Update 20 April 2022: expressions of interest have now closed due to overwhelming demand.
Do you:
- see children and adolescents with mental health problems?
- struggle with knowing how to assess or manage them?
- wish you could access a child and adolescent psychiatrist?
- want to connect with like-minded clinicians from a range of disciplines?
The 2022 Child Mental Health Community of Practice can support you. We are seeking expressions of interest from clinicians to join this community for 6 sessions to be held once a month between May and October 2022.
About the opportunity
The 2022 Child Mental Health Community of Practice is ideal for GPs, practice nurses, psychologists, paediatricians, mental health clinicians, social workers and counsellors.
Participants will examine case discussions with child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr Chidambaram Prakash from the Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH).
Each session will focus on a topic of interest. They will be held online (using Zoom) on Wednesdays, from 6:30pm to 7:30pm. Dates and topics are:
- 4 May 2022 – Anxiety
- 1 June 2022 – Aggression and challenging behaviours
- 6 July 2022 – Depression, suicidality and self-harm
- 3 August 2022 – Eating disorders
- 7 September 2022 – Topic to be decided by the group
- 5 October 2022 – Topic to be decided by the group
Continuing professional development (CPD) points are available. North Western Melbourne Primary Health Network (NWMPHN) will allocate 2 CPD points per session for GPs who attend all 6.
Participants will be required to complete an evaluation survey before and after the series, and a short feedback survey after each session.
How to take part
If you would like to join the 2022 Child Mental Health Community of Practice, please complete the online expression of interest form. Limited places are available – please register your interest now to avoid disappointment.
Once you have done so, you will receive a confirmation email with a link to a baseline survey. Completing the survey also confirms your registration.. You will then receive an email with a Zoom link for the sessions.
Background
In 2021, RCH, NWMPHN and community clinicians piloted a community of practice to support and improve the capacity of clinicians assessing and managing mental health problems in children and adolescents.
The results were evaluated by RCH, NWMPHN and Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, refining and expanding it for this year.
The community of practice is part of a program called ‘Connecting mental health paediatric specialists and community services’ (COMPASS). The project also includes the RCH’s child and adolescent mental health psychiatry liaison service and NWMPHN’s ongoing work with Head to Health clinicians, hospitals and specialist services.
What participants said in 2022
The following are quotes from participants in the 2021 Child Mental Health Community of Practice. They have been shared anonymously.
“It seemed quite supportive … open … certainly it felt like a safe place where people could present their cases and get advice from others.” – a GP
“It was an absolute privilege to be able to pick [the psychiatrist’s] brains for a number of case-based discussions.” – a paediatrician
“With a wide range of specialties … people are coming from different angles, including paediatricians, psychologists, GPs. That was really helpful to have people contributing from their area of expertise.” – a GP
“I’ve noticed a lot of the practitioners from around the Western suburbs, [that I] receive referrals from or refer to … so getting a bit of insight and connection face-to-face … is really, really good.” – a psychologist
“I think it’s kind of just reassured me that I do have knowledge … around child mental health and I’m kind of on the right track … as a clinician, you really, kind of worry with children, because it, it can present quite differently, so I feel like my confidence has increased in that regard…” – a mental health social worker
“[The community of practice] has given us access to [a psychiatrist] to actually book in slots along cases… that’s been absolutely vital… [for] difficult cases where I might, let’s say, have to put in a referral … and an urgent assessment is, you know, a 9-month wait… I could pick up the phone, get a session with [a psychiatrist] within a week… instead of trying to support this young person when I’m feeling out of my comfort zone for weeks and months on end…” – a paediatrician
“Overall, I did think it was a really useful community to be a part of. I do hope that it can continue. . . I find that it’s relevant and I think that just having that connection with other people in this field is really good for me, particularly because I work on my own.” – a psychologist
Contact for questions
For any administrative questions, including registration issues, please email education@nwmphn.org.au or call (03) 9347 1188.
