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MHCA CEO's Weekly Update - 4 July

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This Week

McClure Review into Australia’s welfare system 

Last Sunday the Government released the Interim Report from the McClure Review into Australia’s welfare system. While the media’s take on the report was disappointing and inaccurate, the Review’s overarching ambition – to chart a path to a more coherent system which is both financially sustainable and provides the right support for the right people – is long overdue.

That said, some of the proposals from the Reference Group could create major problems for people with mental illness in contact with the welfare system, depending on how they are implemented.

The report’s standout proposal is that the Disability Support Pension be reserved only for people with ‘a permanent disability and no capacity to work’. It does not include a definition of ‘permanent’, but suggests that people with disabilities that are not deemed to be ‘permanent and profound’ (again, no definition is provided) should receive a proposed ‘working age payment’ with a ‘continuing supplement to achieve a basic but adequate standard of living’.

The question of how ‘permanency’ is defined in practice is likely to have a major impact on what support people with psychosocial disability might receive through the welfare system. You may be aware that there is already considerable confusion and debate about similar issues in the early days of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). As with the NDIS, it will be critical to ensure that assessment processes are consistent and fair.

Changes to eligibility for the DSP could have implications for Carer Payment recipients if the person they care for is no longer assessed as having a ‘permanent disability with no capacity for work’. The Interim Report does not directly address this issue, but we would of course be very concerned if mental health carers were even less able to access financial support than they are now.

The MHCA’s policy team has put together a summary of the key issues for the mental health sector arising from the report. There are other proposals in the Interim Report not as directly relevant to mental health but nonetheless important, and I encourage you to refer to the consultation questions outlined in the report. As we develop our submission to the Review (due Friday 8 August), we hope to hear from members and stakeholders on these issues, and I encourage you to get in contact if you have any information or perspectives you can share. 
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Graeme Innes AM

On Wednesday, our Director of Consumer and Carer Programs Kylie Wake and I attended Graeme Innes’s final speech as Disability Discrimination Commissioner, at the National Press Club in Canberra. Always a fantastic speaker and a strong advocate for the rights of people with disabilities, Graeme reflected on his time as a Commissioner, and the progress that has been made to improve the lives of Australians with disabilities. Highlighting the recent focus on ‘lifters’ and ‘leaners’, he urged the Federal Government to develop a jobs plan to lift employment for people with disability. The transcript of his speech is available on the Human Rights Commission website. ​
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Social and Economic Outlook Conference 2014

At the end of the week I have been at the Social and Economic Outlook Conference hosted by the Australian and the Melbourne Institute.

It had an excellent program and some challenging speakers.  Tony Abbott spoke in strong terms about moving soveriegnty and responsibilities back to the states.  Clear directions for the Federation Whitepaper process I suspect.  Kevin Andrews spoke about the need for considerable care in reforming welfare (including his “instinct” to grandfather existing DSP recipients rather then moving large numbers of people off benefits immediately).  Bill Shorten called for greater consideration and respect when the media and public figures are talking about the “real people” who are affected by welfare reform.

You can see more about the conference here.
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Mental Health Peer Workforce Study

The MHCA strongly supports the development of the mental health peer workforce and I was excited to learn this week that Health Workforce Australia’s Mental Health Peer Workforce Study (MHPW) and accompanying literature scan is now available on the HWA website. 

The study presents findings from an online survey of peer workers, cases studies and literature scan, and includes a set of recommendations to strengthen and develop this workforce as an important component of quality, recovery-focused mental health services. HWA has also distributed a draft of the National Mental Health Peer Workforce Development Guidelines.

The guidelines are a work in progress, however, HWA hope they will be useful starting point for progressing the first recommendation from the MHPW Study. HWA will cease operations in early August, and will support the transfer of this project over to the Commonwealth Department of Health.
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Pharma Collaboration

Our Manager of Communications and Stakeholder Engagement, Joanne Huxley, and I met with our Pharma Collaboration partners in Sydney on Tuesday. The Pharma Collaboration has been operating successfully since 2005 and has funded several very important projects in that time. This year’s key piece of work is a report defining the economic impact of promotion, prevention and early intervention initiatives. The report is now in final draft stage and you will hear more about it in coming months. The meeting also discussed  a range of other issues including our submission to the NMHC review, the McClure Review of the welfare system and our plans for this year’s World Mental Health Day campaign. We look forward to continuing the Collaboration into the future.

 

Reminders

New video on disability and carer advocacy

The Department of Social Services has produced a video to support people with disabilities and their carers on how to access information about different advocacy programs. The purpose of this DVD is to ensure that people with disability, their families and carers have access to the information that will assist them to be more aware of the role that advocacy can play in their life, the responsibilities of advocacy organisations and how to access advocacy support. You can view the video here. Download

ASCA Video Series

Adults Surviving Child Abuse (ASCA) has just released a video series which explore the challenges and triumphs experienced by adult survivors of child abuse while also offering information on trauma-informed care and services. The inaugural videos are targeted at five specific audience groups. Featuring the voices of survivors and health professionals from a range of disciplines, each is designed to shed light on how childhood trauma can impact the day-to-day lives of survivors. The videos carry important messages about how, with the right help and support, recovery can be achieved. All of the videos as well as supporting resources can be accessed from the ASCA homepage. Read More

Lifeline Stress Down Day - 25 July

This year’s Stress Down Day is being celebrated on Friday 25 July. A Lifeline initiative, Stress Down Day is a fun and easy way to reduce stress by encouraging us all to have a laugh. Lifeline have a list of activities that you can do on the day to help raise funds and reduce stress including hosting a morning tea, holding a worst dad joke competition or a team yoga session. Visit the website for more details.  Read More

National Suicide Prevention Conference

Don’t forget to register for the upcoming National Suicide Prevention Conference, being held in Perth from 23-26 July. A range of pre-conference workshops are open to both delegates and non-delegates as well as a special session ‘Harnessing the voice of lived experience’ that will take place on day four of the Conference. Full details including registration information are available on the website. Read More

Australian and New Zealand Addiction Conference

The Australian and New Zealand Addiction Conference will be held next year in March, and will address the treatment and recovery of alcohol, other drugs and behavioural addictions and will focus on different types of addiction, prevention, assessment, treatment and recovery. The co-occurrence and prevalence of mental health and substance abuse will also be addressed, and will take collaborative approach to look at addiction holistically. The Conference will be held on the Gold Coast on the 4th & 6th March 2015 and is hosted by the ‘not for profit’ Australia & New Zealand Mental Health Association. Further information can be found on the Conference webstie.  Read More

The Long-Term Unemployment Conference - early bird registration closing soon

This conference will address the causes and programs needed to provide opportunities for at risk groups: Disability, Mature Age, Youth, Indigenous and Regional Unemployed. It will focus on “Building Capability” to create employment in the future with over 50 presentations on research, policy, programs and case studies. This will be held on 18-19 August at the QT Hotel on the Gold Coast. Early bird registration rates close on 7 July so book soon to save! More details are available from the website. More Info

National Primary and Community Health Forum

This Forum will be of interest to health professionals, administrators, policy makers, peak bodies, academics and consumers of primary and community health services.
Places are limited and filling fast so don’t delay in registering! The Forum will be held on Thursday 31 July at the Melbourne Mariot Hotel. For more details visit the website.Read more

National Drug and Alcohol Mapping Project

The Commonwealth Department of Health, Turning Point and Monash University, have been collaborating on a website which allows users to run easy and comprehensive searches for Alcohol and Other Drug services anywhere across Australia. The National Drug and Alcohol Service Directory is now available online. The Directory is a useful resource for anyone looking to link in with an Alcohol or Other Drug treatment service in Australia. This includes individual service users, primary health providers, community and public service providers, GPs and other health professionals. Full details are available from the website.  Read More


Warm regards
Frank

Frank Quinlan
Chief Executive Officer
T: 02 6285 3100  |  M: 0409 655 460
E: frank.quinlan@mhca.org.au  |  W: mhca.org.au
PO Box 174 DEAKIN WEST ACT 2600

 

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