Authors: Victoria’s - Royal Children’s Hospital Mental Health Service (RCH MHS)
Year: 2004
Event: 2004 TheMHS Awards
Subject:
Type of resource: TheMHS Awards
Award state: VIC
Award level: Winner
Award category: Infant, Child and Adolescent
Abstract: Addressing Family Violence Programs (AFVP’s) is a child and adolescent mental health initiative aimed at tackling the harmful neuro-psycho-social effects of chronic family violence on infants/children and young people in the Western, north Western suburbs of metropolitan Melbourne. Commencing with a collaborative mental health/community health child and mothers groupwork program (PARKAS – Parent’s Accepting Responsibility Kids Are Safe) in 1997, this initiative has grown to incorporate an array of family, school and community interventions. These have included the production of educational products, a national award winning training package, an interagency collective known as Kids Safe From Violence – West (KSFV-W) and other subsequent community committees, and a school based intervention program. This initiative has serviced some 150 children, young people and parents/carers. We are currently providing two separate school based intervention programs and to date the training packages (two day intensive) have been provided to well over 200 professionals from Victoria and interstate. Description of Facility/Organisation: The four treatment initiatives that make up our ‘Addressing Family Violence Programs’ (AFVP) are: 1. Group Work Model/s and Training 2. Community Interventions 3. Educational Products 4. School Interventions. These four initiatives operate under the umbrella of the Royal Children’s Hospital Mental Health Services & Travancore School’s- Community Group Program (CGP). The budget overall per year for the AFVP is some $20 000. In addition to this, the collaborative nature of these projects add a further $2000 to $5000 contribution made by other organisations (i.e. salaries/resources provided). Currently three clinical members of the CGP are directly responsible for running the AFVP, involved in running the group work program, participating in the school based interventions and affiliated training on top of their other work requirements within the CGP. They are also actively involved in a number of important community collaborations targeting family violence. Some 150 children, young people and families have been through the award winning PARKAS program, over 200 professionals through the PARKAS (and affiliated) training and two schools are currently involved in our PVC’s program. The PARKAS program has twice been recognised as a ‘best practice’ program, and the reputation of the RCH MHS’s Addressing Family Violence Programs has led to team members being invited onto a number of important community committees established to addressed family violence.
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