CEO Update: A joint statement to make the 2021 Census count
A joint statement to make the 2021 Census count
As we continue to gather signatories for our own Joint Letter to the Prime Minister and Charter 2020 ‘Time To Fix Mental Health’ ahead of the Productivity Commission Inquiry into Mental Health releasing its Draft Report in the coming months, we were extremely pleased to be able to join with many of our colleagues this week to sign another joint statement of clear importance.
Mental Health Australia is one of 40 or so organisations to sign the National LGBTI Health Alliance’s joint statement on the inclusion of sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status in the 2021 Census of Population and Housing, a statement which will help influence what we as a nation count at the 2021 Census.
At Mental Health Australia, we agree whole heartedly with the National LGBTI Health Alliance that ‘asking appropriate questions on sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status in the Census is crucial in fostering an evidence-informed environment for health and economic policy service planning and understanding health and social service utilisation.’
Like us, you will be all to aware that our collective failure to properly address the rights and needs of people in LGBTI communites and populations causes untold harm which can show itself in mental illness and suicide.
Just like the Productivity Commission is looking at evidence and data on how best to structure and deliver lasting mental health reform, meaningful and appropriate collection of data is a significant and necessary step towards addressing the disproportionate rates of mental health issues in LGBTI communities.
In advocacy and social policy, the collective voice has great power. It shows unity of purpose and clarity on key issues for politicians and governments alike.
Congratulations to the National LGBTI Health Alliance for undertaking this process to unite the sector, and we hope you’ll join us in signing and sharing this joint statement.
Read the joint statement here.
Warm regards,
Frank Quinlan
Chief Executive Officer
Sign the Joint Letter to the Prime Minister and
‘Time To Fix Mental Health - Charter 2020’
Thank you to the 50 or so organisations that have already signed our Joint Letter to the Prime Minister and ‘Time To Fix Mental Health - Charter 2020’, as listed below.
The letter is deliberately free of Mental Health Australia letterhead and branding to highlight our collaboration, and with the ‘Time To Fix Mental Health – Charter 2020’, it will become the basis for our advocacy campaign over the coming months, ahead of the release of the Productivity Commission Inquiry Draft Report in November.
As always, adding more voices to our shared consensus and collaboration is welcomed. If your organisation has an interest in mental health advocacy, reform and services, and would like to join the consensus statement or find out more about the Joint Letter or ‘Time To Fix Mental Health - Charter 2020’ please email Lachlan.Searle@mhaustralia.org
We hope to present the Prime Minister with the joint letter during the next sitting of the Parliament.
Final Report: Health professionals, psychosocial disability and NDIS access
This week Mental Health Australia published the final report of a project identifying how health professionals can be better supported to assist consumers with psychosocial disability to access the National Disability Insurance Scheme. The project involved analysis and consultation with our member health professional organisations, and culminated in this report providing advice to the Department of Social Services (DSS) and the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).
The report outlines barriers health professionals face in supporting people with psychosocial disability to access the NDIS, particularly regarding lack of information and clarity around eligibility criteria and the role of health professions in supporting applications for the NDIS. The report provides recommendations to improve the pathways from health services to the NDIS, including clarifying these roles and expectations through clear information to health professionals and increasing the NDIA’s engagement with health profession experts.
Please click here to read the full submission.
Webinar – The Framework for Mental Health in Multicultural Australia
You are warmly invited to join the first webinar for Embrace Multicultural Mental Health (the Embrace Project), happening on Tuesday 1 October 2019 at 12-1pm AEST.
The webinar will provide an overview of the Framework for Mental Health in Multicultural Australia (the Framework) , which is a free, nationally available, online resource that allows organisations and individual practitioners to evaluate and enhance their cultural responsiveness.
The Framework has recently been redeveloped into a series of modules and self-reflection tools, and mapped against national standards to help organisations meet their existing requirements.
This webinar will explore how mental health services, Primary Health Networks, individual practitioners and others can use the Framework to support their work with multicultural communities.
There will be time available for questions and friendly discussion.
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On Tuesday afternoon I will be heading to Adelaide for the next meeting of the Australian National Advisory Council on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ANACAD). This meeting will be held over two days, Wednesday and Thursday. Harry Lovelock, Director – Policy and Projects will be in Darwin next week, attending the National Housing Conference, meeting with the Northern Territory Mental Health Coalition, and attending the launch of Top End House, TeamHEALTH’s new mental health facility. The Mental Health Australia FARM Committee will be meeting via teleconference on Wednesday. And on Friday, I will be back in Canberra participating in a panel event at the Department of the Treasury, discussing Mental Resilience in the Workplace. |
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