Our Family Centred Care team hosted a special celebration

18/06/2024

Online complete Newsletter edition.

Art from the heart

This edition features the work (above) of Jodi, one of our fantastic lived experience advisors.
Artist Jodi said, "My artwork is inspired by my experience of grief and loss, and the creative process has been healing for me. Please visit the Children's Mental Health Gallery to check out Jodi's podcast interview or to view more art by our Lived Experience Advisors.

A celebration of family wellbeing

Our Family Centred Care team hosted a special celebration to mark the launch of our Family Wellbeing Model pilot which is now live!

Staff, Lived Experience Advisors (LEAs), and the strategy team came together to acknowledge this huge milestone and show appreciation for everyone involved in the development of the model. 

We're currently piloting the Family Wellbeing Model in Kelpie, Adolescent Medicine, and the Complex Care Hub.

The model includes an online training package and resources to equip staff to initiate conversations with families about their mental health using the Wellbeing Continuum. 

One of the celebration's highlights was hearing from our LEA, Deanna De Cicco, who gave an incredible speech recognising the co-design and involvement of lived experiences in the model's development.

"It takes immense courage, strength and resilience to use what is often some of the hardest parts of your life to help others. I want to hold space and recognise that all of the incredible LEAs who have contributed to this piece of work, could only do so because they have navigated a system without it", she said. 

Deana said, "It is mind-blowing to know that all around us in the hospital today are hundreds of people who will benefit greatly from the work we have done and everyone should be so incredibly proud of that". She continued, "One of the biggest takeaways from this project is that just a simple conversation can change everything. We can learn so much and help so much with just a five-minute chat."

Reshaping Mental Health Resources: A Collaborative Approach

In May, the campus delivered a Grand Round, "Reshaping Mental Health Resources: A Collaborative Approach", which featured the second edition of our Evidence-based Clinical Practice Guideline for Anxiety in Children and Young People and new quick reference flowchart.

The round explored how integrating the voices of children and their parents can transform our mental health work. The panel of speakers included: Dr Zeffie Poulakis, Director of Psychology at the RCH; Dr Anthea Rhodes, Developmental Paediatrician and Founding Director of the RCH Child Health Poll and the RCH Health Literacy Project; Derek McCormack, Director of Raising Children Network; and Deanna De Cicco, Lived Experience Advisor at the Campus Mental Health Strategy.

They shared projects and insights, emphasising the impact of lived experience when creating mental health resources. The panel also discussed practical tips for supporting lived experience in research, knowledge translation and clinical practice, and challenged current assumptions towards co-design. 

Photo: Grand Rounds panel (from left to right) Dr Zeffie Poulakis, Deanna De Cicco, Derek McCormack, and Dr Anthea Rhodes.

You can watch the recorded Grand Round on the RCH webpage.
To view our featured anxiety resources, please visit Mental Health Central. 

Meet our Steering Committee and our Family Centred care team

Call out: help develop a new guideline on suicide and self-harm

Our strategy is in the early stages of developing clinical guidance for suicide and self-harm in children and young people. We invite staff from the RCH to express their interest in joining our development group. We also welcome information about existing projects and resources available on the topic. 

To learn more or get involved, please email our Senior Project Officer, Sydney Stevens, at [email protected].

For help, please contact:

• Lifeline: 13 11 14 (available 24/7)
• Suicide Call-Back Service: 1300 659 467 (available 24/7)
• SuicideLine: 1300 651 251 (available 24/7)

For more information please contact, [email protected].

Unlocking Potential Through Early Education

Participation in high-quality kindergarten benefits children’s health and development. These benefits are particularly crucial for children from disadvantaged and vulnerable backgrounds. Every year, three times as many children from Australia’s lowest socioeconomic bracket enter school developmentally vulnerable than children from the highest socioeconomic bracket. Alarmingly, the gap between the poorest and wealthiest communities in Australia has been widening.

Best Start is an initiative by the Department of Education designed to ensure every child gets the best start in life. 

Best Start aims to address the unique challenges faced by communities by supporting the collaboration between agencies, services and families. The initiative prioritises supporting children and families experiencing vulnerability and works to increase the participation of all First Nations children in universal early childhood services. Currently, there are 29 Best Start sites across Victoria, managed by First Peoples' corporations, local government agencies (LGAs), and community health services.

Collaborative Efforts for Better Outcomes

Through training and coaching, the Centre for Community Child Health (CCCH) supports Best Start facilitators and Early Childhood Performance and Planning Advisors (ECPAPAs) to improve the collaboration between local services and achieve Best Start outcomes.

March 2024 Forum: A Milestone Event

In March 2024, CCCH hosted its first in-person forum in Naarm. This landmark event saw an impressive number of participants from the Best Start Network gather for a two-day forum, hosted by the Victorian Aboriginal Community Services Association Ltd (VACSAL) on the first day and CCCH on the second. The forum brought together Best Start facilitators, fundholders, and ECPAPAs from the Department of Education, all dedicated to leading reform at the local level.

The event was a testament to the power of collaboration and shared learning. Attendees engaged in discussions and workshops aimed at identifying and overcoming barriers to kindergarten participation. They shared successful strategies and innovative solutions, fostering a spirit of collective problem-solving and mutual support. Hear some of the perspectives from attendees in the video below:

Looking ahead

The success of the March forum underscores the importance of such gatherings in driving meaningful change. By continuing to bring together diverse stakeholders, the Best Start initiative can build stronger, more resilient early childhood services that cater to the needs of all children, especially those from marginalised communities.

Through continued support, collaboration, and innovation, we can ensure that every child in Victoria has the opportunity to thrive and succeed, starting with a solid foundation in kindergarten.