News of the Week!!!!
The Establishment of the New National
Mental Health Consumer Organisation
The online Expressions of Interest (EOI) process for participation on a mental health Consumer Reference Group (CRG) has opened today. The Minister for Mental Health and Ageing, the Hon Mark Butler MP, will formally announce the invitation tomorrow and encourage interested Australians to apply. Advertisements will also appear in national and metropolitan papers.
The CRG will provide advice to an existing well-established non-government body, which will be responsible for establishing the infrastructure of the new national mental health consumer organisation. It is intended these auspice arrangements will be in place for about two years to assist the new organisation to transition into independence with strong and sustainable foundations. The Government is currently giving consideration to a non-government body to undertake this auspicing role, and will be announced in the coming months.
The CRG will be comprised of members with a diverse range of experience, skills, knowledge and backgrounds; and who have a commitment to a shared vision leading to improved quality of life, social justice and inclusion for people with mental illness in Australia.
Information about the role of the CRG and how to apply is available from 3pm today at www.health.gov.au/mentalhealth.
Expressions of interest can be submitted until Monday 4pm AEDT 20 February 2012.
Event Information Link
Click here to view the calendar of events for ConnectGroups
Welcome to ConnectGroups
“One of the most valuable things we can do to heal one another is listen to each other's stories.” Rebecca Falls
Support groups are groups of people who get together and share their experiences of a common concern or life issue. The power of a support group comes from the understanding that people within a group have for each other, because as individuals they have dealt with or are still dealing with a mutual problem. The strength of the group lies in their shared stories and their ability to provide empathetic support rather than sympathetic assistance.
In the words of one Community Health Nurse, “Problems seem so much less overwhelming when shared with others who have had the same experience.”
ConnectGroups – Support Groups Association WA Inc is the peak body for support groups across the state. We are needed to link groups to information and community networks, assist with support group development and management, help with community resources and services, and provide individual and group skills training. We also act as a referral service (both online and over the phone) for people looking for support groups to address a specific issue. We tailor all our training and assistance to the individual needs of groups and individuals, and everything we offer is free of charge to our members (including membership itself!).
In 2009 we are focusing on Aboriginal, CaLD, Youth, Women and Mental Health support groups to both strengthen those already up and running and increase the number of support groups available to these communities. We are also trying to ‘expand’ the idea of what a support group looks like – that it does not have to be the traditional model where people sit around in a circle talking. People with common needs can come together for any number of reasons such as singing or painting or life skills, and still share their stories and gain strength and healing from others. We are also investigating ways of using technology, through on-line forums and on-line training, to offer our clients restricted by disability or location, a way of accessing our services and the support they need from others to mend.
