Autor: Kath Spencer
New drug and alcohol intervention to help hundreds
A new drug and alcohol intervention service is set to help hundreds of vulnerable people in the north.
Q Health will provide individual, couple and family counselling to anyone that identifies same-sex attracted and gender diverse, and is experiencing alcohol and drug issues.
The service will help people like 22-year-old Sasha who attends drummond street services.
“When I was stressed or fought with my family so they would accept me, I would take lots of drugs and it wasn’t good for me. All we needed was a safe space to get help. We’ve now been able to sort through our issues a lot better,” Sasha said.
Drummond street services chief executive Karen Field said partnering with Merri Health will help support a large group of at-risk people across the north.
“We know that there are minimal alcohol and drug specialist services for the queer community and yet, they are among the most disadvantaged groups. Discrimination, homophobia and transphobia all play a part and we’re here to address that. One size does not fit all when it comes to support; they face unique challenges – Q Health will look at the root causes of substance misuse,” Ms Field said.
Merri Health chief executive Nigel Fidgeon said the initiative would build on the many alcohol and drug services offered by Merri Health, including group education, early intervention for young people, counselling and drop-in support.
“Q Health will help us extend support to those most at-risk that have limited service access,” Mr Fidgeon said.
Q Health is a free and confidential service and will be available to anyone living in Brimbank, Darebin, Hume, Maribyrnong, Melbourne, Moreland, Wyndham and Yarra. Anyone can self-refer to the service by calling 1800LGBTIQ or emailing [email protected].
Q Health is a partnership approach to meeting emerging needs of marginalised groups, from Rainbow Tick accredited provider, Merri Health and founder of Queerspace, drummond street services.
Guerreros del arco iris, ¡uníos!
Moreland acogió uno de sus mayores actos arco iris con motivo del Día Internacional contra la Homofobia, la Bifobia y la Transfobia (IDAHOBIT).
The live art exhibition saw more than 500 Moreland students and locals take part in the large-scale filming which we’ve released today, in support of IDAHOBIT. Messages of support are projected via a choreographed exhibition using rainbow umbrellas and captured via a drone.
Russ Pirie, responsable del proyecto YGLAM de Merri Health, afirmó que la procesión arco iris mostraba el compromiso de Moreland con la creación de una comunidad más segura e integradora.
"Es una oportunidad para que la comunidad se reúna y demuestre que se preocupa por el bienestar de las personas queer que viven en Moreland, creando espacios seguros para todos", declaró Pirie.
La alcaldesa de Moreland, Cr Helen Davidson, afirmó que la difusión del vídeo del acto garantizará que Moreland siga reconociendo y aceptando a nuestra comunidad queer más allá de IDAHOBIT.
"Es muy importante que nos unamos no sólo cuando se celebra IDAHOBIT, sino todos los días.
"La diversidad de Moreland es uno de los mayores puntos fuertes del municipio, y eso es algo que hay que celebrar", declaró el Sr. Davidson.
IDAHOBIT es una celebración anual de la diversidad sexual y de género que sensibiliza sobre la violencia y la discriminación que sufre este colectivo.
El acto está dirigido por el grupo de jóvenes queer YGLAM de Merri Healthy cuenta con el apoyo del Ayuntamiento de Moreland. Marca el aniversario de la campaña de medios sociales de YGLAM This Campaign Is Queer, que apoya a los jóvenes queer a través de las conexiones con los medios sociales.
Todos pertenecemos: celebrar a las personas
Conozca al variado equipo de Merri Health.
El martes 20 de marzo se celebra el Día de la Armonía, una jornada que conmemora la diversidad cultural, un día de respeto cultural para todos los que viven en Australia.
Gracias a los maravillosos miembros de nuestro equipo que aparecen en este vídeo y comparten nuestro mensaje: aprendemos unos de otros, nos respetamos y celebramos nuestras diferencias. Todos pertenecemos.
Comparta su propio mensaje de apoyo al Día de la Armonía en nuestra página de Facebook y díganos cómo lo celebra.
YGLAM officer recognised for his work with young queer people
Congratulations to Russ Pirie, who was awarded as one of the 20 finalists in the world for The Commonwealth Youth Worker Award 2016!
As the YGLAM Project Officer, he has led its theatre programme for young queer people, as a way of supporting them, and developing their drama skills and self-confidence.
Alongside of this year’s theatre production, YGLAM have been working on #ThisCampaignIsQueer, a social media campaign aimed to show young queer people that they are not alone.
Keep up the fabulous work, Russ!
Residents’ labour of love
Residents have had their artwork, a mosaic table, chosen by Minster Martin Foley to feature on his 2016 Christmas card!
The artwork creation was part of a garden transformation by The Queens Lodge art group, who set out to create a communal and relaxing space for residents of the lodge with the support of Merri Health and Arts Access.
The Queens Lodge is a supported residential service that offer accommodation and low level of care for people who need support in everyday life, such as people who are frail or have a disability.
After 18 months of hard work, the residents now have a space that they can enjoy! The project, named “Bringing Country Home,” had residents involved in the design, creation and helping in the manual labour of the garden.
The garden is an important space for the residents as it is where most of them meet and walk through on a daily basis. As such, different spaces were created so that there were quiet and social areas.
Not only has this been a busy time for the residents, it has been a journey that has empowered them to have ownership of the space in which they live. The residents said that it has been a rewarding and productive process.
The Queens Lodge art group has existed for a number of years and in this time has developed many projects. The first of these was “Connecting to Country,” which had the residents creating art to explore their relationship to Australia’s native landscape.
To find out more about how we support Supported Residential Services and its residents, go to mental health services.
Merri Health lanza una nueva herramienta de análisis de género
Merri Health ha creado una nueva herramienta de análisis de género para ayudar al personal a aplicar una perspectiva de género al diseño y la ejecución de los programas.
Los equipos pueden utilizar la herramienta durante la planificación, el diseño, la revisión y/o la evaluación de los proyectos para garantizar que sean inclusivos, sensibles a las cuestiones de género y accesibles.
La herramienta se basa en distintos instrumentos de múltiples organizaciones y se aleja del lenguaje binario para ofrecer una definición de género más inclusiva. Anima al personal a tener en cuenta la variedad de necesidades y experiencias de las personas de la comunidad en relación con su identidad de género.
Cassie Zurek, responsable de promoción de la salud en Merri Health, afirmó que, gracias a esta herramienta, el personal podrá elaborar proyectos más seguros para todas las personas, incluidos proyectos que respondan a las desigualdades de género en nuestra comunidad.
"Este proyecto surgió de la necesidad de contar con una herramienta que ayudara al personal a garantizar de forma activa e intencionada que el trabajo de Merri sea siempre integrador y responda a las necesidades de las personas de todos los sexos", afirma Cassie.
"Todas las herramientas que pudimos encontrar utilizaban una definición de género muy binaria, así que decidimos adaptar la nuestra". Los miembros del equipo que participan en el proceso pueden esperar mantener profundos debates sobre género y equidad. Es un proceso reflexivo que permite aprender sobre la marcha".
Este proyecto nos ayudará a trabajar para reforzar y formalizar nuestro compromiso con la inclusión de la perspectiva de género y la seguridad. Estamos deseando ponerlo en práctica".