 3 case studies

as follows:

• A pe so li i g ith a pa t e ho is e pe ie i g Alzhei e s. Both the a e the hus a d a d the person would participate

• A pe so ho is e a ti e a d elde l a d ho has so e i sights i to staving off mental health

issues such as depression and social isolation

• A pe so ho is p o e to dep essio a d hose pa t e is o i a eside tial fa ilit e ause of mental illness and how her life has been disrupted by these circumstances.

The over-arching question would be: how can these people be best supported by society as a whole

and health professionals in particular?


My Treatment,

My Directive

Thursday 13 July

1pm

1: Auditorium

Hannah Harbinson WAAMH

Since completing her postgraduate degree in

Psychology, Hannah has enjoyed working as a Consumer

Mental Health Advocate for the Victorian Mental Illness

Awareness Council (VMIAC), the Independent Mental

Health Advocacy service (IMHA) and representing the

views of female consumers as a board member at the

Wo e s Me tal Health Net o k Vi to ia.

In WA, Hannah has worked as a Mental Health Team

Facilitator and Peer Worker at AVIVO, ICLS Peer

Coordinator at CoMHWA. At WAAMH she coordinated

Increasing Member Participation: Advocacy and Co-

Design Training and Towards Elimination of Restrictive

Practice 11th National Forum.

She is autho of De og aphi isk fa to s fo al ohol-elated agg essio i a d a ou d li e sed e ues a d

consumer author of a state- ide pu li atio Guide to Adva e State e ts . She is p oud e e of the consumer movement.

If a person is required to have compulsory mental health treatment, an Advance Directive is a way to

record their treatment preferences, opinions and wishes in a way that all key stakeholders can access

and understand. Drawing on her experience on the MH Advance Statement Project Workforce Focus

Group and Consumer Guide to the use of Advance Statements for VMIAC, Hannah presents this

workshop, offering WA participants the benefits of the Victorian experience.

This interactive workshop explores the use of Advance Directives in clinical mental health settings as

a medium for the consumer voice. Advance Directives help to embed supported decision making, as a

recovery orientated practice by assisting people to participate and in decisions about their treatment,

care and recovery. It is a safeguard for the consumer voice and helps to embed co-design practices

into everyday clinical treatments. Modelling International and National best practice, this workshop

will explore the three complementary aspects of Advance Directives. These being, promotion of

consumer autonomy, co-designed therapeutic alliances and integration of holistic care. Currently,

Advance Directives in Western Australian psychiatric settings are an underutilised practice and this

workshop aims introduce it as an emerging practice. Participants will be asked to help create a living

document that showcases the benefits of an Advance Directive by sharing personal stories and

experiences where such a document would have helped in their treatment and recovery. While

providing information and education, templates, tips and tricks, this 60 minute workshop will include

the voice of lived experience in WA.

No integrity. No

respect.

Rethinking

organisational

values at

Lifeline WA

Thursday 13 July

10.45am

Conversation

Café

Leighton Jay, Sotica

Lorna MacGregor, Lifeline WA

Leighton is Principal of Sotica, a management

consultancy working with human services organisations.

Lorna is CEO of Lifeline who has held senior roles in

both organisations including HBF, Healthdirect

Australia, Activ and Perth North Medicare Local. Lorna

has an MBA specialising in strategic marketing and

strategic planning has held many voluntary roles related

to her commitment to working for social benefit.

This session explores a values creation process that enhances the health and wellbeing of

organisations.

Of Gods and

Madness -

Recovering the

Dignity or our

Souls

Friday 14 July

9.30am

3: Terrace foyer,

city side

David Kernohan, Mental Health Law Centre

David is CEO of MHLC but used to be a Minister of

Religion. He trained as a Mental Health Nurse at

Graylands Hospital and held senior management

positions in the Community Services Secto. For 20 years

he worked with men who were homeless and had

complex needs. In the last 5 years he has been working

in the Community Legal Sector.

Recovery is about rediscovering meaning and purpose in life, and a positive sense of self. To achieve

this, recognition must be given to the journey of our souls to re-create a sense of hope and trust.

This session will look at the - links between mental illness and spiritual experience; - importance of

chaos for the growth of the soul; - soul's journey towards dignity; and - lessons the soul teaches us in

our journey towards re-discovering a sense of self. While the session will draw upon religious

traditions for examples of psychological process involved in the soul's journey it will not take a

particular religious or theological view or perspective.


Overcoming Barriers to Inclusion for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people in Rural & Remote Primary Mental Health Care

Session cancelled

Partners in Care

- This is our

experience

Thursday 13 July

10.45am

3: Terrace foyer,

city side

Debbie Childs, Helping Minds

Patrick Hardwick, Mental Health Carers Australia +

Helping Minds

Debbie is CEO of HelpingMinds and leads a team of 80

to deliver quality support services. With lived

experience as a Carer, Debbie is a passionate advocate

and has been a member of the steering committee

de elopi g the atio al guide: A P a ti al Guide fo o ki g ith Ca e s of People ith a Me tal Ill ess .

Patrick is a carer, passionate about enhancing services

for carers / families and advocating their rights. Patrick

is Deputy Chair of the Private Mental Health Consumer

Carer Network - Australia. He is a Director of Mental

Health Australia, Vice-President of Mental Health Carers

Australia and President of HelpingMinds.

The discharge from hospital following an admission for mental illness has long been a cause for

concern to consumers and also their families and carers. Ensuring the right supports are in place prior

to discharge is essential for better outcomes. However, this does not always happen. Utilising " A

Practical Guide for Working with Carers of People with a Mental Illness" we will identify ways to

engage consumers, families and carers in discharge planning following a hospital admission. This will

be an interactive session where everyone has an opportunity to discuss their lived experience. We

will then look at ways to improve these experiences to assist the whole of family recovery

journey. In the guide, Partnership Standard 1 identifies the essential role that carers and families

can play in assisting clinicians and the consumer when they are involved from the outset. They have

known the consumer prior to them becoming unwell and can provide valuable insight for support

services. This session will allow consumers, carers, families and clinicians to identify for themselves

better ways of engaging and working together for improved outcomes utilising the triangle of care

model. This session will allow clinicians a better understanding of practical steps they can take to

ensure (in their practice) they engage families and carers effectively. For Families and Carers this will

also be an awareness raising session allowing them to understand their rights as carers.

Personal

Recovery - The

missing link:

The social

determinants of

mental distress,

individualization

+ social justice

Thursday 13 July

11.15am

5: Assembly

Room

Lyn Mahboub, Richmond Wellbeing

Lyn is a senior manager with Richmond Fellowship WA,

drawing on her academic training in Psychology and

Cultural Studies and her own lived experience.

Whilst national policy and frameworks guide mental health reform toward Personal Recovery

frameworks, there remains a danger of narrowing the lens to an individualistic focus only. A narrow

fo us o l o the depa t e t of the i te io a i ad e te tl e de the so ial o ld that the person is living in, invisible. For example, a person experiencing poverty, unemployment and or

domestic violence and so forth could fi d the sel es i ited to just do so e CBT , a d possi l e e la ed if the a e ot e gagi g ith t eat e t, if the fi d thei life p o le s too o e hel i g.

We argue that the increasing focus on the individual (effectively individualising social problems) lets

politicians and funders off the hook for addressing social issues. This paper, seeks to explore the

critique of dominant recovery and resilience discourses which are based on medicalized and

neoliberal notions of individual responsibility and unpack some of the implicit assumptions that lie

within them. Following, Harper and Speed (2012), we seek to spotlight the impact of intersectional

and structural inequality and injustice on emotional and psychological distress.


Relational

Recovery:

Moving beyond

individualism in

the recovery

approach

Friday 14 July

11.45am

1: Auditorium

Bradley Morgan, Emerging Minds and COPMI initiative

Angela Obradovic, COPMI national initiative

Brad is Director at Emerging Minds and the Children of

Parents with a Mental Illness (COPMI) national

initiative. Bradley has the privilege of in-depth working

partnerships with families, government and the sector.

professional bodies.

Angela has worked in clinical adult mental health as a

mental health social worker for 23 years, and has been

involved with the COPMI initiative since 2002. As Chief

Social Worker for an Area Mental Health Service in

Victoria, Angela has led implementation of the Family

Consultation and Multiple Family Group Models, Parent

and Child Pee Suppo t P og a s a d the Let s Talk about Children intervention. Her recent research has

included evaluation of cross-sectoral approaches to the

care of families where a parent has a mental illness.

The recovery approach has influenced mental health policy and practice locally and internationally.

The recovery approach centres on personal recovery, which aims at living a meaningful, hopeful, and

contributing life, even within on-going limitations caused by mental health problems. While the

recovery approach currently enjoys enormous support, it is not without its critics. The most

persistent criticisms have focused on the individualistic worldview underpinning most

conceptualisations of recovery.

A number of commentators have argued that the recovery approach pays insufficient attention to

the social, cultural and structural processes that enable wellbeing, and have called for more

relationally-oriented conceptualisations of recovery. For many people living with mental ill-health,

the family is the most important relational context. Estimates have indicated that over 50% of people

with severe mental ill-health have daily contact with family member/s, and roughly 20% live with

dependent children. It is rarely possible to separate their personal recovery journey from their roles

and relationships within the family. This panel discussion will discuss the theory, practice, policy and

lived-experience perspectives on relational recovery. The panel will also encourage participants to

start a dialogue in their own personal, peer, professional and organisational networks about how we

can place families and relationships at the heart of mental health recovery.

Research as

Intervention -

Looking

Forward,

Moving Forward

Friday 14 July

2.30pm

3: Terrace foyer,

city side

Michael Wright, Curtin University

Michael is a Yuat Nyoongar man. He has worked as a

hospital-based social worker and as a mental health

service manager. His 2010 PhD investigated issues of

access to Mental Health services by Aboriginal. The

Looking Forward Project (2011-2015) expands on his

PhD.

Michael holds a Fellowship position at Curtin University.

He is also a member of the Mental Health Advisory

Council to the WA Mental Health Commission and a

committee member of the Lowitja Institute's workforce

program. Dr Wright works in partnership with

Nyoongar families, mental health and AOD service

providers, the MHC, Curtin University and the Telethon

Kids Institute. Michael is a member of the Mental

Health Advisory Council (MHAC).

The emergence of Aboriginal researchers into the public health research sector presents a challenge

to what have traditionally been Western-based research approaches and practices. Among these

challenges are those owed to the distinctive and different ways of knowing or worldviews that

regularly characterise members of these distinctive cultural groups.

Globally, there are many distinct Indigenous approaches, however this panel discussion will focus on

Australian Indigenous worldviews and the ways that these have been shaped by Colonial practices,

systemically and structurally. By exploring the concept of Indigenous worldviews, and how power

imbalances occur between these and more mainstream alternatives, attention will be directed to

how such imbalances continue to present major challenges for public health practitioners and

researchers.

Research is a form of intervention. Research as intervention needs to be transformational by both

e gagi g a d e po e i g the sile ed oi es.


Share Your Act-

Belong-Commit

Story: Mental

Health

Promotion in

Schools

Friday 14 July

9.30am

Wellbeing Zone

Phoebe Joyce, Mentally Healthy WA

Phoe e Jo e is Me tall Health WA s Health Promotion Coordinator (Schools). She has a degree in

Exercise and Health Science from the University of

Western Australia and is working towards her Masters

in Psychology at Curtin University. Phoebe enjoys

playing netball and is currently volunteering for Special

Olympics Basketball in WA.

The evidence-based Act-Belong-Commit campaign shows that progress in mental health outcomes

can be made by promoting behaviours that build and maintain good mental health. Adapting the

campaign for school settings, the Mentally Healthy Schools Program has been rolled out across WA.

The success of this best practice model for school mental health promotion is evident in its popularity

with the number of partner schools signing up well exceeding expectations. As an introduction to

Act-Belong-Commit and the Mentally Healthy Schools Program, Coordinator Phoebe Joyce, will enlist

delegates to participate in a mentally healthy activity while completing the Mood Diary Activity to

demonstrate, with real-life e a ples, the p og a s i pa t o stude ts a d staff, i ludi g those with lived experience.

As stated by one student, If ou get i ol ed, ou do t feel alo e. M sta t to high s hool ha ged f o a s a ti id tiptoe to feeli g like I as pa t of s hool life, ha i g fu a d getti g fit. Tea he s ha e also oti ed a ha ge i s hool ultu e a ou d e tal health, Wo king in a school that

promotes and accepts issues that may arise with mental health allows me to feel comfortable talking

a out e tal health issues. Th ough ge e al a paig e aluatio , A t-Belong-Commit is known to

make people more open to talk about mental health problems. This is also true in the school setting,

hile aki g it easie to ide tif stude ts at isk of e tal health p o le s, i.e., It s al ead sta ti g to identify students at risk. By having this campaign in our school, we promote discussion around

mental health issues, students become more willing to open up and change or support the

out o es. Delegates a e also e ou aged to pa ti ipate i a Sha e You Sto o petitio to demonstrate how activities like this enable students to actively engage with the campaign messages.

Sing for Mental

Health

Thursday 13 July

1pm

Wellbeing Zone

Bernard Carney

with the Spirit of the Streets choir

Songwriter, choir leader, rock and roller, Bernard has

won many music accolades. He is Patron of Fairbridge

Festival and past Artist of the Year at the Port Fairy Folk

Festival. He ran Working Voices Choir for 18 years and

is now Musical Director of the Spirit of the Streets Choir

and the St John of God Community Choir.

SOS Choir turned 10 this year and have won awards and

performed at events throughout WA. SOS supports its

members and some consider it to be their real family.

The workshop session is structured as an open choir rehearsal with the Spirit of the Streets Choir

together with delegates. We share physical and vocal warm ups to begin with and Musical Director,

Bernard Carney, will lead the group in some simple fun rounds which make instant glorious harmony.

Choir members will speak briefly of their particular mental illnesses and how social singing and

belonging to the Choir has helped as part of their recovery.

Bernard will then teach his Sing for Health theme song, "Pass the Song Along". With the supplied

lyrics we will sing the song, add some movement and be available, if at all possible, to perform to the

other delegates. There will be a brief overview of some of the latest research on the effects of

singing on mental health and wellbeing woven into the session.


Strength

Through

Understanding:

Strategies for

Resilience in

Ambiguous Loss

Thursday 13 July

4pm

4: Terrace foyer,

river side

Dr Kanthi Perera, Dr Ann McGuire

Dr Kanthi Perera is a social worker who was awarded a

Winston Churchill Fellowship to investigate overseas

programs for people traumatised by ambiguous loss.

She has won numerous awards for excellence.

Dr Ann McGuire is an award winning university teacher

who has worked for thirty years in the field storytelling.

Her own lived experience as a long time carer for an

elderly family member with dementia-related psychosis

led to her current research into how storytelling and

meaning-making can develop resilience in those

experiencing ambiguous loss.

Ambiguous loss is experienced where there is uncertainty or lack of closure in a stressful situation.

This concept is very relevant in episodes of mental ill health. However it had not been applied in this

field until Kanthi, did her UWA doctoral project. She found that episodes of mental distress produced

a sense of ambiguous loss, both consumers and carers. Uncertainty about diagnosis, treatment and

prognosis make the situation uncertain. The stigma that might be experienced from others in the

community, makes it difficult to find clarity, validation and meaning, and to move forward with hope

in recovery. The evidence provided by the research suggested that a range of pathways to resilience

could be developed by identifying and working through the loss. The Sharing Hope: Strategies for

Managing Ambiguous Loss o k ook, presents an explanation of this kind of loss and offers

practical activities aimed at building resilience. This workshop will present a concise and clear

explanation of the concept and its relevance to consumers and carers. The session will focus on

encouraging participants to work through one or more of the exercises from the workbook.

Support

Providers

shouldn’t do it all

Friday 14 July

2.30pm

2: Wardle Room

Kate Fulton, Avivo

Nick Maisey, Befriend Inc.

Kate is a General Manager at Avivo responsible for

supporting People and Culture. Kate is recognised

internationally for her work in developing self directed

support. Kate advises the NDIS and has supported other

successful social initiatives such Help and Connect - the

planning café in the UK, Pass it On Parents and

Community Brokerage.

Nick Maisey, Founder and Director of Befriend Inc.

Nick started Befriend in 2009 with a sausage sizzle in

the park and a vision to create a society where

everyone feels included and belongs, regardless of who

they are. Six years later, Befriend has grown into a

community of more than 4,200 people with greater

connection in Perth.

Avivo have supported people who require psychosocial support for many years. People and families

tell us repeatedly that a significant element of their recovery includes reconnecting and building

friendships and relationships and having a sense of belonging. Although Support Providers go some

a to assist people to do this, e k o that it s a a ea that eeds sig ifi a t de elop e t.

From 2013 Avivo supported the development of Befriend Inc, whose mission is to develop social

networking across WA. Befriend has grown rapidly with over 4,500 members who are developing

social lives and connecting with others and was a 2016 WA Community Service Awards Finalist.

In 2015 Avivo and Befriend were keen to assist people who have been extremely socially isolated, to

connect to Befriend. Befriend developed the Starter Kit and Sweet Skills – approaches for those

needing support to connect with others. We will share the outcomes and impact it had on people s lives. In a developing NDIS this journey of partnership is really important to share. We need to think

carefully about the right kind of supports available for people to purchase that offer meaningful

connections in community. The developing market place needs acknowledge this kind of innovation

and collaboration if people are to have the right kind of support to live life.


The art of

learning from

lived experience

Thursday 13 July

1pm

2: Wardle Room

Robyn Martin, Carrie Smith, Georgia Mangano

Curtin University

Ca ie s passio s i lude hild e , dolphi s, si gi g, praying and believing in recovery. Seeking help for her

childhood trauma, she learnt to avoid MH services as

the o t i uted to he t au a. Ca ie s dete i atio to source kind, safe suppo t fo he so s e o e f o mental distress led her to decide to become part of the

change she has personally longed to experience.

Georgia Mangano is a Social Work graduate who

supports students with complex needs at Warnbro

Education Support Centre as well as working alongside

offenders with disabilities through Outcare.

Robyn Martin is a Senior Lecturer in Social Work at

Curtin and has been working to privilege learning from

lived experience since 2010.

This workshop will introduce participants to learning from lived experience in trauma, mental distress

and personal recovery and is based on an activity undertaken with social work students at Curtin

University in 2016. In planning the tutorial, the lived experience expert, who is studying art therapy,

suggested the presentation go beyond storytelling and proposed that art activities alongside

sto telli g ould p odu e ea i gful lea i g. Stude ts epo ted that the o kshops e e o e of the est thi gs the had e pe ie ed i thei four year course. Importantly, the activity created the

conditions for many students who were reticent about the topic of trauma to open up to lived

experience and their own vulnerabilities. This will be a hands on 60 minute experiential workshop

which will provide an overview of the processes involved in developing the tutorials along with

reflection on the richness of the developing relationship between the LEE and SWA. The LEE, the new

graduate and the SWA will each discuss their experiences and how it impacted on their

understanding of, and orientation towards, trauma and lived experience. This is a hands on workshop

where participants will undertake an art based activity similar to that completed by social work

students and which privileges learning from lived experience.

The Difficulties

In Defining And

Funding

Recovery Within

Services

Thursday 13 July

10.45am

2: Wardle Room

Claire Green, Elucidate

Claire has case managed complex caseloads within a

variety of settings. She currently has her own consulting

business relating to improving outcomes within mental

health service delivery by equipping and training staff.

Claire has spoken at several conferences and is

passionate about sustaining our workforce into the

future by providing positive strategies and shares an

insightful perspective of stress and trauma at the

service delivery level.

Recovery oriented frameworks and models have been implemented as emerging practices across

services to help staff and consumers set, track and measure the pe so s e o e , ho e e , is the e a side to recovery that services are failing to see? Are services so concerned about funding that

recovery has been another tool to manipulate funding a sustainable program? Is it enough to say that

we know recovery and practice it? What measures are we really aligning to as we manage this so-

called recovery?

These are all important questions that this presentation raises as the presenter delves into what staff

and consumers think of recovery and the apparent structuring of it within service delivery models.

The presenter then opens up the discussion to include comments from the audience as we critique

recovery together and what it will look like in Western Australian services in the coming years.

The Future is

Peer:

Embedding

Mental Health

Peer Work in

Organisations

Friday 14 July

12.15pm

5: Assembly

Room

Rhianwen Beresford

CoMHWA, WA Peer Supporters Network

Rhianwen has 9 years experience in mental health peer

support work and peer work roles and 5 years

experience in supervision and coordination of the peer

workforce and peer-led projects.

She has an Honours Degree in Gender & Cultural

Studies and a Graduate Diploma in Management.

Delivered from peer worker perspectives, this workshop supports workers and employers towards

shared understanding of peer workforce development needs. It explores options, employer

obligations and strategies for managing peer workforce teams. Focusing on options for both peer

workers (managing up) and line managers (managing down), this workshop focuses on key factors

identified by peer workers as important to retention, performance and satisfaction:

• Re uiti g the ight pe so ith safe e uit e t p a ti e • Suppo ti g ete tio a d pe fo a e, in and beyond the p o atio pe iod • Supe isio a a ge e ts fo ell ei g, p ofessio al development and team effectiveness

The workshop includes opportunities for discussion of peer work development experiences, to equip

participants with a stronger mutual understanding of organisational and peer worker needs.


The Power of

Recovery

Storytelling

Friday 14 July

2.30pm

Conversation

Café

Alicia Beckingsale, Rhianwen Beresford CoMHWA

Alicia is Education & Training Coordinator, and has a

background in music, poetry, peer education, lived

experience presenting, and a Master of Science in

Applied Psychology.

Rhianwen Beresford, Policy & Development

Coordinator, CoMHWA. Rhianwen has experience in

consumer-led program coordination, lived experience

advocacy and peer support, with an Honours Degree in

Gender & Cultural Studies.

This interactive workshop will connect audience members with the power of recovery storytelling,

blending audience insights with the insights of recovery speakers from CoMHWA's Speaker's Bureau.

Participants will explore connections between the role of storytelling in facilitating recovery, the role

listeners can play in supporting recovery stories, and opportunities to tell recovery stories safely and

effectively. Audience members will be invited to explore elements that support recovery in the

storytelling, and will have the opportunity to put recovery-oriented listening and story crafting skills

into practice. The workshop will facilitate: Increased understanding of the contributions that

storytelling can make to personal recovery, based on direct story sharing experience; Increased

understanding of how listeners can support individuals sharing stories, in ways that enhance

recovery; and Personal insights and clarity on the relevance of storytelling to personal recovery

The Practice of

Compassion

Thursday 13 July

11.15am

Wellbeing Zone

Luke Be, Creative Expressionismsismmms

Luke Be is one of the founders, and current head misfit,

at Creative Expressionismsismmms - A not for profit

organization that provides a creative approach to health

and wellbeing. Through his work, Luke uses his colourful

life experiences to provide support and services for

different corporate, community and social groups.

People are designed to feel empathy It helps us to develop new skills, connect with others and work

together to achieve meaningful outcomes. As such, it plays an important role in the therapeutic

process. Not only in creating positive relationships, but as a way to support ourselves, and each

other, through times of difficulty. In this informative session, we will discuss the value of empathy

and the different processes that allow the sharing of experiences between people. Then, through a

series of light and fun social exercises, we will explore practical techniques that use these processes

and experience the many benefits they may bring to our lives and practices.

The Right to

Work! Mental

Health Recovery

through

Employment

Friday 14 July

2pm

2: Wardle Room

Philleen Dickson, WAAMH Philleen is passionate about recovery orientated practice and bringing evidence-based supported employment to life. Having worked in the mental health sector as a consultant, advocate and trainer in NZ before dedicating her main area of expertise to implementing IPS in WA and across Australia.

Philleen has been a high performing IPS employment specialist having formally trained at Massey University as a social policy graduate. She is one of just a few IPS professionals in Australia having trained under the auspices of the Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Centre.

Recent decades have seen significant change in workplace equality. However, people with experience

of severe and enduring mental ill-health continue to be amongst the most disadvantaged. They face

multiple barriers to finding and keeping jobs. The Individual Placement and Support (IPS) model of

evidence-based supported employment follows eight core practice principles. Substantial

international research consistently demonstrates the efficacy of the IPS model in achieving far

superior employment outcomes compared to traditional vocational programs. Employment rates as

high as 54% have been documented internationally. The WA Association for Mental Health made IPS

implementation a priority in 2011, establishing the first IPS Development Unit in Australia.

The presenter will share key learnings, successes and challenges of implementing an internationally

recognised evidence-based model of practice in WA and the subsequent roll-out of IPS technical

assistance to programs across Australia.


The START

court.

Therapeutic

justice and

consumer focus.

Thursday 13 July

1pm

3: Terrace foyer,

city side

Drew Vagg, Mark Edmunds, Dr Adam Brett,

START Court

Drew is peer worker for Start court, peer group

facilitator, consumer consultant for Palmerston Assoc.

Mark is Clinical manager of the Start court, extensive

experience in mental health nursing across WA.

Adam is Consultant psychiatrist at the Start court, also

works for the Autism Association, South West Mental

Health Services and the Mental Health Tribunal.

The START mental health diversion court began as a 2013 pilot after years of persistent lobbying, and

this year managed to secure funding to operate for a further three years.

The START court is a therapeutic court for people who have committed a criminal offence whilst

suffering mental health challenges. This means rather than receive punitive sentencing, court

participants are offered the chance to take part in a person centred program which is designed

individually to help them improve their mental health and reconnect socially. Part of the challenge

taken on by the START court is helping court participants to reconnect with what is often their

greatest resource in recovery, community; for this purpose the court employs a team of people who

have lived experience of recovery to support this endeavour. The START court also acknowledges the

importance of family support in recovery as well as the immense challenges faced by families, which

is why it also employs a carer peer who has a lived experience of supporting a family member

through the START court process. This presentation aims to showcase the work done by the START

court team in helping participants improve their lives, the importance of family and consumer

involvement as well as the ongoing success of the court.

The

vulnerability of

children

bereaved by

suicide

Thursday 13 July

2pm

2: Wardle Room

Hon. Alison Xamon MLC

Alison Xamon is a current State Member of Parliament

and holds many portfolios including Mental Health and

Suicide Prevention. Prior to being re-elected Alison was

the President of the WA Association for Mental Health,

Vice Chair of Community Mental Health Australia, a

Director of Mental Health Australia, was the Co-Lead for

the Statewide Mental Health Network and was a

Member of the Ministerial Council for Suicide

Prevention. Alison has Lived Experience of family

suicide and child bereavement having lost her father at

the age of 11.

This session will talk about the unique needs of children who have been bereaved by suicide,

particularly parental and sibling suicide. Children's grief is often misunderstood and the particular

complexities surrounding suicide even more so. This session discusses these complexities including

the challenges for children developmentally as they get older, learned behaviours, genetic risks and

fractured family systems.

The session also explores the different therapeutic approaches being undertaken internationally and

why public education around the vulnerabilities of children also plays a role in suicide prevention.

Tobacco and

Mental Health:

Exploring the

Myths

Thursday 13 July

2pm

Conversation

Café

Doris Neuwerth, Cancer Council WA Doris is the Make Smoking History Community Services Coordinator at Cancer Council WA where her work involves providing brief intervention training to social services staff, enabling them to support clients who want to quit or cut down.

Under the Healthier Workplace Initiative in her previous role as Fresh Start Workplace Services Coordinator at Cancer Council WA, Doris provided smoking cessation group courses to workplaces. Doris is a trained Social Worker and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist with over 7

ea s experience working as AOD counsellor at the Salvation Army, and 11 years in private practice.

There are various myth around Mental Health and tobacco including;

Myth: People living with a mental illness do not want to quit.

Myth: Quitting smoking is a low priority for people living with a mental illness

Myth: People living with a mental illness need to smoke to manage their condition.

The aim of the session is to enable participants to come to an informed conclusion around these

discussion points.


Turning Lemons

into Lemonade

Friday 14 July

12.45pm

Wellbeing Zone

Carli Sheers Since joining WAAMH in 2014 Carli has worked across a number of departments, but now undertakes the role of Engagement and Administration Support Officer for conferences, symposiums, workshops and events. Having recovered from psychosocial disability herself, Ca li feels p i ileged to e a e e of WAAMH s Li ed Experience Participation Board Sub Committee. Prior to joining WAAMH, Carli spent eight years at Grow as Branch Se eta a d P oje t Offi e . Ca li s qualifications include a Bachelor of Business from Edith Cowan University, Certificate IV in Mental Health and Certificate III in Community Services.

I am sharing my personal journey of mental illness and recovery by using an activity to demonstrate

that people can and do recover from serious mental illness with complex needs. The aim of telling

my story is to inspire people that they are not alone and provide hope for recovery.

My presentation will use an activit to e gage ith the audie e, a d I i te d to use le o s to pai t a pi tu e of fa to s that led to dete io atio i e tal health, the la el o diag osis gi e to e, and involuntary treatment that followed. These lemons will be transformed into lemonade whilst

focusing on my personal strengths with the help of audience members, and will be used to show my

journey of recovery in a creative manner that is easy to understand. Expertise in self-care and self-

age ill e e plo ed also. You alo e a do it, ut ou a t do it alo e. G o P og a

We actually

have quite a lot

of power: The

rising influence

of Mental

Health

Consumer &

Carer Advisory

Groups in

Southwest WA

Friday 14 July

11.45am

2: Wardle Room

Kim Loader, Community First International

Southwest Mental Health consumer and carer

representatives

Presenters were chosen from and by the Consumer and

Carer Advisory groups.

I so , I p o a l o g, I ot a o e i po ta t ut… is ofte the a e e e s ill fi st speak up i a eeti g ut those ho e ee i o e of the South est Me tal Health Co su e or Carer Advisory Groups for a little while ill ui kl ad ise the You ie s a e alua le he e, ou

ill e hea d a d e a tuall do ake ha ge happe .

This presentation covers the recent history and development of the Consumer & Carer Mental Health

Advisory Groups in Southwest WA, the personal stories of how and why members came to join the

group and the impact we are having on all levels of mental health services to influence better

outcomes in the Southwest. This presentation includes an interactive workshop on power dynamics

and the strength in numbers approach to collaborative, supportive & realistic organisational

influence. People who attend this session will take away an understanding of the role & work of the

CAGS, an understanding of the way the groups have built collective power and practical tips on how

to achieve this in your own roles elsewhere. This Abstract was developed in a collaborative process,

written and submitted by Kim Loader, Partners in Recovery Area Support Coordinator, Community

Frist International and Nadia Adams, Safety and Quality Coordinator, South West Mental Health

Se i e o Behalf of the CAG s.


What can

schools do?

Integrating

Responses in

Schools (IRiS)

for Mental

Health support

Thursday 13 July

3pm

5: Assembly

Room

Debbie DeLacy, Stella Rodgers

Department of Education

Deb has worked in a wide variety of education settings

for 25 years with a strong interest in promoting

inclusive education and success for all students.

Currently she works for the School of Special

Educational Needs: Medical and Mental Health. One of

her roles is working with education networks within WA

to assist in addressing student mental health needs and

support for capacity building in schools, alongside

community agencies and organizations to maintain

sustainable models of care for students.

Stella Rodgers is a registered teacher and school

psychologist and has worked in a range of roles. These

include the Multi-Systemic Therapy (MST) program with

the Department of Health, CAMHS Education Liaison

Teacher (CELT) and as a mental health clinician in

CAMHS across the Pilbara and Kimberley regions. She is

a trained facilitator in TCI and now works as Principal

Consultant (mental health) within Statewide Services,

Department of Education.

Access of school support by students with mental disorders has risen from 19.2% in 1998 to 50.9% in

2014 based on the second national household survey of the mental health and wellbeing of

Australian children (Young Minds Matter). The Integrated Response in Schools (IRiS) project works

with education networks to develop supports for student mental health care. Interventions are based

on an ecological model to support sustainability. Project intended outcomes include;

• Pa t e ships that e ha e effe ti e i te age liaiso a d o sultatio et ee ental health

services and the education sector.

• The de elop e t of a s hool ased tea as pa t of a e ide e ased se i e deli e odel as appropriate to each school.

• I p o ed ide tifi atio of at-risk populations.

• A f a e o k to assist the de elopment of integrated mental health responses in education settings

specific to local ecology.

• The sessio ill p o ide e a ples of a a iet of tools ei g de eloped s hools i suppo t of identifying students struggling at school, highlighting specific difficulties including mental health

signs. This tool is used to identify possible school based strategies as well as assisting appropriate

referral pathways for students and their families.

• Sessio pa ti ipa ts ill e a le to e ie these tools a d provide helpful contributions to be fed

back to schools participating in this project.

• Othe st ategies ei g used i this p oje t ill e sha ed ith o e ts a d suggestio s ei g gathered for project feedback. Session participants will be able to comment using Mobile Meet (a

free app that would need to be downloaded on devices before the meeting) or Twitter. Devices with

data and/or wifi will be required to facilitate the capacity for comment.

What everyone

ought to know

about screening

and treatment

of sleep

problems in

mental illness

Friday 14 July

2pm

5: Assembly

Room

Vivian Chiu and Professor Flavie Waters, Clinical

Research Centre; University of Western Australia

Vivian is a PhD candidate working with North Metro

Health Services to deliver psychosis sleep interventions.

She holds a Psychology degree (Hon), and worked as a

technician at Sleep Studies Australia. She has published

academic papers on sleep and psychosis.

Flavie PhD, is a leading cognitive neuroscientist who has

made important contributions to understanding

psychosis. She is founder and scientific chair of the

International Consortium on Hallucination Research and

has authored of numerous articles. She works at the

Clinical Research Centre at Graylands and UWA.

Between 30% and 80% of people with severe mental illness experience difficulties with their sleep.

Approximately half meet the criteria for insomnia disorder and/or co-morbid sleep complaints such

as hypersomnia, circadian rhythm disturbances and nightmares. These disorders of sleep are often

dist essi g, a d a di e tl i pa t o li i al s pto s a d the li i al ou se of a i di idual s psychiatric disorder, as well as their physical health, cognition and quality of life. Consequently, to

optimise the health and functional recovery of people with severe mental illness, there is a critical

need to also address, and to provide effective treatment options for, their disturbed sleep. This

session is an introduction to common sleep problems experienced by people living with mental

illness, how to assess for sleep disorders, and how sleep problems can be addressed using an

adapted type of treatment called Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I). We will be

discussing some content in the Sleep Well, Feel Well program, which has been developed and trialled

with people living with severe mental illness.


Why "The Fast

Track Pit Stop"

Works

Thursday 13 July

2pm

5: Assembly

Room

Owen Catto, Regional Men's Health Initiative

Owen is married with three children. He has completed

a Bachelor of Business in Agriculture and farmed in

partnership with his father for 18 years in Morawa while

also operating a farm consultancy business. After

selling the family farm in 2005 Owen and his family

travelled across Australia for a year whilst home

s hooli g the hild e . O e s i te est is i empowering men to move forward and embrace

progressive changes in their family relationships and

their wellbeing and health. For the past 9-10 years

O e has o ked spe ifi all i e s holistic wellbeing

and health. He presents a range of educational

programs and strategies for rural and regional men,

their families and communities.

There is a strong correlation between male attitudes to machines and male wellbeing. If we do not

service machines regularly it eventually catches up and problems are compounded. Why do we think

it is any different for us men? If we neglect our health and wellbeing (physical, mental or

social/spiritual) it will catch up with us in the same way as neglected machine servicing does.

O e ethod of e gage e t e use is the Fast T a k Pit Stop , a i te a ti e health a a e ess a d listening tool themed around the servicing of a vehicle:- § Chassis - waist measurement; § Oil

pressure - blood pressure; § Shock absorbers - coping skills. The Fast Track Pit Stop works because it

is mobile, user friendly, cost effective and can be set up in any environment. This is a great

e gage e t tool e ause it o ks i a o edi al e i o e t, is i te a ti e, a d deli e s e s

health and wellbeing messages in a variety of community settings and the workplace. We engage

with men on their terms and go to where the blokes are! We aim to connect people to the

appropriate services that can assist people deal with their underlying concerns. Often services are

a aila le ut e , i pa ti ula , esist seeki g help. We p o ote the si ple sloga efo e it all gets too u h….Talk to a Mate . This sloga is the asis of all ou i itiati es. Mate-ship, empathy and the

appropriate use of humor is the key to connectedness in our programs.

Working

together

Thursday 13 July

3pm

Wellbeing Zone

Jessica Sharp, Helen McLean TRACS WA Jessica Sharp currently works as a Development Facilitator in the Training Centre for sub-acute care (TRACS WA). Jessica has been a Social Worker for nearly 20 years and has specialised in group facilitation, and training. Jessica has a passion for communication and collaboration and brings this passion to her facilitation. Jessica believes that our worlds be it personal or work involve communicating with different people and the more we understand about our own communication the more we can be open to others ways of communication. Jessica has a strong belief in the power of the group and that we all have vital role to play. Helen McLean has over 40 years of nursing/midwifery experience Helen has a wealth of experience as a li i ia a d as a edu ato . Hele s passio fo lie t

centred care has seen her patient advocacy recognised in a number of awards including being a finalist in the WA Health Nursing Awards 2013. Helen is a highly motivated educator and through compassion and good communication Helen assists consumers to be managers of their own health and clinicians to be the managers of their own learning.

This session is suitable for anyone who works in a team. The three elements covered:

• Individual learning styles - th ough the use of Ho e a d Mu fo d s odel. • Understanding team roles - Bel i s odel. • Team development – Tu k a s odel.

Thus, the learning flows from the individual to the team resulting in best practice services. Each

model will be understood through the facilitator using a creative, innovative and fun approach. The

three elements are facilitated through an interesting, engaging participatory approach, using group

activities.

Individual participants gain insight into their own differing perspectives to communicating and

problem solving. Through interaction, opportunities to learn, share ideas, tools, resources, and

experience occur in an open friendly environment. The learning is suitable for any consumers, allied

health, nursing, medical and support staff. This workshop has previously been presented to teams

working with Older Adults with Mental Health concerns. Including metropolitan, community and

rural hospitals in WA including Osborne Park Hospital, Fremantle Hospital, Selby Older Adult Mental

Health Service, Bentley Hospital, Armadale Hospital, Rockingham General Hospital and Bunbury

Regional Hospital. Although the training has been delivered in hospital settings it is appropriate to

anyone working in a team who wants to understand themselves and their own learning styles and

how to communicate and work most effectively within a team.


Yokai - Healing

our Spirit

Friday 14 July

12.15pm

2: Wardle Room

Jim Morrison, Yokai

Jim is a prominent Noongar Elder, has been a leader in

pivotal Aboriginal advancement roles for four decades,

working for the rights of the Stolen Generations; child

protection; mental health and suicide issues; equity in

access to culturally safe human services; prison reforms

and deaths in custody; the protection of young street

people and the formation of new, non-government

agencies providing services to Aboriginal families.

He has recently taken up leadership of YOKAI! Healing

our Spirit, the operational umbrella of the WA Stolen

Generations Aboriginal Corporation and the Bringing

Them Home Committee (WA).

His current and past roles include: Stolen Generations'

Co g ess a to the Natio al Co g ess of Aust alia s First Peoples, Aboriginal Chair of the National Stolen

Generations Alliance, Aboriginal Convenor Bringing

Them Home Committee WA, Member Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander Mental Health Advisory Group and

Manager Derbarl Yerrigan Health Service.

This will reflect on the causes of the low position of Australia's First Peoples on the international

Human Development Index and the inequitable level of social and emotional wellbeing underpinning

their mental health issues. It will expand on Aboriginal thinking regarding aspects of the Roadmap For

National ATSI Mental Health, particularly the following principles:

1.The mental health of Aboriginal peoples is connected to the health of their families, communities

and cultures, relationships to country, ancestors and spirituality.

2. Healthy communities and cultures are protective factors against the impacts of stress and trauma

on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples e tal health. 3. All services and professionals in contact with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, young

people a d othe ul e a le populatio oho ts fo e a ple, p iso e s should e t au a se siti e and should be able to direct traumatised individuals into defined clinical healing pathways.

4. Aboriginal peoples have a right to be different and to have that difference accommodated by the

mental health system.

5. Culturally competent mental health services are a human right of Aboriginal peoples.

6. Self-determination is central to the provision of Aboriginal mental health wellbeing services.

7. Holistic community-controlled providers and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander professionals are

the preferred deliverers of such to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The presenters will discuss with delegates how Stolen Generations survivors and their families, a

particularly disadvantaged part of the Aboriginal community are taking charge of their own healing

based on the principles above and embedded in joined-up service relationships enabling a holistic

journey towards gaining equity in mental health and social and emotional wellbeing.

Youth Mental

Health; From

the present to

the future

Thursday 13 July

10.45am

1: Auditorium

Warwick Smith, NMHS

Warwick Smith is the inaugural Director of Youth

Mental Health, North Metropolitan Health Service

Mental Health, and has been in this position since July

2013. He is an Accredited Surveyor with the Australian

Council of Health Standards (ACHS). Warwick has over

ea s e pe ie e o ki g i the health se to of Western Australia, this has included 27 years with the

Department of Health WA and four years as the

Coordinator then Director of Richmond Fellowship (Inc).

Warwick has significant experience at senior

management level of health services both at Peel and

Rockingham Kwinana Health Service, Fremantle Health

Service and Executive Management in South

Metropolitan Health Service.

The transition from childhood to adulthood is a critical stage of development for young people (16-24 years). There are a number of young people experiencing significant mental health difficulties during this pe iod of ti e. The e tal health diffi ulties i lude: • 5% of adults with psychiatric disorders e pe ie e the o set of thei ill ess the age of ea s of age Kessle et al, • Me tal health is responsible for 55% of the burden of disease for young people aged 15- Mathis et al ; • I 2015 more young people aged 15-24 died by suicide than any other means. Twice as many young women aged 15- died sui ide i tha i Ro i so et al, ; • Sui ide ates a o g Indigenous people in the Kimberley region of Western Australia are among the highest in the world. 27% of completed suicides in the region were young people under 20 years. 70 per cent of all Indigenous people who completed suicide were never known to or referred to the Kimberley Mental Health and Drug Service (McHugh, et al 2 . • Ge de Di e se a d T a sge de ou g people ha e been found to have higher rates of diagnosed Anxiety (45%) and Depression (47%), with higher rates of Self Harm (70%) and attempted suicide (37%) (Smith et al 2014). International, National and State initiatives have acknowledged the need to improve mental health services for young people. This p ese tatio ill fo us o : • the u e t suite of e tal health se i es fo outh; • e e gi g issues i deli e i g e tal health se i es fo outh; • u ent plans for youth mental health service deli e i Weste Aust alia; • o e ie of the o k u de take the Youth Me tal Health Su Net o k; • a update o the p og ess of the WA Me tal Health, Al ohol a d Othe D ug Se i es Plan 2015-2025, including an update on the proposed youth stream.

Documents

Program Supplement: Details of Break-out Sessions ... · partnership with the National Mental Health Commission, SANE Australia undertook an initiative to extend the reach of the