Loddon Mallee Region

The Northern Mallee Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (NMCAMHS) is part of the Mental Health Service, Mildura Base Hospital. The service operates from a community-based campus in the CBD. The NMCAMHS covers the Northern Western Loddon Mallee Region, an area of some 55,000 square kms. The service is a 24 hour crisis service for psychiatric emergency accessible by phoning 5022 3500 or 1300 366375 for the cost of a local call.

The Mental Health Promotion Officer (MHPO) in NMCAMHS is a one-day per week position. The key objectives of the role are to:

1 - Improve services understanding of and responsiveness to people under 18 years mental health needs by:

• Facilitating opportunities for prevention and early intervention (including the development of environments which promote resilience and enhance wellbeing) for mental health problems through collaboration with primary and secondary level care, education and community services sectors,
• Enhancing the capacity of primary and secondary health, welfare and educational services to respond to the needs of young people at risk of suicide or at risk of developing mental health problems.

2 - Improve the community's awareness of mental health issues and appropriate access to mental health and other services for people under 18 years.

The MHPO achieves these objectives by aiming:

1 - To provide support to services for initial development and implementation of suicide prevention, mental health promotion and early intervention programs for under 18 year olds and facilitate the handover of this process to community and service stakeholders for independent and sustainable delivery of programs to the local community.

2 - To organise community and service education addressing mental illness in children under 18 years old to assist:

• The community and services to better identify factors indicative of at risk, mild, moderate or severe mental illness and appropriate referral pathways,
• The development of skills of services in the delivery of interventions to address mental health issues and illnesses,
• The development of interagency collaboration to achieve workable shared care arrangements for the best possible consumer outcomes.

3 - Ensure the NMCAMHS MHPO activities compliment:

• The National Mental Health Strategy; Promotion, Prevention and Early Intervention for Mental Health, 2000,
• Victoria's Mental Health Service: Framework for Service Delivery - Child and Adolescent Services, 1998,
• Victorian MHPO Network Strategic Plan 2003/2004,
• The Primary Care Partnerships (PCP) local strategic plan for health promotion,
• The Primary Mental Health and Early Intervention Service (PMHEIS) education plan for General Practioners, Sunraysia Community Health Services, Psychiatric Disability Support Services (Vidovic) and Early Psychosis Support and Prevention, and,
• The Mildura Base Hospital Mental Health Education Team internal staff education program.