Empower your career

The AASW Empowering Excellence program offers a range of enriching and topical online training, aimed at strengthening your diverse mental health practice and supporting your professional growth. All content is delivered by content experts, balancing a theoretical and applied focus.

FPS relevant topics include:

• CBT, Motivational Interviewing and Substance Use with Assoc Professor Amanda Baker  Watch a taster here
• Introduction to Dialectal Behavioural Therapy with Dr Carla Walton Watch a taster here
• Introduction to Interpersonal Psychotherapy with social worker Anthony Hillin
• A Narrative Therapy approach to men’s violence towards women with social worker Helen Wirtz
• Introduction to infant mental health and infant-led work with families with social worker Dr Wendy Bunston

 Social Work leadership and transition topics:

• Becoming a social work supervisor: An interview with social work supervision expert Jane Wexler
• The transition from service provider to service manager with Dr Elizabeth Shannon

The complete suite of Empowering Excellence online workshops is available on our website.

	Building Resilience & Preventing Radicalisation to Violent Extremism - An Awareness Raising Workshop

We are hosting FREE continuing professional development workshops for social work, mental health and welfare professionals on Building Resilience & Preventing Radicalisation to Violent Extremism - An Awareness Raising Workshop.

Priority will be given to AASW members. 

Find out more and register register to attend a workshop.

	70th anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights

+10 December 2018 marked the 70th anniversary of the United Nations (UN) Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The Australian Association of Social Workers called on the government to take serious action to fulfil its human rights commitments.

AASW National President Christine Craik said, "The AASW continues to have serious concerns over Australia’s breach of human rights, including the treatment of people seeking asylum, and the systems abuses of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults and children, including their overrepresentation in the justice system."

Read the full media release.

We have also marked the occasion on our social media platforms.

	Program Committee: AASW National Conference 2019

AASW is seeking expressions of interest (EOI) from AASW members interested in joining the Program Committee for the 2019 AASW Conference. 

The 2019 conference will be held in Adelaide, South Australia 7-9 November.  

The conference, Challenging Inequality: working together for a just society, will be a program of presentations, research.

The Committee will include the following representatives:

• Australian College of Social Work
• Research Committee
• Each state and territory
• People with backgrounds in research, policy and practice.

Information on the EoI process is available on the website.

For further information contact:

Debra Parnell – debra.parnell@aasw.asn.au
Susan Woodman – susan.woodman@aasw.asn.au

The closing date is Monday, 21 January 2019.

	Medicare Benefits Schedule Review Update

AASW MBS Review Working Group

AASW has established a Working Group to specifically provide input and advice on the Association’s strategy and submissions to the ongoing MBS Review. 

The Working Group has met to consider the next phase of the AASW’s representation to the Taskforce. We have also written to the Health Minister Greg Hunt, seeking a meeting to discuss the Review and the recommendations of the Taskforce.

We understand that the Review of Medicare will be ongoing in 2019, with issues that were raised in the review of the mental health items to be considered by separate Taskforces:

• the tiered approach to rebates
• who can be admitted under Medicare
• consideration of new items.

Announcement on Medicare items for Eating Disorders

On 9 December, the Prime Minister in conjunction with Minister for Health, Greg Hunt announced an $115 million package for Australians living with an eating disorder to access treatment under Medicare, and is expected to assist around one million people.

We believe these services will fall under Better Access and can be delivered by AMHSWs who are registered with Medicare.

Read more about the Medicare Benefits Schedule Review Update

	NDIS Pricing review

On 10 December, the National Disability Insurance Agency announced that it will implement a range of new pricing arrangements, in recognition that participants with more complex support needs require higher skilled staff to deliver some supports which incur higher costs for providers.

Recognising this, the current system - with two levels of price controls for assistance with self-care, social and recreational activities - will be replaced with three price levels linked to the skill level of the worker delivering the support. These new arrangements for complex support provision take effect on 1 February 2019.

Read more about the three NDIS price levels

	Applying for Medicare Provider Numbers

Department of Human Services resources for health professionals applying for Medicare Provider Numbers

Each year between now and April, The Department sees an increase in people applying for their first Medicare provider number. As they assess each application carefully, the increased volume means the time to process applications can take up to 6 weeks.

You can visit humanservices.gov.au to read more about:

• Managing provider numbers using HPOS
• Applying for a Medicare provider number
• Medicare benefits for health professionals

Read more about applying for Medicare numbers

	Social Work Focus - 2019 dates announced

We are seeking contributions and a review panel for Social Work Focus in 2019. Publication dates, themes and deadlines have been announced for 2019, including contributor guidelines. We are also seeking advertising for our 2019 editions.

The latest edition of Social Work Focus, your membership magazine, is out now.

Log in to the member portal to read it.

We are seeking contributions and a review panel for our Autumn edition - Family Support and Family Violence - deadline is 11 March 2019.

If you would like to be on the review panel, please email editor@aasw.asn.au with a short note which edition you'd like to review and a CV. 

	Participate in research - get your CPD hours

We have new research participation opportunities available. Participating counts towards your CPD. 

Find out more about participating in research on our website.

A current research project is seeking social workers' experiences and views on women's use of force in a couple or a family context. Complete the anonymous survey - closes 2 February.