Time For Change
Keynote presentation at the International eMental Health Forum.
New Zealand is well known for its struggles with suicide, especially amongst indigenous Māori and young people. I was privileged to be the first lived experience member on the Ministry of Health Suicide Prevention Task Force to help develop the first Suicide Prevention Strategy.
Keynote presentation at the International eMental Health Forum.
The growing concern about the number of homeless young people prompted this service to develop a specific service to support them off the streets. I led the evaluation of this innovative pilot which included a review of utilisation stats and interviews with clients, staff and stakeholders in key youth-support agencies.
How do we best work together? What happened when we all sit round the same table as people who use mental health services, people who provide them and the academics who research and evaluate them. I led this innovative project with a focus on the shifting landscape of supported housing.
This project was published in the peer-reviewed Qualitative Research Journal.
How do we best deliver Mental Health services in ways people want it, when they want it? I feel privileged to be involved in one of the biggest shake ups in Population Health to unify four national services in Mental Health, Alcohol and Drugs, Problem Gambling and Smoking Cessation. I was the lead mental health writer on the original proposal and Service Architect for the development, design and implementation of these services.
How do we ensure people know their rights and can get help making sure they are honoured? It's a challenging one for sure, but human rights are at the centre of modern society and can help address discrimination and foster social inclusion.
I led the evaluation of Korowai Whaimana (The Empowering Cloak) training - the world’s first education program on mental health and human rights by and for people with lived experience.