AICAFMHA:
promoting mental health for young Australians
Australian Infant, Child, Adolescent and Family Mental Health Association Ltd
ABN 87 093 479 022

Back to AICAFMHA Homepage / News in Brief Index / Issue 16

Children Of Parents with a Mental Illness (COPMI) Initiative Update

Resources and tools

Yesterday, I attended a "Supporting Families Forum For Mothers Experiencing Mental Illness" where a resource for workers was launched, entitled "Mazes and Minefields: An alternative approach to considering the needs of mothers who experience the effects of mental illness". The resource was developed by Fran Noack of Women's Health Statewide in South Australia (E-mail fran.noack@dhs.sa.gov.au Web:www.whs.sa.gov.au), the agency which hosted the forum. They intend to hold two further annual forums on the concept of supporting families for mothers experiencing mental illness. Each forum will build from the previous one, "in order that the partnerships developed can be maintained, increasing the sustainability of consumer and worker partnerships toward positive outcomes for women who experience the effects of mental illness, their children and their families".

Please consider placing information about any programs you are running or resources you are developing on the AICAFMHA website, Children Of Parents With A Mental Illness homepage http://www.aicafmha.net.au/4members/SIGs/COPMI/index.htm . Use the Update Program Information section for both resource and program information.

National Consultation Group

Invitations are currently being sent to a range of stakeholder groups, inviting them to nominate a member/s to participate on the COPMI project's National Consultation Group.

Once nominations have been received, we will work with different 'streams' (eg GPs, Carers/Consumers, Mental Health Networks) to assist them in gaining input into the project and or reviewing and providing comment on draft documents and materials. Some nominees have already indicated that they prefer to simply be a contact for their network, passing on information through their established communication system (eg e-mail lists). Others have requested assistance with mail-out surveys, focus groups and newsletter articles. The COPMI project team is happy to negotiate a range of support strategies for the preferred consultation methods of the groups.

I aim to provide a list of groups who have been invited to nominate a National Consultation Group member in the next update.

Back to AICAFMHA Homepage / News in Brief Index / Issue 16

Last Modified: 04-02-2003 19:49:38