World Suicide Prevention Day 2007 - Activities
In 2007, SPA moved its WSPD activities from its hometown of Sydney to the bright lights of Melbourne. Here, the LiFe Awards were held for the fourth year in a row. An inaugural Community Forum was also held to coincide with WSPD. Both events drew attention to the international theme.
2007 LiFe AWARDS
The LiFe Awards have become a model event for SPA, with the 2007 LiFe Awards ceremony no exception. The event was held at the striking BMW Edge Amphitheatre, Federation Square in Melbourne on Sunday 9 September 2007. It was satisfying to relocate the event from Sydney to Melbourne and achieve the same high standards, as recognised by those individuals and organisations that attended the ceremony.
COMMUNITY FORUM
The Community Forum, Let’s Get Talking, held at the Melbourne Town Hall on WSPD, Monday 10 September 2007, was a new accomplishment for SPA. The diversity of the members of the two panels, and the richness of content that the speakers conveyed to the audience was a key factor to this achievement.
The Community Forum was facilitated by radio and TV personality, Julie McCrossin. Julie was a wonderful conduit between the panel and the audience, making it a true Community Forum with audience participation.
Pleease click here for a detailed report on the World Suicide Prevention Day 2007 activities
Inaugural Aboriginal Suicide Prevention & Capacity Building Workshop
Alice Springs - June 2007
The inaugural Aboriginal Suicide Prevention & Capacity Building Workshop was held at the Alice Springs Convention Centre from 12–14 June, 2007.
The workshop was co-hosted by the Suicide Prevention Section of the Department of Health and Ageing (DoHA) and Suicide Prevention Australia (SPA), who were well supported by an organising committee with representatives from government and community in the Northern Territory.
Please click here for details of the organising committee.
Several key decisions made by the organising committee were instrumental in shaping the workshop. These included:
- holding the first workshop in Alice Springs
- including a focus on the contextual framework on the issue of self harm and suicide among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
- programming cultural and social events that involved visiting local Aboriginal communities. The overall project objectives
The workshop was intended to inform organisations about:
- working with the Department at the practical implementation level
- current and potential suicide prevention projects, with the view to gaining a better understanding of what works and what can be improved
- developing and building organisational capacity to increase independence and to foster greater sustainability.
The intended outcomes for the delegates were:
- increased networking and information sharing among community-based organisations that are part of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy (NSPS) or have a focus on suicide prevention
- training and the development of skills through the workshops to provide a continuum of knowledge on the entire funding process from submission writing to project evaluation
- an increased capacity to implement suicide prevention projects more effectively.
The intended outcomes from SPA and DoHA’s perspective were:
- a better understanding of the issues organisations face from a broad community perspective when dealing with suicide prevention
- help in identifying ways in which suicide prevention programs can be implemented in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
- strengthened communication between deliverers of initiatives and services within Central Australia through up-skilling organisations to effectively implement and manage suicide prevention projects.
The organising committee were hopeful that 80 to 100 people would participate in the workshop. In all, there were 89 participants.
These included:
- Mick Adams, member of the Indigenous Strategies Working Group for DoHA and Chair of the Indigenous Gathering Working Group for SPA, who was the principal facilitator
- Timmy Duggan, former National Basketball League champion and founder of Hoops 4 Health Program, who was the keynote and motivation speaker
- Professor Rosemary Calder, First Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Workplace Division, DoHA
- Don Zoellner, member of the National Advisory Council on Suicide Prevention, who participated on the first day of the workshop and gave the official welcome
- Di Knight, Acting Assistant Secretary, Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Programs Branch, who participated on the final day and gave the official closing remarks.
The workshop had four main components.
1) Contextual framework on the issues of self harm and suicide among Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander peoples This discussion was kicked off by a panel discussion.
2) Implementation within communities This panel discussion took place by way of a series of eight presentations to identify issues, perceived barriers, key learnings and successes from a project implementation perspective. It was followed by five working groups which assessed the effectiveness of five of the LIFE Framework’s six action areas for suicide prevention among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The focus was on: - the promotion of well-being, resilience and community capacity across communities - the enhancement of protective and risk reducing factors for suicide and self harm across communities - services and support within the community for groups at increased risk - services for individuals at high risk - progressing the evidence base for suicide prevention and good practice. Each group was given only one action area to focus on, with some creative results. For example, one group created lyrics for a health promotion message that was presented in hip-hop - a real highlight.
Please download the lyrics to the health promotion message here.
3) Corporate government and the financial framework This was presented in lecture format with an entertaining PowerPoint presentation, followed by a question and answer session.
4) Skills-building training This covered: - writing a funding submission - managing a project and staff - planning for sustainability through community fundraising - talking to the media - governance and legal issues - financial management and reporting for non-financial professionals - evaluating a project - a workshop on suicide awareness with a culturally sensitive approach.
The full program from the Workshop can be downloaded here.
As an extension of the workshop, two cultural/social functions allowed delegates the chance to share and experience something of the local Aboriginal way of life.
The first event was held at the Irrerlantye Arts and Learning Centre, within walking distance of the Alice Springs Convention Centre.
Workshop participants were enthralled by the drumming performance by a group of Irrerlantye children who performed Afro/Cuban and Brazilian rhythms as well as songs in their own language. With up to 20 kids performing at any given time, some dynamic entertainment was guaranteed. Locally produced artworks were also on display and available for purchase. A BBQ dinner was provided around a camp fire.
The second event was held at Williams Well, an outstation 30 kilometres east of Alice Springs, where some of the more adventurous delegates had camel rides. Again, a BBQ dinner was provided.
Evaluation of the workshop Participants rated the following as the most useful and/or engaging:
- the variety of presentations
- the opportunity to network and learn from each other’s experiences
- Professor Ernest Hunter’s presentation – “Indigenous Self Harm: How did we get to where we are now?”
- the small group activities
- the cultural events (visits to Aboriginal communities)
Ninety per cent of people who participated in the evaluation survey said the quality of cultural events was above average.
One member of the organising committee commented: “The inclusion of Irrkerlantye and Williams Well families was a tremendous boost to their self image and ideas about what might be possible. I’m not sure it did my own stress levels much of a favour. I would like to commend the committee and the participants generally for their generosity and spirit and willingness to spend time with the families. The Williams Well mob, in particular, are a very shy mob unused to hosting anything much. They are really pleased at the clean up of their outstation and that they managed to get through the event despite the cold, delays in buses and getting the Irrkerlantye people out there etc. It has been a good boost to their morale generally.”
Eighty-six per cent of people who participated in the survey said the opportunities to network and meet new people were above average.
The workshop achieved good outcomes and was of significant benefit to the participants. It facilitated greater networking, learning and mutual support, especially for those from remote areas. Bridges were built between people in outlying communities, Government and those based in the metropolis.
The exposure of remote Aboriginal communities for policy makers, advocates and community workers from urban environments was of immense value in gaining a greater understanding of the cultural and social barriers faced by the traditional owners of the land. Eighty-six per cent of people who participated in the survey said the presentations were above average.
While improvements can be made to elements of the workshop concerning the government and financial framework, the event was useful to the majority of those who attended. Overall, participants were happy with the quality of presentations.
The findings from the small group activities around the LIFE Framework Action Areas for Suicide Prevention will be taken forward. There must be continuity between workshops in the lead-up to any larger conference and more developed outcomes. Some project participants from the Alice Springs workshop should be involved in the planning of the next workshop to ensure that key messages are taken forward.
The participants expressed a strong desire for follow-up of networking possibilities and an opportunity to meet again. They hope that the findings from each localised workshop are fed into a larger conference that will use the information already gained to build a positive direction for the future.
The workshop was an extremely well organised event; SPA was pleased to co-host it in partnership with the Department of Health and Ageing and looks forward to hosting the next one. Where that will be held is still being considered by the Indigenous Strategies Working Group, DoHA.
Finally, an unplanned outcome, indeed a high spot of the workshop, was the re-uniting of one of the Aboriginal Mental Health workers from the Tiwi Islands with her father who lived on an outstation in Alice Springs.
They had not seen each other for 30 years.
SPA National Conference 2006
"Connecting Pathways, Big Country - Big Picture"
The SPA National Conference, ‘‘Connecting Pathways, Big Country – Big Picture’’, held at the Stamford Grand Adelaide, Glenelg Beach from Thursday 2nd November to Saturday 4th November was a major success.
The three day conference was a mixture of workshops, debates and presentations. The conference gave plenty of opportunity for researchers, practitioners, policy makers, those with lived experience and those bereaved by suicide to discuss and debate many of the contemporary issues relating to suicide in Australia.
Issues discussed varied and included telephone help lines, ethics, media reporting, post-vention, dealing with culturally and linguistically diverse communities, indigenous issues, domestic violence, youth issues, men’s health, mental health and the use of websites as a tool for suicide prevention. As part of the conference program there was a poster presentation, launch of the SQUARE initiative, healing ceremony and conference dinner. .
The SQUARE initiative (Suicide Questions, Answers and Resources) is a joint initiative between the Commonwealth Government and South Australian Government. The project was launched by the Hon. Chris Pyne, MP, Parliamentary Secretary to the Federal Minister for Health, and the Hon. Gail Gago, MLC, South Australian Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, at the Stamford Grand Foreshore on Glenelg Beach.
A moving Healing Ceremony followed the launch of the SQUARE initiative. Ken Rolland, Mayor of Holdfast Bay, and Mr Kris Hanna, Independent Member for Mitchell, both spoke at the Healing Ceremony. The Conference Dinner was held at the Australian National Wine Centre. The Lord Mayor of Adelaide, Michael Harbison, welcomed the delegates. The evening was hosted by John Vincent, icon of Adelaide Radio and a consumer of mental health services.
The Conference was rated a huge success by those who attended. Of particular note were the quality of presentations, the unique format (including mixing the workshops and sessions), the inclusive nature of the program, the conference organisation and the friendliness and cooperation from conference staff and volunteers.
The relevance of topics within the program rated highly with 76% stating that this was above average.
The quality of the presentations also rated highly, especially that of the keynote speakers, with 80% giving them a rating of above average, as did the quality of the information provided through these presentations with 72% giving it a rating of above average.
80% of delegates felt that the effectiveness of the format for the conference was above average.
Elements of the National Conference that were favourably singled out by delegates included; all plenary presentations, the presentation on self injury, the antidepressant debate, the practice / research debate, the media workshop and the website workshop. A highlight of the National Conference was the involvement of Canadian guest Professor Brian Mishara, President of the International Association for Suicide Prevention, and Dr Lloyd Potter, Director, Suicide Prevention Resource Center, from the United States of America. Brian gave a keynote presentation on “The Ethics of Preventing Suicide” and led the workshop on “Telephone Help-lines – Theory, Ethics, Practice, Outcomes and Limitations”.
Lloyd gave the keynote presentation on “The Intersection of Prevention Science and Community” and led the training workshop: “Training in Suicide Prevention: Logic, Models and Limitations”. Both men participated in the practice / research debate. The un-prompted reflections by Professor Brian Mishara and Dr Lloyd Potter in the closing plenary, which strongly supported the vision and mission of SPA, were a testament to the vision of the 2006 National Conference.
Part of that vision was to ensure all people involved in suicide prevention had the opportunity to network with those that they would not normally encounter in their daily work routine. It was important for SPA to continue closing the gap between research and practice. The national conference was also fortunate to attract the involvement of officials from all levels of government: Hon. Chris Pyne, MP, Federal Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Health Senator Natasha Stott Despoja, former Leader of the Democrats, Hon Gail Gago, MLC, South Australia Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Kris Hanna, Independent Member for Mitchell, Lord Mayor of Adelaide, Michael Harbison, Mayor of Holdfast Bay, Ken Rolland Senator Natasha Stott Despoja mentioned the SPA Conference in the Senate Chamber on Wednesday, 29 November 2006
The delegates at the closing plenary determined eight recommendations from the conference. Most of the recommendations reflected key elements previously included in the SPA application through the National Suicide Prevention Strategy Community Based Project Funding, and the Closing the Gap Report from the SPA National Conference in 2004 The recommendations from the conference were presented by Dr Michael Dudley, SPA Chairperson, Alan Staines, SPA National Secretary and Ryan McGlaughlin, Executive Officer, to the National Advisory Council on Suicide Prevention on Wednesday 22nd November.
Over the coming months SPA will continue to advocate for the implementation of the recommendations. The SPA Board has adopted many of the recommendations as priority issues for the organisation to address in 2007 - 2008. SPA wishes to acknowledge the support of our sponsors for the 2006 National Conference. They were:
- Australian Government - Department of Health and Ageing
- South Australian Government - Department of Health
- iCarol.com.au
SPA also acknowledges the tremendous support of the unpaid staff both in Sydney and Adelaide.
Information Brochure
National Conference Program
Recommendations from the 2006 National Conference
Hansard Report from Senator Natasha Stott-Despoja
2006 LiFe Awards
Suicide Prevention Australia observed World Suicide Prevention Day by celebrating the enormous contribution made by individuals and organisations towards suicide prevention at the annual LiFe Awards.
The Award Ceremony was held at Government House in New South Wales for the second consecutive year. The participation of Dr Geoff Gallop, ex-Premier of West Australia, made this a particularly special event, and is well appreciated. Dr Gallop delivered a personal and insightful address, and offered congratulations to each of the LiFe Award winners. The flow of the evening was assisted by the contribution of the sharp-witted compere, radio and television personality James Valentine.
A highlight of the event for SPA, was the official launch of ‘A Blue Print for the Future’, recommendations from the National Forum on Men and Suicide, by Professor John Macdonald, Foundation Chair in Primary Health Care Co-Director Men's Health Information and Resource Centre, University of Western Sydney.
Reflecting the commitment to collaboration, John Mendoza, Chief Executive Officer of the Mental Health Council of Australia, spoke to the importance of “Building Awareness - Reducing Risks: Mental Illness and Suicide”.
The evening also included a number of Australia’s foremost performance poets and jazz musicians who had written poems and musical numbers especially for the event (Angela Stretch, Adam Gibson, Jo Seto, Ben Ezra, accompanied by Sydney musicians Trio Apoplectic).
Adam Hill acknowledged the traditional land owners – the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation - by performing the official Welcome to Country (Yidaki) Ceremony. SPA wishes to express appreciation to the sponsors and supporters of this event, without which it could not have happened.
These include:
- Australian Government - Department of Health and Ageing
- SANE Australia
- Wyeth Australia
- Australian Business Limited
- NSW Department of Aboriginal Affairs
- NSW Government House
- NSW Historic Houses Trust
SPA would also like to acknowledge the enormous commitment from the unpaid team at Suicide Prevention Australia.
Below is a list of the 2006 LiFe Award winners:
Youth Award - Head High
Business and Industry Award - Incolink
Emerging Research Award - Dr Tracey Westerman
Lifetime Research - Professor Gordon Parker
Community Award - Raylee Taylor
Indigenous Award - Petina Maybery
Media (Non-Print) - Angela Bates & SBS Television "Suicide in Aboriginal Communities)
Media Award (Print) - Steve Waldron "Suicide Unacceptable" (The Age)
Public Sector Award - Metropolitan Remand and Reception Centre (MRRC)
The National Forum on Men and Suicide - May 2006
The National Forum on Men and Suicide, hosted jointly by SPA and Crisis Support Services Inc – Mensline Australia, was an extraordinary two-day program involving some 80 delegates from around Australia. Participants came from the service sector, Government, industry, research, the community, people with lived experience and those bereaved by suicide.
Using a program developed by the National Advisory Group, participants were challenged to contribute to the thinking and recommendations through an intensive series of workshops, with little time to reflect along the way.
Despite the demanding program, everyone went the distance and ended up generating a strong position on actions to be taken. The Sydney Statement 2006 sets out a real vision, “In One Generation Suicide Will No Longer Exist as a Health Risk for Men”. The work of the Forum and the Statement received significant radio and print based media coverage, adding to community awareness of this pressing issue.
However, the Forum represented only the beginning. Building from the Sydney Statement, and the extensive contributions of the delegates, a Blue Print has been prepared and sets a framework for moving forward. The Blue Print has been widely circulated to Government and non-Government .
SPA continues to advocate for the implementation of the recommendations from the Blue Print.
Sydney Statement on Men and Suicide
Blue Print