Re-Ignited Professional Connections in the Mental Health Space

After being relegated to the personal confines of our practices by the impacts of the COVID pandemic, the Byron Bay Mental Health Professionals’ Network (MHPN)  is inviting health professionals with a particular interest in the mental health space to re-establish their relationships with like-minded professionals.

The MHPN’s core purpose is to improve interdisciplinary and collaborative care practices between mental health professionals. To do that effectively, it’s important to work with a community of practitioners that you know and are connected to that hold the same interest.

If you are a GP, nurse, OT, psychiatrist, psychologist, social worker, counsellor, educator, work in emergency services, researcher, speech pathologist, intern or a health care professional interested in this field and would like to know and connect to the colleagues in your shire, please come along and:

  • Meet up with the colleagues you haven’t seen for a while.
  • Meet the new practitioners in town. And, if you’re new to the area, come and meet the old ones!
  • Come and meet the colleague you refer to all the time.
  • Come and meet the person that refers to you.
  • And bring a colleague with you. Let them know about MHPN and get them to register with our network and this event.

Speaker

In the spirit of building healthy and supportive relationships, Sean Tonnet (Relationship Therapist, Educator & Clinical Supervisor) is the guest speaker for the evening. Sean will be presenting a short, conversational piece on relationships therapy titled  A Touch on Togetherness.

This informal conversation will build on the evening’s theme of supportive relationships though understanding how healthy relationships are an assimilation of attachment styles, emotional intelligence and collaboration.   An overview of contemporary thinking and practices in relationship therapy will be reviewed as a digestible and usable tool kit for practitioners in their work, and their own relational lives.

Sean Tonnet has been working as a psychotherapist, clinical supervisor and international educator for the past 15 years. Specialising in relationships, Sean has over 10,000 case hours working with couples. He melds creative, relational Gestalt methods and contemporary psychotherapy, neurobiology and mindfulness practices within a safe and sacred space. His work has been reviewed on radio, television and in print, making him a highly sort after relationship therapist within the Northern Rivers.

Catering

Light snacks, tea and coffee will be provided, with other drinks available from the bar.

Register now

Please do not forget to create an account and log in on the new MHPN portal to be able to register. Please register with the email address to which meeting invitations are currently received and enter your full name as it appears on your certificate of attendance so your existing record can be paired with your new online account.

While the COVID-19 situation continues to evolve, registrations for all MHPN network meetings are essential. Only those registered to attend will be permitted entry. Participants must adhere to strict social distancing guidelines. If you are unwell or displaying any symptoms of COVID-19, please do not attend, and follow your state’s health procedures.

RSVP Here by Fri 16 April, 05:00 pm

RSVP Here by Fri 16 April, 05:00 pm

Venue: Byron Bay RSL Services Club, 132 Jonson Street, Byron Bay

Date/Time: Tue 20 Apr 2021, 06:00 pm - 07:30 pm AEST

Event Organiser: Mental Health Professional's Network

Contact: Simon DuBois

Phone: 0401440329

Email: Click here

Aged Care Disaster Management Planning

Strategic Priority Area: One team

North Coast is identified as the region most likely to be impacted by climate change in Australia and also forecasted greatest growth in those 65+.

Healthy North Coast takes a lead role in ensuring the older population and the sector that supports them are prepared for, can respond to and recover from disasters and other emergencies.

We have led eight regional disaster management capacity building workshops, bringing together SES, community organisations and the aged care sector.

We have also developed disaster preparedness tip sheets for both residential and community aged care providers.

Voluntary Assisted Dying

Strategic Priority Area: One team

In May 2022, the NSW Parliament passed the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2022. Effective from Tuesday, 28 November 2023, eligible people have the choice to access voluntary assisted dying. 

Healthy North Coast has developed a webpage for both health professionals and consumers, with links to available information and resources.

Living with Dementia resources

Strategic Priority Area: No one is left behind

Healthy North Coast has worked with people living with dementia, their families and local service providers to develop an information booklet that will help them connect with local and national supports along their journey.

The booklet includes commonly asked questions for people to ask their GP and/or specialist.

The resource is available in digital and printed copies, with more than 5,000 distributed across the region. An e-version is available to clinicians via the Dementia and Cognitive Impairment HealthPathway.

Deteriorating Resident Triage Tool Pilot

Strategic Priority Area: One team

The Deteriorating Resident Response Tool (DRRT) has been developed to guide RN’s in Residential Aged Care homes (RACHs) to better understand, anticipate and make clinical decisions responding to the deteriorating health of residents.

The objective of the DRRT is to give RACH staff clear information to triage and provide appropriate care for a range of residents’ health conditions, and, in turn, prevent unnecessary presentations to ED.

The tool has been designed together with a specialist geriatrician, consulting with stakeholders such as Residential Aged Care Managers, NSW Ambulance, GPs, and experts from Mid and North Coast LHDs.

The pilot commences in March with four participating RACHs. Evaluation measures will include effectiveness in building RN confidence and reported reduction in unnecessary hospitalisations. Findings will inform a future planned, region-wide implementation.

North Coast Care Finders Program

Strategic Priority Area: No one is left behind

The Care Finders program is a free region-wide service to support vulnerable older people who have no-one else to help them, to learn about, apply for and set up support services.

Care finders can help people understand what aged care services are available, set up an assessment, and find and choose services. They also help people with access to other supports in the community, both accessing services for the first time and changing or finding new services and supports.

On the North Coast, Healthy North Coast has commissioned four organisations to provide this important service: EACH, Carexcell, Lifetime Connect and Footprints.

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Psychological services in residential aged care homes

Strategic Priority Area: Improving Lives Now

Healthy North Coast commissions two service providers to deliver psychological therapies and supports for older people with, or at risk of developing, a mental illness and who are living in residential aged care homes (RACHs).

The aim of the program is to both provide direct support to residents and their families and carers, as well as upskill the RACH workforce to respond to the needs of residents presenting with mental health concerns.

Social prescribing (Healthy Me Healthy Community)

Strategic Priority Area: Securing a Healthier Future

Delivered by Feros Care, the Healthy Me, Healthy Community program aims to build individual and community connections to reduce loneliness and improve wellbeing in Port Macquarie.

The program helps people to connect with community, activities, supports and services that address their broader social determinants of health, as an alternative or supplement to a clinical approach.

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Digital Health in Residential Aged Care

Strategic Priority Area: Improving Lives Now

Timely access to primary health care professionals, whether through face-to-face consultation or telehealth, is recognised as an issue for many Residential Aged Care Homes (RACHs), that in some cases can lead to potentially preventable hospitalisations. RACHs require adequate telehealth facilities to support access to virtual consultations for their residents.

Project goals

  • Assist participating RACHs to have appropriate telehealth facilities and equipment to enable their residents to virtually consult when needed with their primary health care professionals, specialists and other clinicians. 
  • Provide training to participating RACH staff to support them to have the capabilities to assist their residents in accessing virtual consultation services.
  • Encourage increased use of My Health Record by RACHs, to improve the availability and secure transfer of resident’s health care information between RACHs, primary care and acute care settings.
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Greater Choice at Home Palliative Care Program

Strategic Priority Area: Improving Lives Now

Aims to provide people who have life limiting conditions the opportunity to exercise choice and receive high quality care at home, harnessing improved and better coordinated supports and services that meet their individual needs.

Program objectives:

  • Improve access to palliative care at home and support end-of-life care systems and services (in primary health care and community care)
  • To enable the right care at the right time and in the right place (to reduce unnecessary hospitalisation)
  • Generate and use data to support continuous improvement of services across sectors
  • Use available technologies to support flexible and responsive palliative care at home, including in the after-hours.

These objectives will contribute to achieving the following intended overarching outcomes of:

  • Improved capacity and responsiveness of services to meet local needs and priorities
  • Improved patient access to quality palliative care services in the home
  • Improved coordination of care for patients across health care providers and integration of palliative care services in their region.

Education & training funding elibility

Funding is open to all primary care providers within disaster affected communities across the Healthy North Coast footprint.

Workforce Locum support and R&R funding criteria

  • Available to primary care services in disaster impacted communities within the Healthy North Coast footprint.
  • Available to support short-term workforce coverage, allowing clinicians to rest and recover.
  • Workforce-support funding in total is capped for each site, over a 12-month period:
    • $10k for GPs and/or
    • $5K for nursing and/or
    • $5k administration support and/or
    • $5K allied/pharmacy and other.
  • Funding is not to be used to fill gaps in staffing that have not been able to recruit to and not to replace existing staff.
  • Healthy North Coast will assess requirements and approve available funding directly with the service requesting support.
  • Priority will be given to sites that have immediate, short-term workforce support needs.
  • Requests will be reviewed and supported on a case-by-case basis.
  • Program funding administered via RCTI Agreement (Recipient Created Tax Invoice) to be paid monthly, or on completion of the placement (whichever comes first).
  • Practices will be required to complete a request for payment form monthly, or on completion of the placement (whichever occurs first).

Wellbeing Flexible Funding Criteria & Eligibility

  • Open to all primary care providers within disaster affected communities across the Healthy North Coast footprint.
  • Activity must be purposeful, with the aim of increasing the wellbeing of your team.
  • Requests will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, with funding allocated based on team size.*
  • Following approval by Healthy North Coast, funding will be administered via RCTI Agreement (Recipient Created Tax Invoice) upon providing proof of expenses.
  • Funding cannot be used for the purchase of alcohol, or any other goods or services where the vendor cannot quote their Australian Business Number.
  • Planned activities must occur prior to 30th June 2024.
  • Funding will not be available for retrospective activities.
*Team Size
(Total staff and contractors)
Funding Available
Small (1-5)$500-$1500
Medium (6-20)$1500-$4000
Large (>20)$4000-$5000