Mental Health Week is an annual, national event that aims to improve community awareness and interest in mental health and wellbeing. World Mental Health Day is marked every year on 10 October. Join the Centre of Democracy and the SA Mental Health Commission for two special floor talks supporting Mental Health Week 2018.
Community activists Matt Ball and Professor Nicholas Procter will speak on their work in creating positive outcomes for people experiencing mental distress and their commitment to changing the story around mental illness in in South Australia.
Matt and Nicholas will speak informally for between 20-30 minutes, sharing their experiences and passion for advocacy about mental health and will be available for conversation/questions afterwards.
Matt Ball – Narratives not labels: A human to human response
Wednesday 10 October, 1-1.30pm
Matt Ball works as a Nurse Practitioner in the public mental health service and in private practice at the HUMANE clinic, facilitating alternative approaches to working with people who hear voices and experience other unusual realities. This work includes facilitating the Maastricht approach, and talking with voices, to working with voices and trauma informed approaches towards understanding psychosis as a response to trauma, adversity or other stress. Matt is also a trainer with Blue Knot Foundation and teaches trauma informed care and practice. He is the founder of the Many Voices Collective and co-authored, with a voice hearer, the Hearing voices curriculum for the 8-week Recovery College course developed by the Southern Adelaide Local Health Network in collaboration with TAFE.
Professor Nicholas Procter – Changing the story in mental health: Advocating for a person-centred approach
Thursday 11 October, 1-1.30pm
Being able to develop and sustain a person centred relationship with a person in mental distress and their carer is central to effective mental health care. At the very least this requires engagement with a person’s conceptualisation of distress and aspiration for the future, as well as development of a therapeutic relationship that is side-by-side with the person. Drawing from a range of knowledges including lived experience education, interpersonal skills and an established research program, this presentation will showcase key work undertaken by UniSA’s Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Research Group. The underlying and guiding principle of the Group’s work plan is to help build capacity within communities and systems to support recovery with dignity.
Professor Nicholas Procter, RN, MBA, PhD. Chair: Mental Health Nursing and leader of the Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Research Group, University of South Australia.
Where: Centre of Democracy, Institute Building, State Library of SA, corner of North Terrace & Kintore Ave, Adelaide. Entry via Kintore Ave.
When: 1-1.30pm, 10 and 11 October 2018
Cost: Free
Bookings not required. Meet at the Centre of Democracy a few minutes before.
