MI Fellowship's CE Liz Crowther recently featured on ABC Radio's PM program commenting on the recent news that Victorian Police will be receiving training to help them handle volatile situations involving people with a mental illness - an issue that MI Fellowship has been campaigning on for some time.
Congratulations to the lucky winner of our summer car raffle, Tony from Narre Warren.
The new Toyota Camry Sportivo was presented by MI Fellowship and Melbourne City Toyota just in time for Christmas.
Tony has bought tickets for several of our raffles over the years and it is a cause he is happy to support. Tony has a family member affected by a mental illness and so understands the challenges faced by people with mental illnesses.
Tony and his family are delighted with the new car and we wish them all the best for the future.
Thomas Embling tragedy - MI Fellowship responds
Liz Crowther of MI Fellowship Victoria has written an editorial regarding the recent fatalities at the Thomas Embling Psychiatric Hospital and the impact it may have on in-community living for people with a mental illness.
The Thomas Embling Psychiatric Hospital is not a MI Fellowship Victoria service.
MI Voice Spring now online
The latest issue of MI Voice has just been added to the MI Voice archive.
Read and enjoy!
AGM need-to-know
Don't forget, MI Fellowship's annual general meeting is coming up this Tuesday October 20, with guest speaker John Mendoza, chair of the National Advisory Council on Mental Health and former chief officer of the Mental Health Council of Australia.
The AGM will begin at at 5.30pm at the offices of Middletons Lawyers, 25 South Tower, 525 Collins St, Melbourne.
To find out more about the candidates for this year's board election, click here.
Don't miss out! Open Mind Fiesta is on again for 2009
One of MI Fellowship's biggest events of the year is on again!
The National Health and Hospitals Reform commission has now released its final report outlining the future directions for reform into the health and hospitals sectors.
MI Fellowship recently brought together Melbourne’s leading mental health and community service providers for the MI Fellowship Corporate Breakfast at the MCG’s Jim Stynes room. For once though, sport wasn’t the topic of conversation - the agenda was all about social inclusion. Our 50 guests, which included representatives from government and the public sector, rose early to hear from Dr David Morris and City of Melbourne Deputy Lord Mayor Cr Susan Riley. Both impressed with their knowledge and commitment to reducing social exclusion.
The MI Fellowship Corporate breakfast built knowledge and relationships and looks set to be a regular feature of Schizophrenia Awareness Weeks to come.
Dr David Morris at Bruce Woodcock Memorial Lecture 2009 May 21 2009
On Tuesday May 19, Dr David Morris presented to a packed out audience at BMW Edge in Federation Square for the Bruce Woodcock Memorail Lecture 2009, as highlight for Schizophrenia Awareness Week.
In his presentation, Dr Morris addressed the issue of social inclusion, highlighting what he'd learned from five years as head of the National Social Inclusion Programme and now head of the Inclusion Institute in the UK, and how we can improve social inclusion in Australia as well.
As well as talking about the need to increase the number of people within in the mental health workforce, Dr Morris also talked how social inclusion needs to be considered as something beyond just housing and employment but should be viewed as a set of principles that underlies all work achieved within the mental health sector.
Dr Morris echoed the thoughts of previous Bruce Woodcock Memorial Lecture speaker, Patrick Corrigan, when he said that social inclusion would only come into effect when communities of people with a mental illness interact with communities of people without a mental illness because it is the space between them that progress is made.
To download a copy of Dr Morris' presentation click here.
'ilikeyou' opens at Victorian Parliament May 20 2009
You may remember the 'ilikeyou' exhibition, a social inclusion project that brought together student photographers with people with a mental illness.
After a major success last year at the Open Mind Fiesta, MI Fellowship is thrilled to announce that the 'ilikeyou' has found a temporary new home and will soon again be viewable by the general public.
From June 2 to June 4, 'ilikeyou' will take up residence at Queens Hall, in Victoria's Parliament House, where it will reignite awareness of mental health issues, particularly among parliamentarians.
'ilikeyou' gives students an opportunity to improve their understanding of mental health issues. It also gives people with a mental illness the opportunity to share their stories as they work collaboratively on a piece of art.
Students from the 'ilikeyou' were recruited from Footscray City College, Thornbury High School, Fitzroy High School and Wanganui Park Secondary College in Shepparton.
Film launch at the Cunningham Dax Collection May 19, 2009
One of MI Fellowship's affiliate organisations, the Cunningham Dax Collection, is hosting the launch of a new film featuring renowned artist and mental health advocate Richard McLean, author or Recovered, Not Cured and the recent Ego and Soul and is inviting MI Fellowship members to attend.
As well as a viewing of the film itself, the launch will include a live debate between Richard and the director of the Cunningham Dax, Dr Eugene Koh.
The launch will be held on Thursday May 28 at 6pm at the Cunningham Dax Gallery, 35 Poplar Road, Parkville. Entry is free.
MI Fellowship is supporting Cunningham Dax Collection’s student education program by providing members of our Speakers Bureau to talk about their lived experience of mental illness.
Some of you may remember a recent member initiative by MI Fellowship member Nici Wall calling for articles and poetry by people with a mental illness in her two electronic publications “Glimpses” and “Minds Unleashed”.
Nicci’s is updating all contacts to make sure she has an up-to-date list of contributors and recipients. If you had been in touch with Nicci since March this year please resend her your details via the below channels.
Nicci Wall
MI Fellowship Member
c/o 43 Browallia Drive
Rose Park
Corio Vic 3214 forwalls@xi.com.au
Fax: 03 5222 6847
MI Fellowship awards 2009 open for nominations April 21 2009
The annual MI Fellowship awards have just been declared open for nomination for 2009.
If you're a MI Fellowship member and want to nominate somebody for their work to support people with a mental illness, now's the time to speak up about it!
Popular demand moves February's volunteer information session February 3 2009
An unprecedented number of subscribers to the next volunteer information session has led to changing locations and hosting the session at a larger venue.
The new venue is at Gestalt Therapy Australia, just a quick walk from MI Fellowship's Fairfield offices.
The new details are
Tuesday, 10 February 2009
5:30-6.30 pm
Gestalt Therapy Australia
333 Heidelberg Road
Fairfield (close to cnr Westgarth St)
(5 minute walk from MI Fellowship’s Fairfield Office and 5-10 minute walk from Fairfield train station) Click here to get a map of the new location
New Step Up, Step Down centre opens in Canberra January 14 2009
On November 8 MI Fellowship, in partnership with ACT Mental Health, opened a new Step Up, Step Down centre in the Canberra suburb of Lyneham.
Step Up, Step Down centre, which are known as PARC centres in Victoria, provide an important midway point for people who have just been released from acute psychiatric care but need more support before re-joining their normal lives and for people who need support to prevent the onset of an episode of mental illness but are not sick enough to get into an in-patient bed.
As well as giving people with a mental illness more options for managing their illness, the centre also helps to improve community understanding of mental illness and relieve some of the pressure on acute inpatient beds.
MI Fellowship, based on our experience running PARC centres in South Yarra and Shepparton, is providing the psychosocial support for the LynehamStep Up Step Down while ACT Mental Health provides the clinical support.
The Step Up Step Down centre was officially opened by ACT Health Minister Katy Gallagher and attracted a slew of media attention including coverage from: ABC 666 Canberra radio, The Canberra Times, ABC TV and WIN TV.
Police shooting in Northcote - MI Fellowship's response December 12 2008
On December 11, 2009, Victorian police officers shot dead a teenaged boy who was allegedly threatening them with knives in a situation that was reminiscent of the 2002 death of Mark Kaufman.
To read some media coverage of the story please click here and here.
And to read the media release the MI Fellowship has put out in response, please click here.
New MI Voice now online December 9 2008
The Summer edition of MI Fellowship's member magazine MI Voice can now be found on the MI Voice page.
Local resident picks up $1000 petrol card November 12 2008
The winner of the $1000 petrol card on offer as a prize in the raffle for this year's Open Mind Fiesta in Fairfield's Station St was Stuart Jonas.
Mr Jonas is local to the Fairfield area, having moved there four years ago. This Open Mind Fiesta was his third Open Mind Fiesta.
MI Fellowship would like to thank Barry Plant Real Estate and Melbourne City Toyota for donating the petrol card and vendors from the Fairfield Traders' Association for selling raffle tickets both befor ena dduring the Fiesta.
Free Travel October 28 2008
Public transport on Sundays will be free from next weekend for carers and people receiving disability pensions in Victoria.
Victorian public transport minister Lynne Kosky said those on disability support pensions or receiving carer payments could now travel free on Sundays, along with Victorian senior card holders, from October 26.
Those wishing to take up the offer would need to obtain a Sunday Pass Metcard, which is valid on trains, trams and buses travelling in metropolitan Melbourne and also on town bus services in Ballarat, Bendigo and Geelong.
Disability Support Pensioners and Carer Payment recipients under 60 living in Victoria can apply for a Sunday Pass at any Metropolitan Premium Station, staffed V/Line station, or at the MetShop. Application forms are also available at stations, Metcard retail outlets across Melbourne or by downloading a form via the link below.
MI Fellowship Annual Report Online October 21 2008
Following on from its official release at the MI Fellowship Annual General Meeting on Friday 17, the 2007-08 Annual Report is now available online for your enjoyment.
On 15th August our Coordinator of Community Information, Jenny Hickinbotham, and volunteers David Carlton and Edward Tuke with support from Advocacy Manager, Ruth Barr represented MI Fellowship at the Health and Homelessness Services Expo organized by Doutta Galla Community Health Service. There were 64 stalls with over 120 people manning the stalls, there were over 200 visitors. Some of the comments on the evaluation form included:
Exciting and great for networking
Expo concept is a great idea - job well done!
I have learned so much, thank you
Great Expo, good opportunity to network and learn about a range of services
The roving musicians were great
Our very own Edward was the ‘roving musician’. Thank you Edward and David for your fantastic support of a very successful event.
Guided Tours for Fellowship members? Makes Sense
MI Fellowship is working in partership with the Cunningham Dax Collection to offer MI Fellowship members an exclusive guided tour of the Cunningham Dax Collection's latest exhibition The Art of Making Sense.
The Cunningham Dax Collection consists of more than 12,000 pieces of art that have been created by people with a mental illness that not only offers an insight in the lives of people with a mental illness over time but can also be admired for their artistic merit and beauty.
The Art of Making Sense is the Collection's premiere exhibit for 2008 and features approximately 70 artworks, from drawings on papers through to sculpture and textiles.
The Collection is offering up to 25 MI Fellowship members the opportunity to take a guided tour of The Art of Making Sense on Wednesday 29 October, 11am-12pm.
Because of the limited number of places available, bookings are essential. To ensure your spot, call Hayley on 8486 4220 or via e-mail at membership@mifellowship.org
Tickets cost $8.
Carla Krijt,
No title, 1998,
oil on canvas
October Quarterly Forum - not to be missed!
Following on from the very successful July Members’ Forum, our October Quarterly Forum will explore further some of the complex financial management issues that can arise in families where there is a member with mental illness.
This time the focus will be on credit law; in particular on questions like-
how does the law protect the financial interests of people with mental illness and their family members, when illness is episodic and access to credit is easy?
How can family members promote their loved one’s independence and help them to develop the skills to manage financial risk?
This forum will be addressed by representatives from State Trustees and the Consumer Action Law Centre. For further details and registration, have a look at the flyer.
Upcoming Volunteer Information Session
MI Fellowship is holding a volunteer information session for people who have thought about giving their time to support the 1 in 5 Victorians who will experience a mental illness at some point but who are looking for more information before they sign themselves up.
The session will be held at MI Fellowship headquarters in Fairfield and will give an overview of what to expect when you volunteer, how volunteering might fit in with your lifestyle and where you can give the most help.
For more information, contact Bianka Saunders at volunteer@mifellowship.org or call her on (03) 8486 4205.
MI Fellowship wins Bronze Australasian Reporting Award
MI Fellowship has been awarded a bronze in reporting from the Australasian Reporting Awards Inc. The Australasian Reporting Awards Inc is an independent body concerned about the quality of financial and business reporting. The award shows real excellence in how Mi Fellowship communicates its business and finances.
For more information about the awards and ARA itself please see here.
MiVoice online
The lastest edition of MI Fellowship's newsletter, MiVoice, has now been uploaded to our website. You can download a copy here.
PARC opens
Prevention and Recovery Care (PARC) was officially opened by Victorian Mental Health Minister Lisa Neville. The facility is run with the resources of the Alfred Hospital and the Mental Illness Fellowship of Victoria.
PARC is a more intensive level of care for people who are at a stage of their illness between requiring hospital and returning to home. PARC helps move patients more quickly out of hospital by offering a less intense treatment as they continue to recover and acts as a bridge between inpatient treatment and community care.
Woodcock lecture discusses mental illness and homelessness
The theme of this years lecture was housing for people with mental illness, which was addressed by guest speaker Dr Sam Tsemberis of Pathways to Housing in New York who presented the audience with his Housing First model.
Housing First is a new approach to housing for people with a mental illness that believe that housing is not something that people with a mental illness should be forced to work their way gradually towards but should be the first issue addressed when looking to help a person with a mental illness with their recovery.
To see a PowerPoint presentation of Dr Tsemberis' speech, click here.
As well as Dr Tsemberis' presentation, attendees of the Bruce Woodcock lecture were addressed by Victorian Housing Minister Richard Wynne, Dr Chris Chamberlain of RMIT University, Catherine Bleasdale and a carer for a person with a mental illness.
Mental Illness Fellowship Roundtable seeks debate around the 'Housing First' model.
Mental Illness Fellowship Victoria is interested in widening the debate to ensure that the wider group of people with severe and enduring mental illness is considered. Many of these people, for instance, are living in family homes with aging parents, only because no better appropriate housing options are available. This is a group at high risk of homelessness. We want to explore options that prevent homelessness in this group.
Mental Illness Fellowhip Victoria recently held a debate designed to engage key stakeholders in mental health, housing and homelessness in dialogue about the particular support needs of people with mental illness and to explore the principles of the successful ‘Housing First’ model established in the US and its transferability to the Australian context specifically for people with mental illness.
The debate was attended by key people involved in the housing sector including Julie Anderson Chair of Victorian Mental Health Ministerial Advisory Committee and Tony Keenan Chief Executive Officer, Hanover Family Services.
The Well Ways Program is designed to increase the capacity of families, carers and friends to care effectively for themselves, other family members and their relative living with mental illness. The program provides a broad and sensitive perspective to the many issues facing families as they manage the impact of mental illness on their lives.
Families, friends and carers of people with a mental illness should attend.
The Well Ways Duo Program aims to increase the capacity of families and friends of people with dual diagnosis to care effectively for themselves, the person with the dual diagnosis and other family members.
Family members, friends and carers of people with a mental illness/ dual diagnosis.
Here is a program outline and timetable of programs.
Margaret Springay discusses housing
Margaret Springgay Executive Director of Mental Illness Fellowship discusses the mental health housing crisis on Radio National.
On April 8, MI Fellowship will be launching a new kid of support program called Caring Grandparents aimed at helping address the needs of grandparents who are caring for their grandchildren due to the children's parent being unwell.
As well as expert speakers and great discussion groups, it's also a fantastic supportive environment for grandparents who feel they need would like to talk to other people in the same position about how they handle the demands that the caring role places on them in a relaxed and encouraging setting.
The initial program is being run in Carlton at the Drummond Street Relationship Centre at 195 Drummond St in Carlton and will first commence on Tuesday April 8 at 7pm, with further dates to be roled out throughout the year.
Anybody wishing to join the group can do so by giving a call to Georgie or Kristan on 9663 6733.
The Mental Illness Fellowship of Victoria's rollout of the successful Well Ways program is continuing throughout the first half of 2008 with new Well Ways groups opening up in Moonee Ponds, South Yarra, Altona, Ringwood, Sunshine and Epping.
For those new to the Fellowship, Well Ways is a peer support program specifically aimed at helping people who are carers of a person with a mental illness to know what to expect, how to cope and how to look after their own mental health while caring for someone else.
Well Ways is focused on providing practical advice using real life examples and most facilitators of the Well Ways program are themselves carers and have seen both the best and worst of time.
The Well Ways was originated in Victoria and has since bee nadopted by other organisations and rolled out across Australia.
The latest round of Well Ways programs has some significant innovations being introduced. The Ringwood program is being specifically tailored for people who are partners of people with a mental illness. A special Well Ways for people from different multicultural backgrounds is opening in Sunshine and one of the two programs opening in South Yarrais for carers of people with a dual diagnosis (i.e. living with both a mental illness and a substance abuse issue).
MI Fellowship raffle winner 2007
Congratulations to the holder of ticket number 117701, now the proud owner of a Toyota Aurion! The raffle was drawn on 6 December.
MI Fellowship members advocate for the Victoria State Election 2006
Earlier in the year, members told us what their priorities are for the mental health sector. MI Fellowship identified the key issues and presented them to all political parties fielding candidates at the November election. The parties responded to our 'Call to Action' and the responses have been sent to our members to help them make an informed vote at the state election.
Carla Krijt,