Building Capacity in Community Mental Health Family Support and Carer Respite Project
Start - May -2008Completion - May 2009
The aim of this project is to assist FaHCSIA to develop and roll out a national carer respite system that meets the needs of mental health consumers and carers. The project is a national project and has adopted a national sector development approach. All state and territory community mental health peaks through Community Mental Health Australia (CMHA) will contribute to the work required for this project. Each state and territory peak has appointed project coordinators to work locally.
Through a national consultation process FAHCSIA has received feedback that existing frameworks of respite care, derived from the aged and disability sector, have limitations in meeting the distinctive needs of consumers and carers supported by the mental health sector.
Subsequently, FaHCSIA engaged CMHA and the state peaks to assist it to identify models of respite care in mental health and to assist community organisations to apply for funding under future rounds of the National Respite Development Fund. The approach supports existing community mental health service infrastructure and offer new opportunities for delivering respite and family care services. Project Coordinators will work with interested local services and existing networks to further develop partnerships and networks, and to support individual services and facilitate the development of consortiums to apply for National Respite Development Funding.
The first stage of the project has involved an initial scoping to identify the needs of consumers, carers and service providers in accessing, receiving and providing mental health respite services.
The outcomes of the project are to:
• Development of new and innovative mental health family care and respite programs across Australia that draw on the lived experience of consumers and carers and which effectively target their diverse and changing needs,
• Establishment of a national framework to support new service development and respite care coordination through the FaHCSIA National Respite Development Fund,
• Establishment and support of coordination networks that assist community services to access additional funding through FaHCSIA to support their service development and activities,
For further information on this project contact Debbie Greene, Project Coordinator at MHCC, on 9555 8388 extn 0 or email debbie@mhcc.org.au Mail address PO Box 668 Rozelle NSW 2039.