1 in 5 will be affected with mental illness. 5 in 5 can help. Be one of them. See back cover for details.

mivoice

spring 2010issue 119

Advocacy mattersWhy your vote on mental illness counts p6-7

Go Inside Outfor Mental Health Week! p9

Family fun at Open Mind Fiesta p8

Registered with the Department of Human Services Print Post Approved 350190 / 00023 ISSN 0816 7877

I have previously discussed the outcomes of the

governance review commissioned by the board and

conducted by Sue Carter in 2007. That review led to

changes to the MI Fellowship Victoria constitution

and improvements in the operation of the Board.

This included the development of a skill set matrix

to assist in considering appointments to the Board.

In keeping with good governance practice, the Board

conducted another evaluation of these changes in May

this year, again with the assistance of Sue Carter, and

I am pleased to advise the outcome was positive.

“We have decided to publish the skill set matrix that the Board has adopted.”

However, there were a number of helpful ideas for

improving Board process, including suggestions

from members.

We have decided to publish the skill set matrix

that the Board has adopted. It can be found under

Board and Governance on our website at

www.mifellowship.org/board.shtml.

The governance review highlighted the situation where

our historical use of terminology has not been aligned with

the use of terms according to ASIC, which governs our

incorporation. Therefore, the Board has agreed to adopt

the recommendations of the Carter Review that the terms

“secretary” and “treasurer” not be used. Now the chairs

of the Board committees undertake the responsibilities

traditionally exercised by the Secretary and Treasurer,

however these officeholders will continue to be directors.

In future, the Company Secretary will be a staff member

appointed by the Board to ensure MI Fellowship Victoria

meets all its legal responsibilities and obligations.

The Board has also decided to publish the bylaws that

have been adopted to ensure the good governance of

the organisation on our website.

Further, to ensure members are better able to participate

in the Annual General Meeting, the Board has decided to

mail the Annual Report to members before the AGM.

This will enable members to scrutinise the report, including

the financial statements, before the meeting. If as a result,

a member has a question regarding the Annual Report,

we would request they forward their questions to Mrs Bernie

Trahair, Company Secretary, PO Box 359, Clifton Hill 3068

or email btrahair@mifellowship.org before close of

business Wednesday 3 November to ensure accurate

answers can be prepared at the AGM.

Finally, a number of members identified a delay between

the receipt of ballot papers and the publication of candidate

statements in MI Voice. To address this, the Board has

decided to mail candidate statements with the ballot papers.

Following the elections the newly appointed directors will be

published on the website - within one week of the election –

as well as in the next MI Voice.

from our president

2

MI Fellowship Victoria’s board continues to evolve as it listens to consumers and carers.

www.mifellowship.org

mivoice

contents from our chief executive p3 | Bruce Woodcock Lecture wrapup p4 | your questions answered p5 | people and their stories p5 | advocacy p6-7 | mental health week p8-9 | news bites p10 | agm and board p11 | Front cover photo: www.urbanartistry.com.au

spring 2010

The Hon. Robert Knowles AO

8 10

3mivoice

from our chief executive

People with a mental illness are voters.

So, with one in five Victorians affected

by mental illness throughout their lives,

you’d think politicians would be paying

close attention to what people with a

mental illness want and need.

It often feels like the opposite is true; that

for all our hard work in putting mental illness

on the public agenda, it still falls a long way

behind other priorities in terms of support.

“During the federal election campaign we saw both Labor and the Coalition address spending on mental health but failing to comprehend that, even with more money to spend, it can’t all be spent on the same type of program.”

Why? This is a question that is well worth

asking of your local candidates in the lead

up to the Victorian election in November.

Understanding mental illness is a major issue

for all sides of politics. During the federal

election campaign we saw both Labor and the

Coalition address spending on mental health

but failing to comprehend that, even with

more money to spend, it can’t all be spent on

the same type of program. What we need is

a complete overhaul of the way governments

think about mental health.

Mental illness will never be addressed by

something as simple as more hospital beds or

cheaper pharmaceuticals, however welcome

those initiatives would be. Mental illness

is, in every respect, a complex issue and

supporting people with a mental illness

calls for work on many levels.

People with a mental illness do need cheaper

drugs. They also need accommodation,

access to employment, a pathway back to

education and work, and to form friendships

and partnerships to prevent them falling into

a bitter cycle of recovery and relapse. All of

these are important.

We need governments to stop looking for

a magic bullet with a dollar sign attached

to it and start looking at new ways of

understanding the different levels and types

of support that people with a mental illness

need to access on their recovery journey.

But we shouldn’t sit back and wait for

the politicians to come to us to improve

conditions in Victoria. As citizens it’s

our responsibility to be clear to political

candidates about what we want. They need

to know there is a significant groundswell of

concern out there in the community about

mental health, and we want it to be a priority

for whichever party gets in over the next term

and beyond.

I urge you, between now and election day

in November, to get in touch with your local

candidates from all sides of politics to talk

about mental illness. Tell them your story.

Tell them what you need and tell them what

services would make a change for the better

in your life. Help them understand that it’s not

simple but it is needed and it is worth it.

Find out more about MI Fellowship Victoria’s

pre-election advocacy approach on pages 6

and 7 of this issue of MI Voice.

One election down, but another big one to come. Make sure your vote counts.

Elizabeth Crowther

Vale Thomas MolombyThomas Molomby, an honorary life member of MI Fellowship Victoria, passed away on 7 June, 2010.

We pay tribute to his unswerving support and advocacy to improve the lives of people who experience mental illness in Victoria. Tom was a partner with solicitors Molomby & Molomby (now Middletons) and was a great advocate for MI Fellowship Victoria, providing pro bono legal work for many years. Tom was also Chairman of the SEW Eurodrive Board, a company based in Tullamarine which provides ongoing support to the MI Fellowship Victoria.

It was Tom who initiated the relationship between Jurgen Blickle (owner of SEW Eurodrive) Rob Merola (SEW Eurodrive Managing Director) and MI Fellowship Victoria.

When Jurgen Blickle returned to the USA his farm in Gisborne was donated to MI Fellowship Victoria. It was Tom who was instrumental in negotiating this outcome.

Tom mentored Andrew Mansour who succeeded him on the SEW Eurodrive Board. The Board has continued its support of MI Fellowship Victoria.

spring 2010

4

Visit www.mifellowship.org

for news, views, events and mental health information. Who knows?

– you may wish to make a secure online donation while you’re there.

Make sure to subscribe to our free private e-newsletter mi voice

update, which keeps you in touch with us in between magazines.

social inclusion

Presenting the 2010 annual Bruce Woodcock Lecture,

US clinical and research psychologist Dr Joanne

Nicholson focused on families in her compassionate

argument for a “whole of family” approach to treating

mental illness.

“Families provide the context for recovery”, Dr Nicholson said. She elaborated on the work she and her team at the University of Massachusetts, where she is the Professor of Psychiatry, have been doing with families to produce better mental health outcomes.

Dr Nicholson promoted the need for a “whole of family” approach to mental illness recovery, noting that often when someone is diagnosed with a mental illness they become just a “patient”. Mental health services sometimes neglected that are still “parents”, “children”, “siblings” and “partners”. Better results are achieved when these identities are respected, she said.

In her Family Options program, Dr Nicholson looks at solutions that fit the family as a whole. This might include finding supported accommodation that allows children to stay as well, or just finding basic home supplies for a growing family.

As with previous Woodcock lectures, this year’s

address has provoked ideas and discussion on

what we can improve. So, in the wake of Dr Joanne

Nicholson’s presentation this year, MI Fellowship

Victoria has looked at how we can do more to serve

families where mental illness is an issue.

One of the most striking elements of Dr Nicholson’s presentation was her argument that mental health services sometimes focus exclusively on the person with the diagnosis and their illness. This ignores the impact that person’s role as parent, child, sibling or partner, play in their recovery. MI Fellowship Victoria has always put a strong emphasis on carers, seen in the development of initiatives such as the Well Ways education suite. We are now looking

to build a fuller picture of the family status of the people with a mental illness with whom we work. By asking consumers who they live with, whether they are parents, where their family is from and such, we hope to get a “whole of person” understanding of people using our services.

From there, we will start developing specific initiatives in areas that require most attention. This might mean planning events around school holiday times or expanding accommodation services to factor in children.

In the meantime, MI Fellowship Victoria is still moving ahead with family friendly initiatives such as our recent event at O’Meara house for the Chinese community, which included all immediate family members in respite care.

By focusing on the social needs of parents with a mental illness as well as their psychiatric needs, Dr Nicholson’s team found improved mental health outcomes for the majority of people taking part in the Family Options program.

The Bruce Woodcock Lecture was held on May 18 at the ANZ Pavilion in the Victorian Arts Centre. Due to the positive response to the new venue, the 2011 Bruce Woodcock Memorial Lecture will also be held at the ANZ Pavilion.

Dr Nicholson and Inside Out wow the crowd during very family friendly evening

How has Dr Nicholson’s visit informed how we do things at MI Fellowship Victoria?

Woodcock lecture a family affair

what we learned

mivoicespring 2010

d T[0

Dr Joanne Nicholson, “Families provide the context for recovery”

According to the team at My Recruitment, you should find

one that meets your individual needs by calling Centrelink

on 132850 or logging onto jobsearch.gov.au to find a list of

Disability Employment Service providers in your area.

Then you could contact Centrelink or each of the providers

to find out what they offer.

Questions you should ask might include:

• What makes their service different from other providers?

• Is the provider a specialist mental health provider with

appropriate expertise?

• Do you meet their eligibility criteria?

• Do they offer complementary programs to meet your

employment and other needs?

• Do they have links to other community or clinical

services?

• What training opportunities do they provide?

• Do they have relationships with a variety of employers?

• How long has the program been operating?

• Is the service accessible to public transport?

• What is the process for commencement in the program

and the timelines for job search?

A good specialist mental health provider should give you all

the information you need and offer prompt assistance with

a job capacity assessment (JCA), if one is required.

A JCA is an assessment of your ability to undertake work

and any barriers, both vocational and non-vocational,

between you and employment. It also identifies support

required to overcome any barriers.

The service provider should offer flexible, individualised

support and information on your rights and the Disability

Service Standards.

If the service you have been referred to doesn’t suit your

needs, discuss why and ask about your options.

With more than 15 years experience in specialist

employment, My Recruitment has real insight into issues

faced by people with a mental illness. My Recruitment can

also link you to other Mental Illness Fellowship programs

and has established partnerships with clinical services in

the area of community mental health.

Find out more about My Recruitment by calling (03) 8486 4200

5

What should you be looking for in an employment service provider?

Tim Nickson, one of MI Fellowship Victoria’s longest serving volunteer visitors, urges others to give it a go.

your questions answered

mivoice spring 2010

“Sometimes I feel guilty, getting so much out of it,” Tim

says. “It’s one of the highlights of my whole week, and that

was true even when I worked full time.”

The volunteer visitor program sees people from the general

community give their time to socialise with people with a

mental illness to help build social networks and increase

interaction with the community.

“We go to the footy sometimes, out to lunch, have a coffee.

Steve’s a big fan of having a look through the Queen Vic

and Caribbean Gardens’ markets. It’s basically a good time

hanging out,” says Tim, “and we go to the movies a lot.

We both like a good action flick.”

Tim’s been a volunteer visitor for about eight years and

is currently visiting Steve, his fourth person since joining

the program.

“I do it because I’ve been blessed in my life,

but not everyone’s enjoyed the same good

fortune. Some people seem to do it hard,

and get caught up in believing all the negative

stuff about themselves and the world that their

head tells them. But sometimes just trying out few new

things with a friend, helps us see that it’s not so scary after

all, and there’s more possible in life than we thought.”

Tim is encouraging retirees to give volunteer visiting a go

as a fun way to stay active and give back to the community.

“It’s simple, it’s human, and you can’t possibly get it

wrong,” he says, “Whatever your expectations are, the

actual experience is far better.”

Anyone interested in becoming a volunteer visitor

should contact MI Fellowship Victoria on (03) 8486 4200.

Tim Nickson

[ pathwayspeople and their stories

volunteers are welcome visitors

mivoice update – email newsletterStay in touch with the latest news and events in mental health. Register your details at

www.mifellowship.org/news-subscribe.shtml. It’s free, private and you can unsubscribe at any time.

6

John Brumby likes to talk about Victoria as the best

state in Australia to live, work and raise a family and this

political slogan has served the Labor Government well

over the past decade.

The Premier also draws the obvious conclusion that you can’t

be the best state without being the fairest state.

The challenge for the Premier and his ministers in the lead-up

to the November State election is to turn some of this lofty

rhetoric into reality and demonstrate to those thousands of

Victorians with a mental illness, their carers and families, that

Labor is worthy of re-election.

So after a decade of Bracks and Brumby government, it is

timely to consider what they have done to improve the health

and wellbeing of Victorians with a mental illness.

Further, it is important to identify some of the challenges

that the next state government must address to drive the

improvements to the system to ensure all Victorians with

a mental illness get the support they need.

In 1999 when Steve Bracks took office, the mental health

system in Victoria was still in a state of transition. While the

closure of the institutions throughout the 1980s and ’90s was

without doubt the right thing to do, the community-based

sector was overwhelmed with demand and not resourced

to support the change in policy direction.

Institutional closure coupled with a lack of investment in

the sector’s capacity throughout the 1990s saw demand for

services skyrocket. This left the system barely functional.

While Labor has increased investment in the sector over time,

the day-to-day ramifications of this historic underinvestment

can still be evidenced across Victoria, in our hospitals, on our

streets and in our prisons.

After more than a decade of Labor governments, why are 11,000 Victorians with a mental illness still missing out on appropriate accommodation and social inclusion. And, can we trust Labor to turn those figures around?

Access to affordable and decent housing is a fundamental

human need. For people with serious mental illness, housing

needs to be accompanied by clinical and reintegration-into-

community support, as these elements are necessary in any

platform for recovery.

Victoria is a modern and prosperous community that prides

itself on a “fair go” yet there are 11,000 people with mental

illness who are not appropriately accommodated and socially

isolated. This places them at risk of homelessness and harm.

People with a mental illness are routinely discharged from

hospital into inadequate housing or caravan parks or even

onto the streets.

The lack of suitable housing and support is driving families

and carers to breaking point. It also puts pressure on

hospitals, the justice system and homelessness services.

Providing community based supports for people with a mental

illness, particularly secure and supportive housing, is the right

thing to do morally and economically. With support, people

with a mental illness can lead full and productive lives.

The Labor Government to its credit has had a succession of

ministers who incrementally increased investment in the service

system and in 2008 released a very sound policy blueprint -

Because Mental Health Matters (the Strategy). This sets a

long-term vision for the mental health sector in Victoria.

The release of this policy sent a clear message to the mental

health sector that Labor was interested in reform and had

understood and accepted the clear policy reform agenda that

organisations like MI Fellowship Victoria has been advocating

for over many years.

mivoicespring 2010

State Election: is Labor up to the challenge?ADVOCACy MATTERS

7mivoice spring 2010

With two big elections for Victorians in 2010, there’s a lot to talk about.

time for

action Check out our Elections 2010 page on the MI Fellowship Victoria

website, where we’ll be posting people’s opinion pieces about

different aspects of mental health and what they’d like to see in

both the state and federal governments’ next term.

Visit www.mifellowship.org/news-election2010.shtml

regularly to see what’s new.

The sector’s time has come and Labor knows it. We expect the government to follow through on its commitments.

State Election: is Labor up to the challenge?

Expectations were raised that Victoria’s mental health system

was about to finally get the resources to enable the sort of root

and branch reform envisaged by the Because Mental Health

Matters strategy.

Then the global financial crisis hit in spring 2008 and the tragic

Black Saturday bushfires followed in February 2009. This

placed the state budget under enormous stress.

The funding of the mental health strategy fell down the list

of priorities. So the service system remains stressed and

people with a mental illness continue to suffer, as well as

their families and carers.

Labor can no longer put the funding of the strategy on the

long-term ‘to do list’. The sector has already signed up to

the reform strategy. Now the government must make its

funding a priority for this election.

The Victorian economy is in good shape and has weathered

the worst of the financial crisis. God willing, there won’t be

another catastrophic fire event any time soon.

The sector’s time has come and Labor knows it. We expect

the government to follow through on its commitments.

Equally, the sector would welcome a commitment from the

Coalition to fund the implementation of the strategy.

MI Fellowship Victoria will be progressively releasing its

policies as part of its Call to Action ahead of the state election.

We urge all our members to get active in the lead-up to the

November state election to let our politicians know that mental

health matters.

8mivoicespring 2010

If there’s one thing MI Fellowship’s year of the Family has consistently brought to the fore, it’s that the effects of mental illness are not limited to the person with the diagnosis alone. Rather, when mental illness affects one family member, it affects us all.

So what better way to cap off this year’s Mental Health Week than with an event that brings the whole family together to celebrate social inclusion for people with a mental illness and their families?

MI Fellowship’s Open Mind Fiesta is on again and is due to take over Fairfield’s Station Street on Sunday, October 17 from 11am to 5pm. As always, it’s a great opportunity for members of the community of all ages to band together to show support for people with a mental illness and their loved ones.

The Open Mind Fiesta aims to improve community knowledge and awareness of mental health issues and reduce stigma that may be experienced by people with a mental illness.

And research shows that it seems to be working. Figures taken each year indicate that people who come to the Fiesta tend to have a better understanding of mental illness and greater support for social inclusion than people in the general community.

One of the main elements underpinning the success of the Fiesta is the wide-ranging support it receives from a number of sources. This includes MI Fellowship Victoria’s partnership with the Fairfield Traders Association as well as the City of Darebin, Leader Newspapers and other groups like the SEC, Metropolitan Fire Brigade, Victorian Department of Health and Victoria Police, Eli Lilly and AMP Foundation.

In keeping with this year’s theme, Open Mind Fiesta 2010 will focus heavily on family friendly activities and entertainment. A bunch of fun things for kids to do will include face-painting, balloons and a schools-based “My Family” colouring-in competition tied to our Lollipop Hunt, which we expect to be very popular.

On stage throughout the day will be a fantastic mix of different community groups showing off their skills and wowing the crowds. Two secret music acts will kick off and end proceedings – so you’ll just have to be there to find out more.

Entry is by gold coin donation only so we hope to see you there.

Open Mind Fiesta 2009 drew a crowd of 40,000 people to Fairfield’s Station Street and this year’s fun-filled event is expected to top that.

Open Mind Fiesta a family favourite

12345MI Fellowship Victoria is calling on all potential volunteers to register their interest in helping to make Open Mind Fiesta the biggest event on Victoria’s mental health calendar this year.

We’re looking for people who like to have fun as they contribute to a healthy community and help us setting up and unpacking as well as manning stalls and supporting fundraising events on the day.

As well as our thanks, you’ll get a MI Fellowship Victoria T-shirt commemorating the day, lunch and other goodies.

If you’ve got a heart and few hours you can give, let us know by either filling out the form at www.mifellowship.org/news-omf.shtml or emailing us at klancaster@mifellowship.org or calling 8486 4200.

Be a part of the Open Mind Fiesta action

There’s no excuse for leaving the Open Mind Fiesta hungry.

9

dates for your diary in 2010 Inside Out – October 8-15 | Open Mind Fiesta – October 17 | Annual General Meeting – November 9 | Find out more about all activities by calling (03) 8486 4200 or visit www.mifellowship.org

mivoice spring 2010

When a short excerpt of the award-winning play Inside

Out was performed before this year’s Bruce Woodcock

Memorial Lecture, some in the audience were moved to

tears. After years of Hollywood stereotypes about mental

illness, finally someone had succeeded in an honest and

humane presentation of what life with a mental illness is

really about.

Instead of guessing what mental illness is like, playwright

Mary Rachel Brown spent hour upon hour talking to people

with mental illness and their carers. She has captured a

sometimes brutally frank but ultimately compassionate

picture of a young man slowly developing schizophrenia and

the strain it causes on his relationship with his mother.

Now, a full theatrical production of Inside Out is coming to

Victoria for this year’s Mental Health Week in October. Inside

Out is touring four locations around the state starting at the

Frankston Arts Centre. This is your chance to see what all

the fuss is about and take part in one of the most moving

theatrical productions this year.

Inside Out stars acclaimed stage actress Valerie Bader and

Benn Welford and is presented by MI Fellowship Victoria and

Christine Dunstan Productions.

on the road with Inside Out

Benn Welford and Valerie Bader read from Inside Out at the Bruce Woodcock Memorial Lecture.

When is Inside Out coming to your area? Mark these dates in your diary!

FrankstonOctober 8, 8pm and October 11, 11am (plus mental health forum): Frankston Arts CentreDavey St, Frankston Melways: 100A D8Bookings (03) 9784 1060

Shepparton October 12, 7.30 pmEastbank Centre 70 Welsford St Shepparton VicRoads: 273 L8Bookings (03) 5832 9511

ClaytonOctober 14, 2 pm and 7.30 pm Alexander Theatre at Monash UniversityWellington Rd, Clayton Melways: 70 F12Bookings (03) 9905 1111

Moonee PondsOctober 15, 7.30 pmClocktower Centre750 Mt Alexander Rd, Moonee Ponds Melways:84A E3Bookings (03) 9243 9191

www.mifellowship.org

12345

10

carers hit the high notes

mivoicespring 2010

up, out and away

It was respite with a difference in July as MI Fellowship

Victoria put on a special event for a group of people

that you might not automatically think of when you

hear the word “respite” – young people who are the

primary carers for a parent with a mental illness.

In partnership with Yarra Ranges Youth Mental Health Team and EACH, MI Fellowship Victoria helped to fund and arrange a special hot air ballooning trip over the Yarra Valley for 24 young carers from the eastern region. The participants, five from the Traction program and 19 from PATS made an excursion of this magnitude a real treat.

The group met in Yarra Glen at 5.45am for a safety briefing before driving out to Christmas Hills to set up the balloons. Although high winds looked set to end the expedition

before it even began, the group took off around 8am and spent an hour viewing the sights of the Yarra Valley before bounding down in some cow paddocks in Coldstream.

The young people were amazed at the sights and really enjoyed the experience. One even gave an impromptu, high volume speech mid flight to the “people of Yarra Valley”.

After such an early start the group was rewarded with a five-star gourmet breakfast at the nearby Balgownie Estate Winery.

One young carer said, “It was a wonderful experience I will never forget.”

Another commented, “I never get to get out of the house … it was a once in a lifetime thing to do.”

news bites

Kavisha Mazzella leads the Carers’ Choir to new heights.

An absolute capacity crowd for a first public performance

may have been a daunting prospect for a new choir. But luckily,

MI Fellowship Victoria’s new carers’ choir, The Moon’s a

Balloon, was such a well-oiled machine that their premiere gala

at St Mark’s Baptist Church in June went off without a hitch.

Over the previous 10 weeks, the group had been training

hard under the expert eyes of celebrated musician Kavisha

Mazzella on a knockout set that contained several of her own

original compositions.

The choir was originally started to bring together carers

in a unique social setting that encouraged them to form

support networks with each other as they collaborated

on a creative project.

The Moon’s a Balloon choristers have been effusive in their

praise for the carers’ choir initiative with one chorister noting,

“I’ve experienced first hand the joy that the choir has brought

to carers, their families, and friends.”

And all their hard work proved worthwhile. The evening finale,

a combined performance by The Moon’s a Balloon and

Kavisha’s Italian women’s choir La Voce Della Luna, brought

the crowd to its feet before a quick encore had them literally

dancing in the aisles.

The Moon’s a Balloon meets weekly in Clifton Hill

and welcomes new members including family members

and friends of people with a mental illness. For information

on how you can get involved, contact Hayley Reynolds

on 8486 4200.

p

11

With a long career as a lawyer, a consultant and a strategist behind him, Paul Montgomery brings valuable assets to MI Fellowship Victoria’s board.

“I didn’t actually have much of a background in mental illness

when I was first asked to join the board,” says Paul, “but

it hasn’t taken long to give me an acute awareness of how

widespread mental illness is as a community issue and the

many forms it takes.”

Paul first joined the MI Fellowship Victoria board in 2008 after

being asked to consider standing by his old colleague Graeme

Pocknee, who was stepping down.

“What drew me to MI Fellowship Victoria was a sense that

they were achieving great results. While there’s a lot of small

organisations out there, each focusing on a tiny facet of mental

illness services, here was a large organisation that was bringing

all those different elements together in the one spot and

providing best practice services based on clinical research –

which for me is very important.”

Among Paul’s prime responsibilities on the board is his role

chairing the finance and resource management committee,

which is charged with protecting MI Fellowship Victoria’s

financial and physical assets.

“The committee really exists to support the strategic plan, to

make sure that MI Fellowship Victoria has the resources to

engage in the initiatives we need to maximise the service we

deliver to even more people.”

“We’ve been working hard to streamline those processes

but there is still a long journey ahead. When you have limited

resources and as high a level of unmet demand as exists in the

mental health community, that’s always going to be a challenge.

It’s my role to make sure we get closer to overcoming that

hurdle every day.”

making more of our resources: MI Fellowship Victoria board member Paul Montgomery is working hard to make sure we can deliver more services to more people.

“The committee really exists to support the strategic plan, to make sure that MI Fellowship Victoria has the resources to engage in the initiatives we need to maximise the service we deliver to even more people.”

important datesNominations for Board positions will open Wednesday 22 September 2010

Nominations for Board positions will close Wednesday 6 October 2010 at 5.00pm

Ballot opens Wednesday 20 October 2010

Ballot closes Wednesday 3 November 2010 at 5.00pm

Election date is Friday 5 November 2010

Annual General Meeting is Tuesday 9 November 2010 at 5.30pm

mivoice spring 2010

AGM 2010: Meet Australian of the year Patrick McGorry

The Annual General Meeting for the Mental Illness Fellowship Victoria this year will be held on 9 November at 5.30pm in the meeting rooms at Middletons law firm on Level 25 of the Rialto South Tower, 525 Collins Street, Melbourne.

Following on our tradition of impressive public speakers from the mental health sector, attendees this year will be able to listen to 2010 Australian of the Year Professor

Patrick McGorry. Other highlights for the AGM include the presentation of the annual MI Fellowship Victoria Awards and the announcement of the results of the Board election.

Results of the election will also be announced on our website within a week of the event and in the next MI Voice.

For more information about the AGM and the Agenda as it develops, visit www.mifellowship.org/news-agm.shtml.

Paul Montgomery

h

12

Chief Executive : : Elizabeth CrowtherEditorial : : Hootville CommunicationsDesign : : Room44, Lisa MinichielloPrinting : : Bambra PressMI Voice aims to keep our readers informed of the latest information on mental illness and our advocacy work. It is also our opportunity to keep potential and existing supporters and donors informed of the Mental Illness Fellowship’s activities and the difference their contribution makes.

MI Voice is the quarterly publication of the Mental Illness Fellowship Victoria, Fairfield Place 276 Heidelberg Road, Fairfield, Victoria, Australia, 3078.

Telephone : : 03 8486 4200Fax : : 03 8486 4265Email : : enquiries@mifellowship.orgWebsite : : www.mifellowship.orgMental Illness Fellowship retains the right to edit articles. Please note that the opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the editor or the Mental Illness Fellowship Victoria.

© Mental Illness Fellowship Victoria. PO Box 359 Clifton Hill, Vic 3068 All rights reserved.ACN 093 357 165 ABN 93 093 357 165 ISSN 0816 7877

something in the airWith a summit, new programs and a radio show coming up, we’ve been busy at MI Fellowship Victoria

It’s been a busy time on the media front lately for MI Fellowship Victoria. Dr Joanne Nicholson’s visit made news right around the nation with several big radio interviews including ABC National’s Nightlife with Tony Delroy.

We’ve also had coverage from local papers for some of our programs and our recent

collaboration with Curves Gym in Fairfield which saw 250 kilograms of food donated to

people with a mental illness.

Rounding out, MI Fellowship Victoria CEO Liz Crowther recently appeared on weekend television news responding

to the rollout of Taser stun guns to Victorian police.

board of directorsPresident : : The Hon. Robert Knowles

Vice President : : Mrs Diane Brown

Secretary : : Mr Darrel Drieberg

Treasurer : : Mr Paul Montgomery

Directors : : Mr Kevin AbrahamsonMrs Elaine Price, Ms Lyn Allison Mr Theo Krambias, Dr Julian Freidin Mr Lei Ning, Ms Louise Milne-Roch Ms Jenny King

what we’ve been up to

Our Chief Executive Liz Crowther chaired a symposium at the Future Directions for Collaborative Mental Health Care – Innovation Summit on better collaboration between clinical and non-clinical services to improve mental health outcomes. MI Fellowship Victoria presented the summit in collaboration with the Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre, The Alfred and the National Advisory Council on Mental Health.

General Manager rehabilitation services, Laura Collister, was invited to speak at the summit about models of care in our PARC and Opening Doors programs. Laura also took part in a ministerial advisory sub-committee on mental health workplace participation and spoke at the Mind

Strategic Planning Manager Forum about forming partnerships to develop better employment options.

Out in the eastern regions, Rehabilitation Services Regional Manager Tracey Swadling has been working with Eastern Health, Mind and EACH to develop a youth hub for people aged 12-25 years in the Box Hill area who are not accessing mental health services, due to be opened in November.

MI Fellowship Victoria has also worked with six consumers training them to deliver a brand new mental health radio program on 3CR in the coming months.

We also relocated staff to deliver community-based day programs and family services at both Footscray and Werribee.

thank you to our supporters

newsmivoice

‘Food for ill’ Northcote Leader, July 14 2010

spring 2010

5U