Future Bound Conference - Mental Health, Aging and Ethinicity - Melbourne Aug 10, 2007

Speakers

Official Opening Address

 

Liz was first elected to State Parliament in the 1999 election, as the Member for the electorate of Tullamarine. She represented the constituents of Tullamarine until 2002, when an electoral redistribution created a slight relocation in the electorate, now named Yuroke which she won in 2002.

She was re-elected to State Parliament again in November 2006 as the Member for Yuroke.

During her time in Parliament, Liz has held a number of positions that have reinforced her strong desire to represent the community.

In 2002 she was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism, Sport and the Commonwealth Games, a position that she held until the election in 2002. Following her re-election, she was promoted to the position of Parliamentary Secretary for Education, and after the 2006 election was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Planning.

Liz has been a member of the Scrutiny of Acts and Regulation Committee, as well as being Co-Chair of the Anzac Day Subcommittee. She was Chair of the Women in Water Working Group, and is founder of the Parliamentary Friends of Sri Lanka group.

Liz is currently serving as a member of the House Committee, Family & Community Services Committee and is an Acting Speaker.

Liz was born in the inner city Melbourne suburb of Richmond, and grew up in Moonee Ponds. Moving to the outer suburbs of Melbourne in later years, Liz became part of a young, thriving, developing community.

She currently lives in her electorate that she represents with her husband Chris.

 

Keynote Speakers

In addition to holding the above positions, Professor Minas is an Honorary Lecturer in Social Medicine in the Harvard Medical School. He has contributed to the establishment of transcultural psychiatry as an academic and clinical discipline in Australia, was responsible for the establishment of the Australian Transcultural Mental Health Network (now Multicultural Mental Health Australia) and has been a ministerial advisor on mental health at State and National levels. He chairs the Detention Health Advisory Group which advises the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. With Professor Byron Good he is Co-Director of the University of Melbourne-Harvard Medical School International Mental Health Leadership Program. He has contributed to the design of mental health services in a number of countries, including East Timor, Indonesia, Vietnam and Sri Lanka, and contributed to the design and delivery of a training program for trauma counsellors in Kosovo. He is a member of the WHO Expert Advisory Panel on Mental Health, Chair of the Section of Social and Cultural psychiatry of the RANZCP and a member of the Executive of the World Association for Social Psychiatry. He is Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Mental Health Systems.

Associate Professor Draper has been involved in suicide research for over ten years, focusing on attempted suicide in old age, suicidal ideation in the elderly and suicidal behaviour in nursing homes. Currently he is a chief investigator of a psychological autopsy study examining the last contact suicide victims have with a health professional. Throughout, he has been particularly interested in the development of effective suicide prevention strategies for older people. He has published papers on suicide prevention, spoken at national and international meetings, and runs suicide prevention workshops. His other research interests include carer stress, dementia, service delivery, and professional development. He has over 130 scientific publications. He is the lead author of a 2004 WHO Health Evidence Network synthesis of the effectiveness of mental health service delivery to older people. He has written a book for the general public titled ‘Dealing with Dementia’ published in 2004 and has co-edited two academic books on Geriatric Consultation Liaison Psychiatry (2001) and Psychogeriatric Service Delivery: an International Perspective (2005).

Professor Gifford’s background combines medical anthropology and public health. She has had a longstanding commitment to refugee health, having served on the Committee of Management for the Victorian Foundation for Survivors of Torture for ten years. In 2001, she helped to facilitate the development of the Research Unit at the VFST which lead to the establishment of the Refugee Health Research Centre – a partnership between the Victorian Foundation for the Survivors of Torture and La Trobe University. Sandy has taught qualitative methods for public health research in the Victorian Master of Public Health Consortium as well as teaching subjects in social epidemiology, inequality and health, and gender, culture and health.

Workshop Presenters

Georgia Zogalis
National Program Manager
Multicultural Mental Health Australia

Georgia is the new National Program Manager for Multicultural Mental Health Australia, however has had a longassociation with Multicultural Mental Health through the NSW Transcultural Mental Health Centre. Georgia holds a Bachelor of Arts degree(Macquarie University) with majors in Psychology and Anthropology. Most of her work history has been with people from non-English speaking backgrounds in youth, employment, aged and the mental health sectors. Her experience includes advice and support to government and service providers to provide culturally and linguistically diverse services and programs. Georgia has worked in the CALD and mainstream Aged Care sectors for 15 years and has been instrumental in gaining funding for many ethno-specific and multicultural Aged Care programs and services across Sydney and influencing major policy shifts in the Aged Care sector for the benefit of elderly people of CALD backgrounds across Australia.

Georgia is very passionate about social justice issues, advocating for the needs and issues of people from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds and especially for the elderly and those with a mental illness.

Primary Health Panel Members

Phillip Bain (facilitator)
CEO, Northern Division of General Practitioners

Barbara Hill
General Manager
Community Services & Integration
Western Region Health Centre

Dr. Joanne Gardiner
General Practitioner
Darebin Community Health
Foundation House

2 remaining panel members to be advised

Helen Evert
Research Fellow, University of Melbourne

Helen Evert has completed a Masters in Educational Psychology and is a registered psychologist. She has just submitted her Ph-D thesis entitled ‘War experiences and the emotional health and well-being of Polish elderly Migrants’. During her studies she was based at the Centre for International Mental Health, University of Melbourne and currently she is working as a Research Fellow with the Department of General Practice investigating the understanding of depression and depression care among the Vietnamese and East-Timorese communities.

Mary Leahy
Manager
Uniting Aged Care Community Programs
Kingsville

Mary has fifteen years experience in aged care, both in community and residential settings and has managed programs where the client base is primarily those from culturally and linguistically diverse, socially and financially disadvantaged and homeless backgrounds.

Mary is currently managing community programs in the Western Metropolitan Region for Uniting Aged Care Victoria and Tasmania.

Charyl Turner                                                                       
Coordinator
CAN-DLE Project
Uniting Aged Care 

Charyl has worked as adiversional therapist for the last 6 years and has been with Uniting Aged Care for just over two years assisting with the accreditation process at three locations. Her background also includes work as a personal carer in dementia specific units and studies in Social Science and Justice at St Albans VUT.

Charyl enjoys working on the CAN-DLE Project and assisting families from CALD backgrounds and those that are socially and financially disadvantaged. During her time working inAged care (since 1999), she has seen the sector progresswith improved education, training, understanding and comprehension ofindividuals needs. Charyl sees the CAN-DLEProject as being instrumental intargeting awareness for carersof people with dementia and the care recipients.

Wendy Wood
Business Development & Promotions Officer
Alzheimer’s Australia Vic

Wendy Wood is the new Business Development and Promotions Manager at Alzheimer’s Australia Victoria. She has studied graphic design, marketing and business administration through various registered RTO’s and applied this knowledge in her roles. She has worked in the advertising agency arena for many years, specialising in pharmaceutical and education applications and ran her own business in South Africa. When emigrating to Australia 6 years ago, she entered the Not-for-profit sector, where she enjoys developing relationships with various stakeholders, producing marketing material and enjoys being creative in the process.

Ruth Wein
Educator
Alzheimer’s Australia Vic

Ruth Wein is currently employed as an educator with Alzheimer’s Australia Vic. She holds a Bachelor of Architecture, Diploma of Arts (Interior Design), Graduate Diploma in Applied Psychology and Master in Psychology (Counselling) degrees. Ruth has been working in the aged care sector for nine years after specialising in a career in interior architecture. Ruth’s experience in the aged sector has included a variety of roles in the CALD sector where she has worked as a counsellor, case manager and educator at various Jewish community and aged care settings. Ruth has a special interest in working with older people who have experienced trauma and has worked in partnership with the Jewish Holocaust Centre to develop a training program to educate workers, carers and volunteers who care for survivors of the Holocaust. Ruth is also currently combining her two careers to develop an education program related to dementia and the built environment.

Diana Bilotta
Counsellor
Alzheimer’s Australia Vic

Diana Bilotta holds a Diploma in Arts, a Bachelor in Social Work (Melbourne University) and a Masters in Education majoring in Creative Arts Therapy (La Trobe University). Diana is currently employed as the counselor for the Alzheimer’s Australia Vic and has worked for the organization for eight years. Diana has worked in the Western metropolitan region for seven years has extensive experience in supporting families with the diagnosis of dementia from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. She regularly addresses issues around coping with a diagnosis, understanding the disease, coping with change, stress management and grief and loss. Her work also includes group work, education and community presentations. Diana takes a team approach to her work and values the importance of working collaboratively with other agencies. Diana’s has a diverse work history over twenty years, including working in aged care and local government has provided a range of counseling interventions to support families from CALD backgrounds.

Diana is very committed and passionate about her work in supporting and advocating for people with dementia and their families and those from culturally and linguistically backgrounds.

Official Closing Address