Journal articles on the topic 'Community mental health services Victoria Melbourne'
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Atwell, R., I. Correa‐Velez, and S. Gifford. "Ageing Out of Place: Health and Well‐Being Needs and Access to Home and Aged Care Services for Recently Arrived Older Refugees in Melbourne, Australia." International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care 3, no. 1 (July 1, 2007): 4–14. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/17479894200700002.
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Recently arrived older refugees in resettlement countries are a particularly vulnerable population who face many risks to their health and well‐being, and many challenges in accessing services. This paper reports on a project undertaken in Victoria, Australia to explore the needs of older people from 14 recently arrived refugee communities, and the barriers to their receiving health and aged care. Findings from consultations with community workers and service providers highlight the key issues of isolation, family conflict and mental illness affecting older refugees, and point to ways in which policy‐makers and service providers can better respond to these small but deserving communities.
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Burke, David. "Dementia Care in Victoria: Building a Pathway to Excellence Final Report, Ministerial Taskforce on Dementia Services in Victoria. Melbourne, Australia: Aged, Community & Mental Health Division, Victorian Government Department of Human Services, 1997, 398 pp., No charge." International Psychogeriatrics 11, no. 1 (March 1999): 102–3. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1041610299225628.
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Gelber, Harry. "The experience of the Royal Children's Hospital mental health service videoconferencing project." Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare 4, no. 1_suppl (March 1998): 71–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1258/1357633981931542.
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In April 1995 the Royal Children's Hospital Mental Health Service in Melbourne piloted the use of videoconferencing in providing access for rural service providers and their clients to specialist child and adolescent psychiatric input. What began as a pilot project has in two years become integrated into the service-delivery system for rural Victoria. The experience of the service in piloting and integrating the use of videoconferencing to rural Victoria has been an important development for child and adolescent mental health services in Australia.
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Castle, David J. "Letter from Australia: mental healthcare in Victoria." Advances in Psychiatric Treatment 17, no. 1 (January 2011): 2–4. http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/apt.bp.110.008375.
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SummaryMental health services in the state of Victoria, Australia, have undergone enormous change over the past 15 years, with the closure of all stand-alone psychiatric hospitals and a shift of resources and services into the community. Although successful overall, various areas cause concern, including pressure on acute beds, a paucity of alternative residential options, and suboptimal integration of government and non-government agencies concerned with the care of people with mental illnesses. Certain groups, notably those with complex symptom sets such as substance use and mental illness, intellectual disability and forensic problems, remain poorly catered for by the system. Finally, community stigma and lack of work inclusion for mentally ill individuals are ongoing challenges.
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Dedman, Paul. "Community Treatment Orders in Victoria, Australia." Psychiatric Bulletin 14, no. 8 (August 1990): 462–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/pb.14.8.462.
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It is one of the failures of contemporary psychiatry that many patients who respond well to neuroleptic medication given to them when they are in-patients relapse after discharge due to not taking any further medication. Those working closely with the acute psychiatric patient in the community are often forced to stand by powerlessly as a patient deteriorates, causing damage to himself and his social milieu until such a point is reached when he is again ill enough to warrant compulsory admission and treatment. This process is, of course, devastating for a patient's family and also disheartening for professionals involved, and is perhaps partly responsible for the high turnover of staff involved in front line services. Even if assertive outreach methods are employed such as those involved in a number of comprehensive community-based programmes (Stein & Test, 1980; Borland et al, 1989) so that contact with the patient is not lost, it is not possible without the necessary legislation to enforce treatment in the community.
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Gelber, Harry. "The experience in Victoria with telepsychiatry for the child and adolescent mental health service." Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare 7, no. 2_suppl (December 2001): 32–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1258/1357633011937065.
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In 1995, the Royal Children's Hospital Mental Health Service in Melbourne developed the first telepsychiatry programme in child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) in Australia. A survey of 25 CAMHS clinicians in five rural regions who had used videoconferencing showed that 64% had used the technology for more than 18 months, and 20% had used it for 7–12 months. Also, 60% had used the technology on over 30 occasions, and 24% had used it on 20–29 occasions. Respondents clearly recognized its benefits in terms of their increased knowledge and skills (96%), strengthening of relationships with colleagues (92%) and decreased sense of isolation (92%). To build on the success of telepsychiatry there are a number of challenges that health service managers will need to address. Telepsychiatry works most effectively as a tool to complement face-to-face contact. It cannot be promoted as the total solution to the issue of isolation from mainstream services.
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Kong, F., C. Kyle-Link, J. Hocking, and M. Hellard. "11. SEX AND SPORT: A COMMUNITY BASED PROJECT OF CHLAMYDIA TESTING AND TREATMENT IN RURAL AND REGIONAL VICTORIA." Sexual Health 4, no. 4 (2007): 288. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/shv4n4ab11.
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Chlamydia is the most common notifiable infectious disease in Australia with the number of notifications increasing 92% over the past 5 years. The "Sex and Sport" Project is piloting a community based chlamydia testing and treatment program reaching young people in a specific community setting, sporting clubs. This multifaceted approach utilises health education, population screening and collection of data on risk taking behaviour as the first steps in enhancing health and shaping future service provisions. The project's primary aim is to assess the feasibility of an outreach testing and treatment program. Secondary aims are to measure the prevalence of chlamydia and assess sexual risk behaviour in this population. Strong community collaborations and integration into local health services through the Primary Care Partnerships is important in the project's sustainability; in particular key community members respected by sporting clubs needed to be identified, capacity developed to deliver effective health promotion messages and improve young people's access to sexual health services. Additionally, local knowledge has guided overall program implementation and provides opportunities for capacity building to regionally based services. For example, poor access to sexual health services is being addressed by the participants being able to access services via telephone consultation with Melbourne Sexual Health Centre. Approximately 1000 Victorians aged 16-25 years from the Loddon Mallee region of Victoria will be tested between June and September 2007. This paper will report on the feasibility, challenges and possible solutions in establishing a community based outreach testing and treatment program.
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Ames, David. "Australia (Melbourne)." Psychiatric Bulletin 16, no. 9 (September 1992): 552–54. http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/pb.16.9.552.
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Australia is a unique, geologically ancient island continent. Its flora and fauna are unlike those found anywhere else and the same may be said of its people, politics and health services. The population of 17.3 millions represents a multicultural mix, with an anglo-celtic core conflated by sustained post-war immigration from southern Europe, Turkey, southeast Asia and south America. One in five current Australians was born elsewhere, one in ten comes from a non-English speaking background, and a quarter of those born here have a parent who was born overseas. Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders form 1.4% of the total population. They have third world mortality figures but die of first world diseases, their life expectancy being 20 years less than that of other Australians. Two hundred and four years after what they see as the British invasion, their standard of living lags far behind all other socio-cultural groups in the country. Most members of the Aboriginal community do not live long enough to develop Alzheimer's disease, but it and other age-related diseases are emerging as the major determinants of health costs as Australia moves towards the 21st century.
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Cheng, I.-Hao, Jacquie McBride, Miriam Decker, Therese Watson, Hannah Jakubenko, and Alana Russo. "The Asylum Seeker Integrated Healthcare Pathway: a collaborative approach to improving access to primary health care in South Eastern Melbourne, Victoria, Australia." Australian Journal of Primary Health 25, no. 1 (2019): 6. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py18028.
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It is important to address the health needs of asylum seekers within the early stages of their arrival in Australia, as this impacts all aspects of their resettlement. However, asylum seekers face a range of barriers to accessing timely and appropriate health care in the community. In 2012, the increasing number of asylum seekers in Australia placed additional demand on health and social services in high-settlement regions. Health providers experienced a substantial increase in Medicare ineligible clients and avoidable presentations to Emergency Departments, and the health needs of new asylum seeker arrivals were not being fully addressed. In response, South Eastern Melbourne Medicare Local, Monash Health, the Australian Red Cross and local settlement support agencies collaborated to develop an integrated healthcare pathway in South Eastern Melbourne to facilitate healthcare access for asylum seekers released from detention. From September 2012 to December 2014, a total of 951 asylum seekers transitioned through the pathway. Seventy-eight percent required primary healthcare assistance, and were provided with a service appointment within 3 weeks of their arrival in Melbourne. This initiative has demonstrated the value of partnership and collaboration when responding to emergent asylum seeker health needs.
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Silburn, Kate, and Virginia Lewis. "Commissioning for health and community sector reform: perspectives on change from Victoria." Australian Journal of Primary Health 26, no. 4 (2020): 332. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py20011.
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Commissioning health and community services is a complex task involving planning, purchasing and monitoring services for a population. It is particularly difficult when attempting system-level reform, and many barriers to effective commissioning have been documented. In Victoria, the state government has operated as a commissioner of many services, including mental health community support and alcohol and other drug treatment services. This study investigated the perceived consequences of a reform process in these two sectors after recommissioning was used as a mechanism to achieve sector-wide redesign. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 23 senior staff from community health, mental health and drug and alcohol services 6 months after implementation. The process was affected by restructuring in the commissioning department resulting in truncation of preparatory planning and technical work required for system design. Consequently, reform implementation was reportedly chaotic, costly to agencies and staff, and resulted in disillusionment of enthusiastic reform supporters. Negative service system impacts were produced, such as disruption of collaborative and/or comprehensive models of care and strategies for reaching marginalised groups. Without careful planning and development commissioning processes can become over-reliant on competitive tendering to produce results, create significant costs to service providers and engender system-level issues with the potential to disrupt innovative models focused on meeting client needs.
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Aitken, Campbell, and Cheryl Delalande. "A Public Health Initiative for Steroid Users in Victoria." Australian Journal of Primary Health 8, no. 2 (2002): 21. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py02022.
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Anabolic steroid injectors are at risk of infection with blood-borne viruses (BBVs), but have received little attention from researchers, practitioners or agencies working in public health. In recognition of this gap, in early 1996 the Steroid Peer Education Project (SPEP) began providing part-time mobile needle and syringe distribution and health information and referral services to steroid injectors in north-eastern Melbourne. Demand repeatedly caused the project to expand, and its sole peer worker now operates Victoria-wide, five days per week. Basic information on injecting practices collected from SPEP clients showed that many were at risk of BBV infection. This led to the initiation of a collaborative research project, in which SPEP clients were tested for BBV antibodies and provided detailed information about their risk behaviours. Of 29 steroid injectors tested between May and August 1999, three (10%) had antibodies to the hepatitis C virus, and they described behaviour which could spread the virus to other steroid users. These results show that blood-borne viruses are present in the Victorian steroid injecting community, and reinforce the SPEP's commitment to reducing harm in this group.
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Hall, Martin, and Bradley Christian. "A health-promoting community dental service in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia: protocol for the North Richmond model of oral health care." Australian Journal of Primary Health 23, no. 5 (2017): 407. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py17007.
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Despite the best efforts and commitment of oral health programs, there is no evidence that the current surgical output-based model of oral health care is delivering better oral health outcomes to the community. In fact, Australian evidence indicates the oral health of the community could be getting worse. It is now well-understood that this traditional surgical model of oral health care will never successfully manage the disease itself. It is proposed that a health-promoting, minimally invasive oral disease management model of care may lead to a sustainable benefit to the oral health status of the individual and community groups. The aim of this paper is to describe such a model of oral health care (MoC) currently being implemented by the North Richmond Community Health Oral Health (NRCH-OH) program in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; this model may serve as a template for other services to re-orient their healthcare delivery towards health promotion and prevention. The paper describes the guiding principles and theories for the model and also its operational components, which are: pre-engagement while on the waitlist; client engagement at the reception area; the assessment phase; oral health education (high-risk clients only); disease management; and reviews and recall.
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Mullen, P., and J. Ogloff. "Providing mental health services to adult offenders in Victoria, Australia: Overcoming barriers." European Psychiatry 24, no. 6 (September 2009): 395–400. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpsy.2009.07.003.
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AbstractPurposeTo illustrate the development of the interface between general and forensic mental health services in Victoria, Australia.MethodDeveloping effective cooperation between the general and forensic mental health services requires overcoming a number of barriers. The attitude of general services that antisocial behaviour was none of their business was tackled through ongoing workshops and education days over several years. The resistance to providing care to those disabled by severe personality disorders or substance abuse was reduced by presenting and promoting models of care developed in forensic community and inpatient services which prioritised these areas. The reluctance of general services to accept offenders was reduced by involving general services in court liaison clinics and in prisoner release plans. Cooperation was enhanced by the provision of risk assessments, the sharing of responsibility for troublesome patients, and a problem behaviours clinic to support general services in coping with stalkers, sex offenders and threateners.ConclusionsActive engagement with general services was promoted at the level of providing education, specialised assessments and a referral source for difficult patients. This generated a positive interface between forensic and general mental health services, which improved the quality of care delivered to mentally abnormal offenders.
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Tobin, Margaret J. "Rural Psychiatric Services." Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 30, no. 1 (February 1996): 114–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/00048679609076079.
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Objective: The objective was to describe and evaluate a community mental health service developed during 1991–1992 in an attempt to meet the mental illness needs of an isolated rural community. The setting was the Grampians health region in Western Victoria: this region has an area of 45,000 square kilo-metres and a population of 182,000. Method: The method involved firstly describing the evolution of the service delivery model. This comprised a team of travelling psychiatrists and community psychiatric nurses which succeeded in providing a combined inpatient and outpatient service which was integrated with general practitioners. Secondly, diagnostic and case load descriptions of patients receiving service were compared for both the inpatient and outpatient settings. Results: The results were that reduced reliance on inpatient beds and increased consumer satisfaction were achieved. Conclusion: It was concluded that on initial evaluation of the service it was seen to be meeting its objective of treating the seriously mentally ill in an isolated rural community based setting.
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Draper, Brian. "G Vernon Davies: unsung pioneer of old age psychiatry in Victoria." Australasian Psychiatry 30, no. 2 (November 8, 2021): 203–5. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10398562211045085.
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Objective: To provide a biography of G Vernon Davies who took up a career in old age psychiatry in 1955 at the age of 67 at Mont Park Hospital in an era when there few psychiatrists working in the field. Conclusion: In the 1950s and 1960s, Vernon Davies worked as an old age psychiatrist and published papers containing sensible practical advice informed by contemporary research and experience, broadly applicable to both primary and secondary care, presented in a compassionate and empathetic manner. His clinical research in old age psychiatry resulted in the first doctoral degree in psychiatry awarded at the University of Melbourne at the age of 79. Before commencing old age psychiatry, he served in the Australian Army Medical Corps as a Regimental Medical Officer and received the Distinguished Service Order. He spent 3 years as a medical missionary in the New Hebrides before settling at Wangaratta where he worked as a physician for over 30 years. He contributed to his local community in a broad range of activities. Vernon Davies is an Australian pioneer of old age psychiatry.
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Crock, Elizabeth, and Judy-Ann Butwilowsky. "The HIV Resource Nurse Role at the Royal District Nursing Service (Melbourne): Making A Difference for People Living with HIV/AIDS in the Community." Australian Journal of Primary Health 12, no. 2 (2006): 83. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py06026.
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The care of people living with HIV/AIDS in the home and community can be complex and challenging, requiring high levels of knowledge, skill, preparedness and, importantly, the ability to engage with people belonging to marginalised groups. In 2003, the Royal District Nursing Service (RDNS) HIV/AIDS Team in Victoria, Australia, developed the new role of HIV Resource Nurse at two RDNS centres in Melbourne serving high numbers of people living with HIV/AIDS. Drawing from two case studies and interviews with two HIV Resource Nurses from one of the centres, this paper describes this practice innovation. Benefits (including a positive impact on client engagement with services, client care, relationships with other health care workers and job satisfaction) are outlined, along with challenges in the implementation and evolution of the role. Strategies to sustain and develop the HIV Resource Nurse role are proposed.
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Ong, Kevin, Andrew Carroll, Shannon Reid, and Adam Deacon. "Community Outcomes of Mentally Disordered Homicide Offenders in Victoria." Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 43, no. 8 (January 1, 2009): 775–80. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00048670903001976.
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Objective: The aim of the present study was to describe characteristics and post-release outcomes of Victorian homicide offenders under the Crimes (Mental Impairment and Unfitness to be Tried) Act 1997 (and/or its forerunner legislation) released from forensic inpatient psychiatric care since the development of specialist forensic services. Method: A legal database identified subjects meeting inclusion criteria: hospitalized in forensic psychiatric care due to finding of mental impairment or unfitness to stand trial for homicide in Victoria; released into the community; and released between 1 January 1991 and 30 April 2002. Using clinical records, demographics, index offence, progress in hospital, diagnosis, psychosocial and criminological data were obtained. Outcomes (offending or readmission into secure care) were obtained from the clinical records. Results: Of the 25 subjects, 19 (76%) were male. Primary diagnoses on admission to forensic hospital care were schizophrenia, n = 16 (64%); other psychotic disorder, n = 5 (20%); depression, n = 3 (12%); and personality disorder, n = 1 (4%). Mean time in custodial supervision was 11 years and 2 months, less for those whose offence occurred after the development of forensic rehabilitation services. In the first 3 years after release, there was a single episode of criminal recidivism, representing a recidivism rate of 1 in 25 (4%) over 3 years. Twelve subjects (48%) were readmitted at some point in the 3 year follow up. Conclusion: There was a very low rate of recidivism after discharge, but readmissions to hospital were common. Lengths of custodial care were reduced after the introduction of forensic rehabilitation facilities. Recidivism is low when there are well-designed and implemented forensic community treatment programmes, consistent with other data suggesting a reciprocal relationship between safe community care and a low threshold for readmission to hospital, lessening re-offending at times of crisis. Further research should be directed at timing of release decisions, based on reducing identified risk factors to acceptable levels.
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Ruth, Denise, Rosalind Hurworth, and Nabil Sulaiman. "Moving towards meaningful local population health data: The service provider perspective." Australian Journal of Primary Health 11, no. 2 (2005): 113. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py05029.
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Increasingly, primary care services are required to use data to assess their local population's health needs and plan services. This paper reports focus group discussions of service providers' perceived current practice, issues and needs related to obtaining and using data for planning services in two local government areas of Melbourne. Six groups were conducted with nominees from two municipal councils, four divisions of general practice, three community health services, three hospital networks and eight community organizations. Two groups were conducted with planners and data providers from the Department of Human Services, Victoria. The 66 participants had a broad range of experience in using data to assess local population health needs. Participants reported that issues limiting the use of data related to: access to data (lack of awareness, contacting the right person, poor communication between data providers and users, resource constraints, lack of central access); gaps in data; quality of data (inconsistent definitions and collection, currency, ties to funding); applicability of data (unfriendly format, problems with aggregated versus small area data, non-matching data sets, lack of contextual information); and support for data use in local population health planning. If local population needs assessment is to lead to better health outcomes, service providers need access to high quality data presented in formats that are applicable to their communities. They also need practicable planning methods, skills training and support in using data for local population needs assessment and service planning.
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Ronnau, Peggy, Arthur Papakotsias, and Glen Tobias. ""Not for" sector in community mental health care defines itself and strives for quality." Australian Journal of Primary Health 14, no. 2 (2008): 68. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py08025.
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This paper briefly describes the history and service context of the Psychiatric Disability Rehabilitation and Support sector (PDRSS) in Victoria, and, to a lesser extent, in New South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia. In describing the sector we will call upon the experience of a particular PDRSS - Neami - in operating and developing services, and the challenges it faced in establishing a culture of quality that directly improves consumer outcomes. Elements of this experience may serve as a guide in the development of mental health service policy at state and federal level.
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Teresa Dawson, Maria, Paul Grech, Brendan Hyland, Fiona Judd, John Lloyd, Anne M. Mijch, Jennifer Hoy, and Alan C Street. "A Qualitative Approach to the Mental Health Care Needs of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Victoria." Australian Journal of Primary Health 8, no. 3 (2002): 30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py02041.
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This article reports on the findings of the qualitative stage of a larger project on the mental care needs of people with HIV/AIDS and mental illness (Tender T1176 Department of Human Services, Mental Health Branch, Victoria - Research on the Mental Health Care Needs of People with HIV/AIDS and Mental Illness). The purpose of the larger research was to evaluate the needs and treatment requirements of persons with HIV/AIDS, who also suffer from mental health problems, with a view to developing proposals for improving existing service delivery in Victoria, Australia. The qualitative stage was designed to complement and elucidate data obtained through the quantitative stages of the project. Thirty in-depth open-ended interviews were carried out with service providers including HIV physicians, general practitioners, psychiatrists, clinical and managerial staff of Area Mental Health Services, Contact Tracers and forensic mental health services staff, as well as representatives of community groups such as People Living with HIV/AIDS and Positive Women and carers. The interviews explored the perspective of both service providers and users of such services with respect to needs for psychiatric care and service delivery, ease of access or barriers to mental health services, and the perceived strengths and weaknesses in current service provision. This paper presents the main findings and recommendations submitted to the funding body.
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Griffiths, Daniel, Luke Sheehan, Dennis Petrie, Caryn van Vreden, Peter Whiteford, and Alex Collie. "The health impacts of a 4-month long community-wide COVID-19 lockdown: Findings from a prospective longitudinal study in the state of Victoria, Australia." PLOS ONE 17, no. 4 (April 7, 2022): e0266650. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0266650.
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Objectives To determine health impacts during, and following, an extended community lockdown and COVID-19 outbreak in the Australian state of Victoria, compared with the rest of Australia. Methods A national cohort of 898 working-age Australians enrolled in a longitudinal cohort study, completing surveys before, during, and after a 112-day community lockdown in Victoria (8 July– 27 October 2020). Outcomes included psychological distress, mental and physical health, work, social interactions and finances. Regression models examined health changes during and following lockdown. Results The Victorian lockdown led to increased psychological distress. Health impacts coincided with greater social isolation and work loss. Following the extended lockdown, mental health, work and social interactions recovered to an extent whereby no significant long-lasting effects were identified in Victoria compared to the rest of Australia. Conclusion The Victorian community lockdown had adverse health consequences, which reversed upon release from lockdown. Governments should weigh all potential health impacts of lockdown. Services and programs to reduce the negative impacts of lockdown may include increases in mental health care, encouraging safe social interactions and supports to maintain employment relationships.
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Russell, Grant, Susannah Westbury, Sharon Clifford, Elizabeth Sturgiss, Anna Fragkoudi, Rob Macindoe, Deborah Stuart, Marina Kunin, Jill Walsh, and Cathie Scott. "Improving access for the vulnerable: a mixed-methods feasibility study of a pop-up model of care in south-eastern Melbourne, Australia." Australian Journal of Primary Health 28, no. 2 (February 25, 2022): 143–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py21188.
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Access to appropriate health and social care is challenging for vulnerable populations. We used a ‘pop-up’ delivery model to bring community-based services in contact with communities with poor access to health and social care. Our aim was to examine whether pop-up events improve access to essential health and social support services for selected vulnerable communities and increase collaboration between community-based health and social services. Set in south-eastern Melbourne, two pop-up events were held, one with people at risk of homelessness attending a community lunch and the other with South Sudanese women helping at-risk youth. Providers represented 20 dental, housing, justice, employment and mental health services. We made structured observations of each event and held semi-structured interviews with consumers and providers. Pre-post surveys of managers assessed acceptability and perceived impact. We reached 100 community participants who had multiple needs, particularly for dentistry. Following the events, participants reported increased knowledge of services and access pathways, community members spoke of increased trust and partnerships between service providers were fostered. The pop-up model can increase provider collaboration and provide new options for vulnerable populations to access needed services. ‘Bringing the service to the person’ is a compelling alternative to asking consumers to negotiate complex access pathways.
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McDonald, Paul. "Through the wall: An address to practitioners at a forum on the Working Together Strategy." Children Australia 25, no. 1 (2000): 27–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1035077200009585.
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This address was given at a forum in November J999 for practitioners in the juvenile justice, alcohol and drug, mental health and child protection services in Victoria as part of the Department of Human Services’ Working Together Strategy’ (WTS). The WTS is a quality improvement initiative of the DHS in partnership with adolescent mental health and drug treatment service providers.WTS provides an organisational framework for the Community Care Division, the Aged, Community and Mental Health Division and the Public Health Division (specifically in reference to the mental health, child protection and care, juvenile justice and drug treatment services programs) to achieve better outcomes for shared clients. WTS is a response to perceived deficits in cross-program collaboration and communication in cases involving high need adolescent clients.
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Bigby, Christine. "A demographic analysis of older people with intellectual disability registered with Community Services Victoria." Australia and New Zealand Journal of Developmental Disabilities 19, no. 1 (January 1994): 1–10. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07263869400035061.
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Manning, Victoria, Nicki A. Dowling, Simone N. Rodda, Ali Cheetham, and Dan I. Lubman. "An Examination of Clinician Responses to Problem Gambling in Community Mental Health Services." Journal of Clinical Medicine 9, no. 7 (July 1, 2020): 2075. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jcm9072075.
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Gambling problems commonly co-occur with other mental health problems. However, screening for problem gambling (PG) rarely takes place within mental health treatment settings. The aim of the current study was to examine the way in which mental health clinicians respond to PG issues. Participants (n = 281) were recruited from a range of mental health services in Victoria, Australia. The majority of clinicians reported that at least some of their caseload was affected by gambling problems. Clinicians displayed moderate levels of knowledge about the reciprocal impact of gambling problems and mental health but had limited knowledge of screening tools to detect PG. Whilst 77% reported that they screened for PG, only 16% did so “often” or “always” and few expressed confidence in their ability to treat PG. However, only 12.5% reported receiving previous training in PG, and those that had, reported higher levels of knowledge about gambling in the context of mental illness, more positive attitudes about responding to gambling issues, and more confidence in detecting/screening for PG. In conclusion, the findings highlight the need to upskill mental health clinicians so they can better identify and manage PG and point towards opportunities for enhanced integrated working with gambling services.
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Lien, On. "Attitudes of the Vietnamese Community towards Mental Illness." Australasian Psychiatry 1, no. 3 (August 1993): 110–12. http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/10398569309081340.
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There are approximately 155,000 Vietnamese born people in Australia, with 46,000 in Victoria. The majority came to Australia as refugees. Many were subjected to the reality or threat of war, persecution, imprisonment, discrimination, economic deprivation, violence, the loss of family or other major stressors. These stressors have included the hazards of the escape, lengthy stays in refugee camps and, on arrival in Australia, lack of familiarity with English and with the culture. The Vietnamese Community in Australia was expected to have a high prevalence of mental illness, especially when newly arrived from refugee camps. In a study published in 1986 as “The Price of Freedom” [1] 32% of the young Vietnamese adult group was found to suffer from psychiatric disorder. At follow-up two years later, the prevalence of psychiatric disorder, without any major intervention, had dropped to 5–6%, a prevalence lower than that in the Australian-born community. In addition, the Vietnamese community's use of mental health services (inpatient and community-based) is lower than that of any other ethnic group.
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Loi, Samantha, and Anne Hassett. "Evolution of aged persons mental health services in Victoria: The history behind their development." Australasian Journal on Ageing 30, no. 4 (July 3, 2011): 226–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-6612.2011.00529.x.
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Keeves, Jemma, Belinda Gabbe, Sarah Arnup, Christina Ekegren, and Ben Beck. "Serious Injury in Metropolitan and Regional Victoria: Exploring Travel to Treatment and Utilisation of Post-Discharge Health Services by Injury Type." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 21 (October 28, 2022): 14063. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192114063.
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This study aimed to describe regional variations in service use and distance travelled to post-discharge health services in the first three years following hospital discharge for people with transport-related orthopaedic, brain, and spinal cord injuries. Using linked data from the Victorian State Trauma Registry (VSTR) and Transport Accident Commission (TAC), we identified 1597 people who had sustained transport-related orthopaedic, brain, or spinal cord injuries between 2006 and 2016 that met the study inclusion criteria. The adjusted odds of GP service use for regional participants were 76% higher than for metropolitan participants in the orthopaedic and traumatic brain injury (TBI) groups. People with spinal cord injury (SCI) living in regional areas had 72% lower adjusted odds of accessing mental health, 76% lower adjusted odds of accessing OT services, and 82% lower adjusted odds of accessing physical therapies compared with people living in major cities. People with a TBI living in regional areas on average travelled significantly further to access all post-discharge health services compared with people with TBI in major cities. For visits to medical services, the median trip distance for regional participants was 76.61 km (95%CI: 16.01–132.21) for orthopaedic injuries, 104.05 km (95% CI: 51.55–182.78) for TBI, and 68.70 km (95%CI: 8.34–139.84) for SCI. Disparities in service use and distance travelled to health services exist between metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria following serious injury.
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Burchell, Anna, Sabin Fernbacher, Robert Lewis, and Andrew Neil. ""Dental as Anything" Inner South Community Health Service Dental Outreach to People with a Mental Illness." Australian Journal of Primary Health 12, no. 2 (2006): 75. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py06025.
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This article provides an overview of a unique way to respond to the complex oral health needs of people with a mental illness. People with a psychiatric disability, especially those of low income and insecure housing, are at high risk of developing oral disease, due to issues associated with mental illness, poverty and the side-effects of psychotropic medication. The 'Dental as Anything' program is a collaborative partnership between the mental health, dental and administration teams of the Inner South Community Health Service (ISCHS) in Melbourne. It provides a flexible program incorporating engagement, clinical care, education and support in response to client needs. Utilising a health promotion framework and an assertive outreach model, it accesses people who traditionally do not approach mainstream services. The program manages to "reach the unreachable".
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Ziguras, Stephen, Tim J. R. Lambert, Dean P. McKenzie, and Jo Pennella. "The Influence of Client's Ethnicity on Psychotropic Medication Management in Community Mental Health Services." Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 33, no. 6 (December 1999): 882–88. http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1440-1614.1999.00612.x.
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Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate whether people born in non-English-speaking countries differed from clients born in Australia on quality of medication management, measured by mean neuroleptic dose, method of administration, use of atypical antipsychotics and perceived compliance with medication, and to investigate the influence of matching the client with a case manager from the same ethnic background on these measures. Method: Information about medication and perceived compliance was provided for 168 clients of five community mental health services in Melbourne. Chlorpromazine equivalent doses (CPZe) were calculated, and average dose, route of administration, percentage receiving atypical antipsychotics and perceived compliance with medication were analysed by country of birth and preferred language. Each analysis was repeated for clients matched to a case manager from the same ethno-linguistic background compared to those with ‘unmatched’ case managers. Results: While non-English-speaking background (NESB) clients generally did not receive different dose sizes, those born in Vietnam had a lower mean dose. People born in a non-English-speaking country tended to be more likely than the Australian born to receive a depot injection, although this was not quite statistically significant. Twenty-seven percent of clients received an atypical neuroleptic; age was a significant factor, with older clients less likely to receive an atypical. There was no difference in receipt of atypicals or perceived compliance by country of birth, language or gender. Matching for a case manager of the same background had no effect except for route of administration, with matched clients less likely to receive depot medication than unmatched. Conclusions: Generally, the ethnic background of clients had little influence on the quality of medication management they received from community mental health services.
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Adams, Karen, Chris Halacas, Marion Cincotta, and Corina Pesich. "Mental health and Victorian Aboriginal people: what can data mining tell us?" Australian Journal of Primary Health 20, no. 4 (2014): 350. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py14036.
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Nationally, Aboriginal people experience high levels of psychological distress, primarily due to trauma from colonisation. In Victoria, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs) provide many services to support mental health. The aim of the present study was to improve understanding about Victorian Aboriginal people and mental health service patterns. We located four mental health administrative datasets to analyse descriptively, including Practice Health Atlas, Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment Service (AODTS), Kids Helpline and Close The Gap Pharmaceutical Scheme data. A large proportion of the local Aboriginal population (70%) were regular ACCHO clients; of these, 21% had a mental health diagnosis and, of these, 23% had a Medicare Mental Health Care Plan (MHCP). There were higher rates of Medicare MHCP completion rates where general practitioners (GPs) had mental health training and the local Area Mental Health Service had a Koori Mental Health Liaison Officer. There was an over-representation of AODTS episodes, and referrals for these episodes were more likely to come through community, corrections and justice services than for non-Aboriginal people. Aboriginal episodes were less likely to have been referred by a GP or police and less likely to have been referrals to community-based or home-based treatment. There was an over-representation of Victorian Aboriginal calls to Kids Helpline, and these were frequently for suicide and self-harm reasons. We recommend primary care mental health programs include quality audits, GP training, non-pharmaceutical options and partnerships. Access to appropriate AODTS is needed, particularly given links to high incarcerations rates. To ensure access to mental health services, improved understanding of mental health service participation and outcomes, including suicide prevention services for young people, is needed.
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Zhao, Henry, Lauren Pesavento, Edrich Rodrigues, Patrick Salvaris, Karen Smith, Stephen Bernard, Michael Stephenson, et al. "009 The ambulance clinical triage-for acute stroke treatment (ACT-FAST) algorithmic pre-hospital triage tool for endovascular thrombectomy: ongoing paramedic validation." Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry 89, no. 6 (May 24, 2018): A5.1—A5. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jnnp-2018-anzan.9.
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IntroductionThe ambulance clinical triage-for acute stroke treatment (ACT-FAST) algorithm is a severity based 3-step paramedic triage tool for pre-hospital recognition of large vessel occlusion (LVO), designed to improve specificity and paramedic assessment reliability compared to existing triage scales. ACT-FAST sequentially assesses 1. Unilateral arm fall to stretcher <10 s; 2a. Severe language disturbance (right arm weak), or 2b. Severe gaze deviation/hemi-neglect assessed by shoulder tap (left arm weak); 3. Clinical eligibility questions. We present the results of the ongoing Ambulance Victoria paramedic validation study.MethodsAmbulance Victoria paramedics assessed ACT-FAST in all suspected stroke patients pre-hospital in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia, and in the Royal Melbourne Hospital Emergency Department since July 2017. Algorithm results were validated against a comparator of ICA/M1 occlusion on CT-angiography with NIHSS ≥6 (Class 1 indications for endovascular thrombectomy).ResultsData were available from n=119 assessments (ED n=68, pre-hospital n=51). Patient diagnoses were LVO n=20 (15.6%), non-LVO infarcts n=45 (38.5%), ICH n=10 (8.3%) and no stroke on imaging n=44 (37.6%). ACT-FAST showed 85% sensitivity, 88.9% specificity, 60.7% (72% excluding ICH) positive predictive value and 96.7% negative predictive value for LVO. Of 10 false-positives, 4 received thrombectomy for non-Class 1 indications (basilar/M2 occlusions/cervical dissection), 3 were ICH, and 1 was tumour. Three false-negatives were LVO with milder syndromes.DiscussionThe ongoing ACT-FAST algorithm validation study shows high accuracy for clinical recognition of LVO. The streamlined algorithmic approach with just two examination items provides a more practical option for implementation in large emergency service networks. Accurate pre-hospital recognition of LVO will allow bypass to endovascular centres and early activation of neuro-intervention services to expedite endovascular thrombectomy.
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O'connor, Daniel, and Pamela Melding. "A Survey of Publicly Funded aged Psychiatry Services in Australia and New Zealand." Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 40, no. 4 (April 2006): 368–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/j.1440-1614.2006.01804.x.
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Objective: To map the size and distribution of publicly funded aged psychiatry (psychogeriatric) services in Australia and New Zealand in 2003. Method: Services were tracked exhaustively through personal, professional and academic contacts, electronic searches and word-of-mouth. Directors or managers of services were asked to complete a brief questionnaire concerning their locality, services, staff profile and patient contacts. Results: Services varied widely with respect to their numbers, size and community outreach. Victoria was the only Australian state to provide specialist, multidisciplinary aged psychiatry teams with community, acute inpatient and residential arms in all its major cities. New South Wales, the state with the largest aged population, performed relatively poorly on most indicators. New Zealand performed relatively well despite its small size and widely dispersed population. Conclusions: Publicly funded aged mental health services are effective and reach frail, multiply disabled old people who cannot access private psychiatrists and are often overlooked by services for younger adults. At the time of our survey, such services were distributed in Australia in a highly inequitable fashion.
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Thompson, Sandra C., Gill E. Checkley, Jane S. Hocking, Nick Crofts, Anne M. Mijch, and Fiona K. Judd. "HIV Risk Behaviour and HIV Testing of Psychiatric Patients in Melbourne." Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 31, no. 4 (August 1997): 566–76. http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/00048679709065079.
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Objectives: Patients with chronic mental illnesses constitute an important risk group for HIV infection overseas. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of risk behaviours associated with HIV transmission and factors associated with HIV testing in psychiatric patients in Melbourne. Methods: Inpatients and outpatients completed an interviewer-administered questionnaire which covered demographics, psychiatric diagnosis, risk behaviour, and HIV education and testing. Results: Of 145 participants, 60% were male and 55.2% had schizophrenia. Injecting drug use (IDU) was reported by 15.9%, a figure approximately 10 times that found in other population surveys. Most patients reported sex in the last decade and over 20% had multiple sexual partners in the last year. Of males, 12.6% reported sex with another male (9.2% anal sex); 19.0% of females reported sex with a bisexual male. Nearly half of the males reported sex with a prostitute, 2.5 times that in a population sample. Only 15.9% reported ever having someone talk to them specifically about HIV and its transmission, although one-third had been tested for HIV. In multivariate analysis, male-male sex, paying for sex, and IDU were associated with HIV testing, but those whose primary language was not English were less likely to be tested. Those who had received HIV education were more likely to have used a condom last time they had sex (OR 4.52, 95%C11.49–14.0). Conclusions: This study provides evidence that those with serious mental illness in Victoria have higher rates of participation in risk behaviour for HIV infection than those in the general community. Attention to HIV education and prevention in this group has been inappropriately scant; strategies to encourage safer behaviour are urgently needed.
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Green, Rachael, David Hopkins, and Garry Roach. "Exploring the lived experiences of people on Community Correction Orders in Victoria, Australia: Is the opportunity for rehabilitation being realised?" Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology 53, no. 4 (September 20, 2020): 585–605. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0004865820957059.
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The Community Correction Order, introduced in Victoria, Australia in 2012, provides a sentencing option that enables eligible offenders to serve their sanction in the community, with access to treatment or other rehabilitative activities. This paper contributes to a scant body of research investigating the specific needs of this group, their barriers to inclusion and the extent to which they experience the rehabilitative aspects of Community Correction Orders. It draws on survey data collected from 200 adults (137 men and 63 women) on Community Correction Orders in outer west metropolitan Melbourne and qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews conducted with a sub-set of 20 participants. Long-term unemployment, severe economic hardship, physical and mental health issues, social isolation and troubled personal relationships were common. While participants experienced the punitive aspects of Community Correction Orders, there was limited evidence that they were supported to address key issues that may be predictive of future offending. Support to re/engage in education, training and employment was a key area of unmet need and engagement in other therapeutic programs was low. Opportunities to enhance the rehabilitative potential of Community Correction Orders are discussed, with the paper highlighting that there is a need for rigorous evaluation of community work program activities.
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Trauer, Tom. "Ethnic Differences in the Utilisation of Public Psychiatric Services in An Area of Suburban Melbourne." Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 29, no. 4 (December 1995): 615–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/00048679509064976.
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Objective: The main aim of this study was to compare levels of service use by English and non-English speaking background people. Method: A comparison of service use in 1991/1992 between clients of English speaking (ESB) and non English-speaking (NESB) background was undertaken using hospital inpatient statistics, community mental health centre contact data, interpreter usage figures, and the 1991 Australian census. Results: The main findings indicated: (a) longer median lengths of stay of NESB than ESB inpatients; (b) roughly equal involuntary hospitalisation rates between ESB and NESB residents, but significantly lower rates of voluntary hospitalisation for NESB residents; (c) NESB face-to-face clinic contacts significantly shorter (by between five to ten minutes) than ESB; and (d) variable and generally low use of interpreters. No significant associations between ethnicity, legal status and gender were found. There were limitations in the available data and conclusions could be drawn only with caution. Conclusions: Recommendations include better routine collection of ethnically relevant information, and measures designed to improve the acceptability and accessibility of inpatient services.
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Dow, Briony, Betty Haralambous, Courtney Hempton, Susan Hunt, and Diane Calleja. "Evaluation of Alzheimer's Australia Vic Memory Lane Cafés." International Psychogeriatrics 23, no. 2 (July 30, 2010): 246–55. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1041610210001560.
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ABSTRACTBackground: This paper describes the evaluation of the Memory Lane Café service in Victoria, Australia. The Alzheimer's Australia Vic Memory Lane Café model aims to provide a social and educational service to people living with dementia and their carers, family members or friends. Dementia is a serious health issue in Australia, with prevalence estimated at 6.5% of people over 65 years of age. Living with dementia has significant social and psychological ramifications, often negatively affecting quality of life. Social support groups can improve quality of life for people living with dementia.Methods: The evaluation included focus groups and surveys of people with dementia and their carers, staff consultation, service provider interviews, and researcher observation. The Melbourne Health Mental Health Human Research Ethics Committee approved the project. Participants included people with dementia (aged 60 to 93 years, previously enrolled in the Alzheimer's Australia Vic's six-week Living With Memory Loss Program), their carers, friends and/or family members, staff working in the Cafés, and service providers with links to the Cafés.Results: This evaluation found that Memory Lane Cafés promote social inclusion, prevent isolation, and improve the social and emotional well-being of attendees. However, Cafés did not meet the needs of all potential attendees.Conclusions: The evaluation recommended that existing Café services be continued and possibilities for extending the Cafés be explored. Based on evaluation outcomes, the Department of Health Victoria is funding four additional pilot programs in café style support services.
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Angus, Jocelyn. "Leadership: a central tenet for postgraduate dementia services curricula development in Australia." International Psychogeriatrics 21, S1 (April 2009): S16—S24. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1041610209008825.
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ABSTRACTBackground: In the next decades of the twenty-first century, the global aging of populations will challenge every nation's ability to provide leadership by qualified health professionals to reshape and improve health care delivery systems. The challenge for educators is to design and deliver courses that will give students the knowledge and skills they need to fill that leadership role confidently in dementia care services. This paper explores the ways in which a curriculum can develop graduates who are ready to become leaders in shaping their industry.Method: The Master of Health Science – Aged Services (MHSAS) program at Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia is applied as a case study to describe the process by which the concept of leadership is applied as the key driver in curriculum development, teaching practices and learning outcomes.Results: Evaluation instruments employed in a variety of purposes including teaching, curriculum planning and unit appraisal are discussed. Challenges for the future are proposed including the need for postgraduate programs in dementia to seek stronger national and international benchmarks and associations with other educational institutions to promote leadership and a vision of what is possible and desirable in dementia care provision.Conclusions: In the twenty-first century, effective service provision in the aged health care sector will require postgraduate curricula that equip students for dementia care leadership. The MHSAS program provides an established template for such curricula.
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Seiler, Natalie, Matthew Ng, Midya Dawud, Subhash Das, Shu-Haur Ooi, and Astrid Waterdrinker. "Demographic and clinical factors associated with psychiatric inpatient admissions during the COVID-19 pandemic." Australasian Psychiatry 30, no. 2 (December 6, 2021): 229–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10398562211052903.
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Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic may cause a major mental health impact. We aimed to identify demographic or clinical factors associated with psychiatric admissions where COVID-19 was attributed to contribute to mental state, compared to admissions which did not. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was undertaken of inpatients admitted to Northern Psychiatric Unit 1, Northern Hospital in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia during 27/02/2020 to 08/07/2020. Data were extracted for participants who identified COVID-19 as a stressor compared to participants who did not. Fisher’s exact test and Mann-Whitley rank sum test were used. Results: Thirty six of 242 inpatients reported the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to mental ill health and subsequent admission. Reasons given included social isolation, generalized distress about the pandemic, barriers to support services, disruption to daily routine, impact on employment, media coverage, re-traumatization, cancelled ECT sessions, loss of loved ones, and increased drug use during the lockdown. Chronic medical conditions or psychiatric multimorbidity were positively associated and smoking status was negatively associated with reporting the COVID-19 pandemic as a contributor to mental ill health. Conclusion: Screening and identifying vulnerable populations during and after the global disaster is vital for timely and appropriate interventions to reduce the impact of the pandemic worldwide.
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Subedi, Rajan, Sabitra Kaphle, Manju Adhikari, Yamuna Dhakal, Mukesh Khadka, Sabina Duwadi, Sunil Tamang, and Sonu Shakya. "First call, home: perception and practice around health among South Asian migrants in Melbourne, Australia." Australian Journal of Primary Health 28, no. 1 (January 11, 2022): 40–48. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py21036.
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The socio-cultural context of populations has a significant effect on health outcomes across every stage of life. In Australia, South Asian migrants have a comparatively higher incidence of chronic disease and less use of health services. Often overlooked are community views of health, cultural traits and belief systems. This study aimed to explore the factors that influence health perception and practice of South Asian migrants. The study used a mixed method approach with both a survey and interviews. A total of 62 participants between the age of 18 and 64 years were surveyed and 14 participants completed interviews. Data were analysed descriptively and thematically. South Asians share a common perception and practice around health and illness. This paper highlights two key findings. First, these groups take a broad view of health encompassing physical, mental, emotional, social and economic aspects of life. Second, these cultural groups do not seek medical help as their first choice, but have a high level of trust in family for providing health advice and share a belief in the effectiveness of home remedies for managing health conditions. Participants shared their expectation that the Australian health system should consider their socio-cultural construct to make services culturally safe and engaging to enhance service utilisation.
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Vacher, Catherine, Nicholas Ho, Adam Skinner, Jo Robinson, Louise Freebairn, Grace Yeeun Lee, Frank Iorfino, et al. "Optimizing Strategies for Improving Mental Health in Victoria, Australia during the COVID-19 Era: A System Dynamics Modelling Study." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 11 (May 26, 2022): 6470. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19116470.
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The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the mental health of populations and highlighted the limitations of mental health care systems. As the trajectory of the pandemic and the economic recovery are still uncertain, decision tools are needed to help evaluate the best interventions to improve mental health outcomes. We developed a system dynamics model that captures causal relationships among population, demographics, post-secondary education, health services, COVID-19 impact, and mental health outcomes. The study was conducted in the Australian state of Victoria. The model was calibrated using historical data and was stratified by age group and by geographic remoteness. Findings demonstrate that the most effective intervention combination includes economic, social, and health sector initiatives. Assertive post-suicide attempt care is the most impactful health sector intervention, but delaying implementation reduces the potency of its impact. Some evidence-based interventions, such as population-wide community awareness campaigns, are projected to worsen mental health outcomes when implemented on their own. Systems modelling offers a powerful decision-support tool to test alternative strategies for improving mental health outcomes in the Victorian context.
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A. Morse, Carol, and Voula Messimeri-Kianidis. "Issues of Women Carers in Australian-Greek Families." Australian Journal of Primary Health 4, no. 3 (1998): 203. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py98050.
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Several myths prevail regarding family-based caregiving in migrant groups from non-English-speaking backgrounds (NESB): i) a low need for formal services because of extensive family networks (i.e. informal assistance); ii) NESB groups prefer to 'look after their own' to a greater extent than do Anglo-Australian communities; and iii) caregiving is a 'natural' role for women in migrant families. In 1995 a survey was undertaken of 150 care-giving families in the Australian Greek community in Melbourne, identified from the register of the Australian Greek Welfare Society (AGWS), matched by age and gender with 150 Australian Greeks with no caregiving roles. Health status and social experiences were examined of providing family-based caregiving for a co-resident member with developmental delay, physical and/or mental disorder or frail age.
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Rinehart, Natalie E., Samantha Smorgon, and Jessica Holman. "GP clinic and community health centre approach to after hours and the role of Medicare Locals in educating and raising awareness." Australian Journal of Primary Health 20, no. 2 (2014): 197. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/py12131.
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This article reviews a Quality Improvement Project concerning how GP clinics approach after hours (AH) primary care information for themselves and their patients. Medicare Locals have been given the responsibility of coordinating AH services in their catchments and supporting health systems and patients in accessing care appropriate to their needs. The AH project conducted by Inner North West Melbourne Medicare Local (INWMML) sought to explore how a range of GP clinics approached AH information before an educational forum, evaluation of its developed resources for increasing awareness of AH options and how clinics would choose to change their approach to AH following this process. The findings suggested that 46 participating clinic staff had a strong focus on hospitals and locum services as the main AH options despite telephone advice line options being available. Additionally, there was a lack of awareness for some clinic staff concerning services for mental health, dental health and residential aged care. The educational forum and the AH resources developed (i.e. brochures, posters and service directory) by INWMML were rated as valuable and would be used and shared with other health care providers and patients. Confidence that patients would be able to find appropriate care in the AH period after clinics had finished implementing planned changes, rose significantly in key areas after participating in the AH project.
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Constantine, Sarah. "Book review: Dementia Care in Victoria: Building a Pathway to Excellence, Final Report, Ministerial Task Force on Dementia Services in Victoria. Aged, Community and Mental Health Division, Victorian Government Department of Human Services, Australia." International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 15, no. 3 (March 2000): 286. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/(sici)1099-1166(200003)15:3<286::aid-gps926>3.0.co;2-m.
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Lennox, Nicholas, and Robert Chaplin. "The Psychiatric Care of People with Intellectual Disabilities: The Perceptions of Consultant Psychiatrists in Victoria." Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 30, no. 6 (December 1996): 774–80. http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/00048679609065044.
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Objective: This study was undertaken to establish the perceptions of psychiatrists regarding the care of people with intellectual disabilities. Method: A 28-item self-administered questionnaire was developed, piloted and sent on two occasions to 467 psychiatrists who receive the newsletter of the Victorian branch of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists. The questionnaire incorporated a Likert scale to document the opinions of the respondents. Results: A response rate of 51.1 % was achieved. The respondents indicated that, in their opinion, people with intellectual disabilities receive a poor standard of care in the inpatient and community setting. To improve this situation, the following strategies were recommended: the development of improved liaison between services; improved training for all personnel who provide services to people with intellectual disabilities; the development of greater resources; and support for professionals working in the area. The study also indicates that there is a core group of very interested psychiatrists who are currently practising and that people with intellectual disabilities are accessing private psychiatric services. In addition, the results suggest that diagnostic overshadowing is not a major barrier to psychiatric assessment, and that disorders which were presumed to be commonly overlooked by doctors (such as depression) are in fact frequently being diagnosed. Conclusions: Despite some positive findings, the majority of psychiatrists who responded held major concerns about the situation of people with intellectual disabilities. To improve the care provided to these people, it is recommended that these concerns are addressed by the psychiatric profession and responsible government departments in conjunction with university departments of psychiatry.
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Whelan, Jillian, Joshua Hayward, Melanie Nichols, Andrew D. Brown, Liliana Orellana, Victoria Brown, Denise Becker, et al. "Reflexive Evidence and Systems interventions to Prevention Obesity and Non-communicable Disease (RESPOND): protocol and baseline outcomes for a stepped-wedge cluster-randomised prevention trial." BMJ Open 12, no. 9 (September 2022): e057187. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2021-057187.
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IntroductionSystems science methodologies have been used in attempts to address the complex and dynamic causes of childhood obesity with varied results. This paper presents a protocol for the Reflexive Evidence and Systems interventions to Prevention Obesity and Non-communicable Disease (RESPOND) trial. RESPOND represents a significant advance on previous approaches by identifying and operationalising a clear systems methodology and building skills and knowledge in the design and implementation of this approach among community stakeholders.Methods and analysisRESPOND is a 4-year cluster-randomised stepped-wedge trial in 10 local government areas in Victoria, Australia. The intervention comprises four stages: catalyse and set up, monitoring, community engagement and implementation. The trial will be evaluated for individuals, community settings and context, cost-effectiveness, and systems and implementation processes. Individual-level data including weight status, diet and activity behaviours will be collected every 2 years from school children in grades 2, 4 and 6 using an opt-out consent process. Community-level data will include knowledge and engagement, collaboration networks, economic costs and shifts in mental models aligned with systems training. Baseline prevalence data were collected between March and June 2019 among >3700 children from 91 primary schools.Ethics and disseminationEthics approval: Deakin University Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC 2018-381) or Deakin University’s Faculty of Health Ethics Advisory Committee (HEAG-H_2019-1; HEAG-H 37_2019; HEAG-H 173_2018; HEAG-H 12_2019); Victorian Government Department of Education and Training (2019_003943); Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne (Catholic Education Melbourne, 2019-0872) and Diocese of Sandhurst (24 May 2019). The results of RESPOND, including primary and secondary outcomes, and emerging studies developed throughout the intervention, will be published in the academic literature, presented at national and international conferences, community newsletters, newspapers, infographics and relevant social media.Trial registration numberACTRN12618001986268p.
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Cheng, Melanie S., Angela Clarke, Timothy D. Moore, and Phyllis M. Lau. "Making the connection: a qualitative study of brokerage in Aboriginal health in a metropolitan area of Victoria and a regional area of New South Wales." Australian Health Review 35, no. 1 (2011): 18. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/ah09809.
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Objective. Health brokerage is one method being employed by government health agencies in an attempt to improve Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s access to primary healthcare. This qualitative study explores key stakeholders’ understanding and acceptance of the health brokerage model, prior to the implementation of brokerage services. Methods. Semistructured interviews and focus groups were conducted with key stakeholders. The resulting data was analysed using a grounded theory approach. Results. Qualitative analysis of the interviews and focus groups revealed five major themes. These were: (1) the perceived limitations of brokerage as a service delivery model; (2) the benefits of health brokerage such as increased flexibility; (3) issues relating to patient independence; (4) the necessity for broker independence; and (5) a mistrust of health brokerage and the authority handling the brokerage funds. Conclusions. Since this study was conducted in 2008, ongoing funding for urban brokerage services has been suspended. Although the reasons for this are unclear, our study suggests that barriers to the acceptance of brokerage services by the community may have existed even before such services were implemented, thus highlighting the need for transparency when launching new health initiatives that hope to engage the Aboriginal community. What is known about the topic? Brokerage models have previously been described in the areas of mental health and aged care. In these examples, brokerage agencies have provided patients with a key entry point into the healthcare system. Benefits of the brokerage model, such as flexibility, have been contrasted with its limitations, such as a heavy reliance upon existing services. What does this paper add? This paper provides insight into the acceptability of health brokerage, as a service delivery model, to the Aboriginal community. Although findings from the study reinforce many of the benefits and limitations already described in the literature, they also introduce the new and important themes of patient empowerment and mistrust. What are the implications for practitioners? This study provides vital information about community perceptions of health brokerage. It is important that policy makers take heed of such insights when planning attempts to close the gap in Aboriginal health.
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Trauer, Tom, Tom Callaly, Paul Hantz, John Little, Robert B. Shields, and Jenny Smith. "Health of the Nation Outcome Scales." British Journal of Psychiatry 174, no. 5 (May 1999): 380–88. http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/bjp.174.5.380.
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BackgroundIn Victoria, Australia, systematic assessment of outcomes in mental health services are being instituted.AimsTo carry out a large-scale field trial of the Health of the Nation Outcome Scales (HoNOS).Method2137 clients were rated by mental health workers on the HoNOS, and about half were rated again within a few months.ResultsWhile interrater reliability of the total score was satisfactory, that of some individual items was unacceptable. Significant associations with age and gender were found, and clients with non-psychotic disorders obtained higher (i.e. worse) ratings than those with psychotic disorders. There were relationships between service use and HoNOS total score. For the group as a whole, total scores had not changed at the second rating, but admissions and discharges were associated with increases and decreases in total score. Among clients in the community, there was no relationship between change in HoNOS total score and frequency of contacts.ConclusionsCertain items, notably 11 and 12, were unreliable. The absence of evidence of sensitivity to change may be due to the short re-rating interval, little real change in the clients, or the characteristics of the scale itself.
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McMillan, Alison. "Epidemic Thunderstorm Asthma." Prehospital and Disaster Medicine 34, s1 (May 2019): s7. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1049023x19000335.
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Introduction:On November 21 and 22 of 2016, Victoria witnessed an unprecedented epidemic thunderstorm asthma emergency event in size acuity and impact. This scenario was never exercised nor contemplated. The event resulted in a 73% increase in calls to the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority and 814 ambulance cases in the six hours from 6 pm on November 21, 2016. A 58% increase in people presented to public hospital emergency departments in Melbourne and Geelong on November 21 and 22, 2016 (based on the three-year average). 313 calls were made to the nurse on call from people with breathing, respiratory, and allergy problems (compared to an average of 63 calls for the previous month). Tragically, ten deaths are linked to this event.Methods:A substantial amount of work has been completed, much of which goes towards addressing the Inspector-General for Emergency Management recommendations following a review of the event, including: Release of an epidemic thunderstorm asthma campaign and education programs which were rolled out across Victoria for the community and health professionals from September through November 2017;Development of a new epidemic thunderstorm asthma forecasting system on 1 October 2017 and updated warning protocols during the 2017 grass pollen season;Implementation of a Real-time Health Emergency Monitoring System to alert the department of demands on public hospital emergency departments on the system; andIntroduction of a new State Health Emergency Response Plan in October 2017 to improve coordination and communications before and during a health emergency.Discussion:The presentation will concentrate on the lessons learned more than two years down the track from the event in November 2016.
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King, Robert. "Caseload Management, Work-Related Stress and Case Manager Self-Efficacy Among Victorian Mental Health Case Managers." Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 43, no. 5 (January 1, 2009): 453–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00048670902817661.
Full textAbstract:
Objective: In Australia and comparable countries, case management has become the dominant process by which public mental health services provide outpatient clinical services to people with severe mental illness. There is recognition that caseload size impacts on service provision and that management of caseloads is an important dimension of overall service management. There has been little empirical investigation, however, of caseload and its management. The present study was undertaken in the context of an industrial agreement in Victoria, Australia that required services to introduce standardized approaches to caseload management. The aims of the present study were therefore to (i) investigate caseload size and approaches to caseload management in Victoria's mental health services; and (ii) determine whether caseload size and/or approach to caseload management is associated with work-related stress or case manager self-efficacy among community mental health professionals employed in Victoria's mental health services. Method: A total of 188 case managers responded to an online cross-sectional survey with both purpose-developed items investigating methods of case allocation and caseload monitoring, and standard measures of work-related stress and case manager personal efficacy. Results: The mean caseload size was 20 per full-time case manager. Both work-related stress scores and case manager personal efficacy scores were broadly comparable with those reported in previous studies. Higher caseloads were associated with higher levels of work-related stress and lower levels of case manager personal efficacy. Active monitoring of caseload was associated with lower scores for work-related stress and higher scores for case manager personal efficacy, regardless of size of caseload. Although caseloads were most frequently monitored by the case manager, there was evidence that monitoring by a supervisor was more beneficial than self-monitoring. Conclusion: Routine monitoring of caseload, especially by a workplace supervisor, may be effective in reducing work-related stress and enhancing case manager personal efficacy.