As of 2023, CMHL has employed one full-time Mental Health Social Work Educator.
The role of the Social Work Educator will be to continue to build upon the priority areas identified in the 2021-2022 scoping report by offering discipline-specific training based on both gaps previously identified as well as new gaps in workforce training.
Mental Health Social Work Training and Events
World Social Work Day 2023
World Social Work Day is an annual event which occurred on the 21st of March 2023. The theme for this year was “respecting diversity through joint social action”. CMHL hosted this free online event to support access to all Social Workers within Victoria.
Our presenters included, Dr Mayio Konidaris-Kozirakis, from Victoria University, who discussed “cultural humility” which promotes greater self-awareness of clinicians in their work.
Dr Shelley Turner, Chief Social Worker at Forensicare presented on the topic: "The Shamed and the Forgotten": Families and Carers in Forensic Mental Health.
Katherine Monson, from Orygen, alongside her Team co presenters discussed some initiatives to improve interagency partnerships and work towards health equity in her sector.
Cultural Humility Training
In August, a half day workshop to introduce the Cultural humility framework to Social Workers by Dr Mayio-Konidaris-Kozirakis occurred based on her PhD research experience. Cultural humility principles’ emphasis on the importance of critical self-reflection in clinical practice with cultural diversity is well positioned within the ethos and practice standards of social work. Workshop participants were invited to partake in experiential learning around the broader framework of Cultural humility, by drawing upon common clinical practice dilemmas within culturally diverse service users. This was a well-attended training event which generated much interest.
Single Session Family Consultation
CMHL alongside the Bouverie Team offered SSFC training for social workers working in AMHS in September.
Single Session Family Consultation (SSFC) provides a clearly articulated step-by-step practical process for engaging families. Family work is one of Social Works’s discipline-specific areas of interest and enables Social Work to support all of the workforce to use this approach and embed it as a core function in AMHS.
Leadership Training for Social Workers
This is a free course coming up in October for emerging and current Social Work Leaders wanting to gain an understanding of their leadership style and behaviors to supervise others effectively. It takes participants through providing practical solutions to managing and leading people in a workplace.
The facilitator Christina Katopis is a Social Worker who is a highly experienced and dynamic trainer. She has over 17 years of training and consulting experience across numerous sectors including public mental health.
Social Work Meetings
State Wide Public Mental Health Social Work Leadership Network and Practice Group (SW LN)
The Statewide Mental Health Social Work Educator continues to provide a secretariat role and support to the SW LN. The Leadership Network engages Social Work leaders from across Victorian Public Mental Health (VPMH) so that collectively Social Workers act as a representative voice that advances the interest of the Social Work profession. Social Work’s value and impact stems from its ability to:
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Drive change and influence sector reform
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Build the profile of Social Workers and contribute to workforce development
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Connect people, ideas, and information
World Social Work Day 2024 Planning Group
Following the success of the 2023 World Social Work Day event, CMHL has again established a work group to help develop a World Social Work Day 2024 event.
