Published on 21 September 2023
Mental Health Monthly Newsletter – August
Foreword by Jolene Geh
Divisional Director, Mental Health and Wellbeing Services
I hope all of you have been able to take some time to enjoy the wonderful Melbourne spring weather. After 30 July 2023, the team within the Mental Health and Wellbeing Division have been busy working on our next phase of integration and ensuring that the Mental Health and Wellbeing Service is embedded within Western Health.
Furthermore, we look forward to the implementation phase of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Act from 1 September 2023, as well as celebrating the work completed on the Sunshine Mental Health and Wellbeing Centre. I want to take this opportunity to express my deepest gratitude to all of you, our remarkable team members who work tirelessly every day, and who consistently go above and beyond their duties. Your resilience,kindness and commitment to helping consumers navigate their mental health challenge sis truly awe-inspiring.
As a service and as a division, we continue our transformative journey, together we can breathe life into the RCVMHS recommendations, forging a path towards a more inclusive,accessible and effective mental health system. Your compassion, empathy and dedication are the pillars for positive change into our mental health service. I look forward to working with all of you to create a better service and system – one where mental health is prioritised, stigma is eradicated, and every consumer receives the care that they need and deserve.
Jolene.
Sunshine Mental Health and Wellbeing Centre – First Impressions
Daniel Darmanin, Program Manager, and Sunshine Mental Health and Welling Centre Project Team
Over the past three weeks, approximately 100Western Health staff members have toured the new Sunshine Mental Health and Wellbeing Centre.
Visitors to the site have been consistently impressed by the building outline of the SMHWC, specifically how it’s centred around the care of the consumers, their caregivers, and our dedicated staff members. Notably, the exercise room, activity rooms, spiritual rooms, and sensory spaces which have garnered specific praise from visitors. These spaces reflect Western Health’s commitment to improving care provision to better meet the holistic needs of consumers.
SAAPU staff continue to report that they are looking forward to transitioning to the new SMHWC and the new amenities that it offers.Champions are being trained this week and they will play a pivotal role in facilitating a smooth assimilation for the broader staff group in transitioning to the new building and acclimating to new systems, workflows and operations.
Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022
The new Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022 (the Act) commenced on September 1, replacing the Mental Health Act 2014.
The new Act is a key recommendation of the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System and supports the changes we’ve made so far as a newly designated Mental Health Service.
It is important to note that the impact of the Act extends beyond just Mental Health staff, and that all Western Health employees should be well-versed in the upcoming changes.
For more information regarding the Act, visit Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022
The Western Health Mental Health and Wellbeing Services Division have compiled a list of important links, training modules, documents, and video recordings surrounding the Mental Health Act. This “toolkit” relates to all staff and will assist in preparing for the implementation of the Act on 1 September: Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022.
Updates from Safer Care Victoria and the Department of Health
Chief Mental Health Nurse, Anna Love / Acting – Kate Thwaites
Safer Care Victoria and the Department of Health have provided an update on current and future projects for Mental Health staff. See below for the Chief Mental Health Nurse updates,as well as a link to the complete document that was shared.
Nursing Practice Issues: The Safewards Community of Practice gathered on July 27, 2023, to discuss embedding Safewards practices in our services. Outcomes will be shared amongst Senior Nursing Staff and CNCs. A Western Health CNE and CNCs planning day is scheduled for 26 September to plan the relaunch of Safewards in early 2024.
Occupational Violence and Aggression: Director of Nursing Ryan Dube and some of our Mental Health and Wellbeing MOCA Trainers attended the Western Health OVA International Conference in July. A subcommittee is being formed and will be jointly chaired by Ryan Dube and Director of Risk management, James Koloski, who will start the process of reviewing management of occupational and clinical aggression in mental health.
Safety in inpatient units: Ligature Assessment. A jurisdictional roundtable was held on 23 May2023. Noteworthy outcomes of this meeting include the plan to develop a National Validated Ligature Assessment Tool, Governance Process, training to support ligature assessment and management, and the collection of data and dissemination of learnings from previous ligature events. Ryan Dube will be joining a state-wide working group to develop the Nationally validated Ligature Assessment Tool and Governance of Process for the Sector. Updates will be supplied as these initiatives progress.
Workforce: A workshop was held on 1 August with DONs and Senior Mental Health Nurses along with ANMF, HACSU, and VHIA to discuss position descriptions for EBA review. The workshop was well attended, and there are plans for more workshops in the future. The positions for review are DON, Senior Nurse, and NUM future classifications.
View the full summary here. SCV_DH-Update-August-2023.pdf (wh.org.au)
Bank Vic and Plenary Health Research Grants
The Office for Research, in partnership with the Western Health Foundation, are pleased to announce the release of an additional 2 prestigious grants: a $20,000 research grant sponsored by our corporate partner Bank Vic and a $10,000 Plenary Health Innovation Grant.
This grant can be used to develop a feasibility study or support completion of existing Western Health research initiatives. We encourage staff to apply for this great opportunity to establish WH MHWS research.
To access the EOI form, visit: https://whcda.wh.org.au/researchers-students-grants-and-fellowships/ – EOIs close Sunday 8 October.
Hamilton Centre Scholarships
Hamilton Centre Scholarships for Victorian Mental Health and Wellbeing (MHWB) workers to undertake the Graduate Certificate of Addictive Behaviours in 2024.
In 2022, Turning Point, Australia’s leading addiction treatment and research centre, was appointed to run a new statewide specialist centre for addiction and mental health, now known as the Hamilton Centre.
Hamilton Centre came from renewed investment by the Victorian Government into integrated care for people living with mental illness and substance use or addiction. This was a recommendation of the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System, recognising that many people with co-occurring problems had difficulties accessing holistic care and navigating a complex treatment system.
The course, Graduate Certificate of Addictive Behaviours in 2024, is designed to broaden knowledge and skills related to the theory and practice of responding to substance use disorders and other addictive behaviours. It’s delivered online via Monash University and is an opportunity for workers within the Victorian Mental Health and Wellbeing sector to gain access to specialised AOD qualification at a postgraduate level.
For more information please visit their website:
Hamilton Centre Scholarships for Victorian Mental Health and Wellbeing workers to undertake the Graduate Certificate of Addictive Behaviours in 2024 (turningpoint.org.au)
https://www.hamiltoncentre.org.au/#home
Top 10 Tips to Live ‘Best Care’
You should have already seen a few of these posters popping up around common areas and in your inbox! Each week we’ve been focusing on the top 10 tips to ‘Live ‘Best Care’.
- Best Care Framework
- Risk Management
- PROMPT – PPGs
- Accreditation
- WeLearn
- Consumer Feedback
- Improvement – LifeQI
- Dashboards
- Knowing How We’re Doing Boards (KHWDB)
- Best Care Committee Structure
View all the tips here
New Footscray Hospital
Liam Burke, Manager EMH / PACER / CL / BURNSIDE PARC
The new Footscray Hospital, with its innovative design, boasts open garden spaces that will breathe life into the healing process.
The Mental Health & Wellbeing Service inpatient unit is on the fourth floor, where a panoramic vista of city views unfolds, a harmonious blend of nature and architecture. This establishment is more than just a medical centre, growing as a beacon of hope in bustling Footscray, a state-of-the-art facility tailored for general medical and mental health consumers. Here, technology will seamlessly intertwine with compassionate care, creating an environment conducive to healing.
The new Footscray Hospital is not just a building; it’s a testament to Western Health’s dedication to delivering care to the community, embodying progress in architectural ingenuity, expert health care and mental health support.
