National e-Bulletin
23 June 2010
Dear [FirstName],
Mental Health Update - Consultation with Department of Health and Ageing
This Thursday (June 24) 35 social workers and 15 OTs from all parts of the country will meet with the Minister for Health and Ageing and senior Departmental staff in Canberra over the proposed changes to mental health services through the Better Access and ATAPS programs.
There was a very positive response to the call for expressions of interest and the task of selecting successful applicants was an unenviable one. The selection process took place over two days and involved a panel including senior staff, the CEO and the Convenor of the National Mental Health Committee.
The aim was to achieve a good cross section of members working in Better Access: across the states and rural, regional, remote and metropolitan areas. We also wanted coverage of issues, such as CALD, Indigenous, co-physical disabilities. To this mix we added a couple of Mental Health academics. We ended up with reasonable gender equity (about 2/3 women, 1/3 men).
Brief information about the successful applicants has now been published on the members’ forum, and you can also leave a comment there if there are any points you want members to make to the Minister and Departmental staff.
To access the members' forum:
- log in at the top of the homepage using your membership ID and password (the same ones you need to renew membership)
- click on 'Member Resources'
- click on Medicare (Better Access) forum
There will be another E-bulletin to all members outlining the outcomes of the forum as soon as possible.
Historic Equal Pay Rally a Success
Last week’s National Equal Pay Day of Action organized by the Australian Services Union (ASU) was a great success. Rallies took place in 17 locations across the country. It was the biggest Australia-wide rally since the 1970s to fight for equal pay for women.
In the wake of the Equal Pay Day of Action, the Victorian government has pledged to fund increased wages if the ASU’s Fair Wages Test Case is successful.
Click here to find out more.
There are also some AASW members' pics on the rally's flickr website.
Member nominated for Cosmo award
Kylie Stothers has been nominated for Cosmopolitan Magazine’s Fun Fearless Female 2010 award and would like your vote.
Kylie is an Aboriginal member living in Katherine, in the NT. She is a member of the AASW ATSI national working group and is on the Indigenous Allied Health Australia Board representing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Workers. She’s the only allied health woman in a huge array of finalists in a range of categories. Kylie has made the finals under the category of Inspirational Role Model.
Kylie sees the award as an opportunity to “give our Indigenous voice to the mainstream community”. She is seeking support for her nomination, by voting online for her.
Click here if you would like to vote for Kylie and then click on the “Role Model” category for more info on Kylie.
2010 Board and Branch Elections
Elections will be held later this year for half of the National Board and Branch positions, including Branch Presidents. There will be a special edition of the National Bulletin to provide members with information about candidates in the coming months. If you are considering nominating for a position, please start thinking about what you would like members to read about you. Remember you need to be a current financial member of the AASW to stand or nominate someone else for a position, so don’t forget to renew if you haven’t yet done so.
The coming edition of the National Bulletin contains a form for those of you who prefer to vote on paper in the coming elections. All members can vote electronically through the website, but please return the form in the National Bulletin to me if you want ballot papers to be mailed to you.
Kind regards
Kandie
Kandie Allen-Kelly
BSocWk MPhil MAASW (Acc)
Chief Executive Officer
Australian Association of Social Workers
P.O. Box 4956
Kingston ACT 2604
Tel: +61 2 6232 3903
Membership: 1800 630 124
ceo@aasw.asn.au
www.aasw.asn.au
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