Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN) commissioned Beacon Strategies to finalise the development of the Cairns and Hinterland Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan (SPCAP) in late 2019.

In light of the current COVID-19 health pandemic, the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP project is being suspended for a period of six months. Although this decision was difficult to make, it was necessary given the serious nature of the pandemic itself but also due to the project requiring extensive stakeholder and community engagement.

Thank you to the current Community Advisory Group members for representing the perspectives of the Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service (CHHHS), broader non-government organisation sector, people with a lived experience of suicidal thoughts or behaviours, Aboriginal Controlled Community Health Organisations, and the communities of Mareeba, Innisfail, Tablelands, and Douglas Shire. Your support for the project has been invaluable.

Additionally, thank you to all of the sector professionals who have engaged with the process so far via videoconference. Your input has been captured and will be built upon when the project recommences.

The SPCAP project will be suspended for six months, with a tentative review date scheduled in September to assess readiness for recommencement. In these uncertain times, it is not yet clear whether the project will be recommenced in late 2020, or held over until the start of 2021.

NQPHN, Beacon Strategies, Black Dog Institute, and Roses in The Ocean remain as committed as ever to developing the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP and look forward to progressing the project when recommencement has been confirmed.

If you are interested in being notified when the project recommences, please contact Mitchell Stalker from Beacon Strategies via mmitch@beaconstrategies.net

Want to know more about the Cairns and Hinterland Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan?

NQPHN commissioned Beacon Strategies to finalise the development of the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP. This project will lead to the collaborative refinement of the work done to date and result in locally-endorsed, coordinated suicide prevention activities across the region.

The implementation of a regional approach to suicide prevention is a key priority for NQPHN, who has committed to developing localised SPCAPs in Townsville, Mackay, and Cairns. Whilst the Townsville and Mackay plans are relatively well established, the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP remains in the initial development stage.

The Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP will continue to be developed in alignment with the initiatives of CHHHS, the Black Dog Institute’s Lifespan model, community-based activities, and the evolving primary mental health stepped care environment.

The project will consolidate existing data, policy, research, and analysis, while seeking the opinions and experiences of people through consultation, to develop a Community Action Plan that will guide activities and commissioning by NQPHN into the future.

Stakeholder engagement update

Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN) would like to update stakeholders regarding recent changes required to the first round of community consultations for the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP project. The engagements planned for Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP project between 2-6 March 2020 have been rescheduled to April 2020.

NQPHN is currently progressing two engagement projects within the Cairns and Hinterland region, including the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP project and the Northern Queensland Joint Regional Plan for Mental Health Alcohol and Other Drugs and Suicide Prevention Services

In order to allow both projects maximum potential for focused consultation sessions with the sector and broader community, a decision has been made to delay the community stakeholder engagement sessions for the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP until April 2020.

Revised dates for the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP consultations

Commencing Monday 6 of April 2020, we will be talking to a variety of community groups, service providers, clinicians, and other sector professionals about their role in suicide prevention within their local community. There will also be dedicated sessions available for people with lived experience and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

• Monday 6 April – Cairns and Mossman
• Tuesday 7 April – Mareeba and Innisfail
• Wednesday 8 April – Atherton
• Monday 27 April – Lived Experience and Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander peoples (location to be advised).

Focus group flyers and consultation details will be made publicly available in the coming days.

For any enquiries regarding the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP community engagement consultations please contact Beacon Strategies Project Lead Rebecca Patterson on 0433 220 515 or at Rebecca@beaconstrategies.net

The different between the two engagement projects

Cairns and Hinterland Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan (SPCAP)

The Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP, is being developed to create a community and sector endorsed plan for coordinated suicide prevention activities across the Cairns and Hinterland region. It will be a roadmap for implementing community change by identifying and specifying what will be done, who will do it, and how it will be done. The project team will consult with a diverse mix of stakeholders at various stages of the project in a targeted way through focus groups and individual interviews. This will directly inform the development of the Cairns and Hinterland Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan.

Engagement activities will occur at two phases. The first loop aims to capture the ‘current state’ scenario by understanding common issues and identifying priorities for action. The second loop planned for aims to imagine the ‘future state scenario’, by creating a shared vision for change, co-designing ideas into actionable models, and gaining endorsement for implementation.

The project is being facilitated by Beacon Strategies.

Northern Queensland Joint Regional Plan for Mental Health Alcohol and Other Drugs and Suicide Prevention Services

The Joint Regional Plan is being developed in partnership with local Hospital and Health Services to achieve coordination of the strategic planning and provision of services for wellbeing, including mental health, suicide prevention, and alcohol and other drugs across the NQPHN region that includes the Cairns, Townsville, Mackay, and Torres and Cape areas.

Consultations for the Cairns and Hinterland area commence on 9 March to 10 March 2020 for Cairns, with additional consultations in Atherton on 12 March 2020 and Innisfail 13 March 2020.

This project is being facilitated by Engagement Plus.

Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN) is now inviting tender submissions to provide trauma informed mental health services for children in the Mackay, Whitsundays, and Isaac regions.

The aim of the tender is to establish a collaborative service model and provision of services for children under 14 years of age who have and/or are experiencing physical and/or sexual abuse or assault and who are at risk of self-harm.

The model should:

• seek to explore scalability throughout the NQPHN region
• meet the needs of the community and service sector
• encompass sector development and workforce optimisation
• have a prevention and early intervention approach.

The model should also be informed by findings from the Domestic Violence Resource Services, Service System Mapping Project Report 2018, and the NQPHN commissioned Child and Adolescent Mental Health Integrated Service Delivery Scoping Project Report November 2019.

NQPHN Chief Executive Officer John Gregg said the need for the design and establishment of a trauma informed mental health service for children under 14 years of age has been identified as an opportunity in NQPHN’s Health Needs Assessment (HNA).

“The successful provider will develop a sustainable integrated service model which is reliant on a solid understanding of the underlying values held by practitioners, which stimulate, inspire, and directly impact on the quality of their work with children,” said Mr Gregg.

“The underlying principles for the development of an integrated trauma informed mental health service delivery model include ensuring no child is left without a service, that every carer has a navigator to support them to maintain engagement with services, and that the child is supported in the context of the whole family, and the whole family is supported.

“The service should also be child-centred with limited eligibility criteria, work in partnership with parents and other related services in the best interests of the child, and involve practitioners who are well-qualified in the specific services they provide.

“We look forward to collaborating with the successful applicant to assist in providing the right care, in the right place, at the right time to improve the wellbeing of children in the Mackay, Whitsundays, and Isaac regions, helping them to live happier, healthier, longer lives.”

Applicants interested in applying for the tender should visit NQPHN’s online procurement portal at www.nqphn.com.au/commissioning

The tender closing date has been extended to Friday 8 May 2020.

The Mackay, Whitsunday, and Isaac region is one of two areas in Australia chosen to appear front and centre of a new suicide prevention campaign pilot, delivered by national mental health charity SANE Australia, in partnership with Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN). Launching today for a six-week campaign, Better Off With You features three real stories told by local people with experience of suicidal thoughts and attempts.

SANE Australia CEO Jack Heath said the new campaign takes an innovative approach to reaching local people who may be contemplating suicide. The campaign has been developed to challenge the common misconception held by people with suicidal thoughts that their friends and family would be better off without them.

“Feeling like a burden on friends and family is an aspect of suicidal thinking that is rarely discussed but arises far more often than people realise,” Mr Heath said.

“There are more than 500,000 Australians alive today who have attempted suicide at some stage in their lives. Sadly, we know that for many people who attempt or go on to take their own lives, feeling like a burden can be a major contributing factor. When you feel like a burden, it’s easy to lose perspective of the positive things you bring to the lives of those around you.” “By sharing real stories from people who considered ending their lives because they felt they were a burden, we have the opportunity to reach people feeling the same way today, to let them know that they are not alone, inspire hope and encourage them to seek support.”

The powerful video stories can be viewed on the Better Off With You campaign website, betteroffwithyou.org.au, together with support information and a listing of local services.

The prevention of suicide is an important issue in the region and the Better Off With You campaign contributes to community awareness strategies in the Whitsunday, Isaac and Mackay Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan.

NQPHN Executive Director Mackay Karin Barron said that “The social and emotional wellbeing of our communities is strongly impacted by suicide. We welcome the fresh approach of the Better Off With You campaign which compliments the work being undertaken in our region to deliver the Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan and community-based suicide
prevention activities.”

“We are proud to collaborate with SANE Australia on this campaign to provide support and improve the mental wellbeing of residents.” Bonnie Vincent, who leads the project at SANE Australia, added “It’s been a true collaborative effort, working with local groups to develop the campaign, including those with lived experience, to ensure the campaign is safe, effective and makes a real difference in the region.”

The Better Off With You pilot initiative is supported by funding from the Australian Government’s Department of Health.

For more information, visit betteroffwithyou.org.au or follow BetterOffWithYou #BOWY across social media.

If you, or someone you know, is at immediate risk call 000 or visit the emergency department of your nearest hospital. Support is also available by calling Lifeline on 13 11 14 or the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467. These specialised support services are readily available to listen to any concerns and to provide support and assistance to develop coping strategies.

Registrations of interest

Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN) is committed to ensuring that northern Queenslanders live happier, healthier, longer lives. Its purpose is to drive change within and support primary health care to improve individual and community health. NQPHN is responsible for acting in a commissioning capacity to address national and local health priorities and key objectives which are to:

• increase the efficiency and effectiveness of primary health services for patients, particularly those at risk of poor health outcomes
• foster collaboration and support between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, primary health care, and allied health service providers
• improve coordination of care to ensure patients receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time.

NQPHN has undertaken a comprehensive stakeholder engagement process to inform the development of the future Integrated Team Care (ITC) services model/s of care. This engagement was undertaken by an external consultancy firm and validated by an Indigenous expert advisory group. The engagement generated recommended models of care and made several key recommendations related to development and management of the future ITC services across NQPHN. The final Integrated Team Care – Assessment, evaluation and co-design consultation report was ratified by the NQPHN Board of Directors in June 2019 and is available on the NQPHN website at www.nqphn.com.au/reports-plans

The next stage in the commissioning of the future ITC service model of care involves interactive workshops with a wider range of providers to define local implementation plans related to the recommended ITC service and chronic condition prevention models and allied health services.

NQPHN is now calling for Registrations of interest (ROI) from the following providers who are interested in participating in these workshops:

• Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Medical Services
• general practice providers
• allied health service providers
• primary health care and specialist services
• consumers and their carers of ITC services
• community members
• Hospital and Health Service (HHS) staff.

In recognition of the different requirements across the NQPHN region, up to four workshops will be conducted addressing the geographic areas of Cape York and Torres Strait, Cairns and Hinterland, Townsville and Hinterland, Mackay and Hinterland between 10 February and 14 February 2020.

Final dates and locations will be determined and advised to registrants following the ROI closing date to minimise travel for the registrants.

For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, ITC activity aims to contribute to:

• a holistic and harmonised approach that improves health outcomes for people with chronic health conditions through access to care coordination, multi-disciplinary care, and support for self-management
• improved access to culturally appropriate mainstream primary care services, including but not limited to general practice, allied health, and specialists
• cross sector collaboration with other community services and primary health care providers that influence social determinants of health, housing, environment, education, employment, financial management, and interim support
• improved prevention methods for individuals at risk of developing chronic conditions through communication and care coordination between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Health sector, allied health, and primary health care services in the NQPHN region.

The ROI closes at 2pm on Thursday 16 January 2020 and submissions must be fully received by this time.

Registrations must be submitted via the form on NQPHN’s eTendering portal at www.nqphn.com.au/commissioning

Please submit all questions and queries via the communications tab on the eTendering portal.

Late nominations will not be accepted.

Prevention through connection

As the only one of 12 federally funded National Suicide Prevention Trials focused on ex-Australian Defence Force (ADF) members and their families, the Operation Compass suicide prevention project is leading the way in mental health and wellbeing support for Australia’s ex-serving men and women.

The project, facilitated by Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN) in partnership with the Townsville Suicide Prevention Network, aims to reduce the rates of suicide and increase wellbeing within the ex-ADF community and their families and to ensure the sustainability of successful projects through integration into long-term local veteran support programs.

Townsville is Australia’s largest garrison city, with approximately 20 per cent of residents belonging to the defence community as either currently serving ADF members or ex-ADF members and their families.

Operation Compass is based on the Black Dog Institute’s LifeSpan model, an evidence-based approach to integrated suicide prevention. The LifeSpan model aims to build a safety net for the community by connecting and coordinating new and existing interventions and programs and builds the community capacity to better support people facing a suicide crisis.

The project is a community-led initiative and has a strong Steering Committee that is Chaired by Lieutenant General John Caligari AO, DSC (retired). Together with an experienced Community Advisory Group, Operation Compass developed six targeted campaigns. These include:

• clinical support
• enduring connections
• data and evidence
• innovative programs
• community response
• evidence-based programs.

NQPHN ex-ADF Suicide Prevention Project Manager Ray Martin said Operation Compass developed a number of projects throughout the 2018–19 financial year which included commissioning and co-design, community action campaigns, education and training, and planning for the sustainability of Operation Compass initiatives.

“In late 2018, we launched the #CheckYourMates campaign, an awareness building community challenge for people to check in with five friends using the Connect, Yarn, and Motivate strategy that brings mental health out of the shadows and encourages candid discussions to help residents stay mentally healthy,” Mr Martin said.

“The campaign promotional videos have reached over 600,000 users on social media and has generated interest from Ex-Service Organisations and others to roll out the campaign nationally.

“#CheckYourMates will also form the theme of a mental health guide being developed by the Townsville Bulletin in collaboration with NQPHN, Townsville Hospital and Health Service (THHS), and Mackay Hospital and Health Service (MHHS), being distributed to community in July 2019.

“We worked collaboratively with Townsville Suicide Prevention Network and Open Arms to conduct a number of evidence-based suicide prevention training programs, including Mindframe Plus training for media and community stakeholders to support safe media reporting, portrayal, and communication about suicide, mental ill-health, and alcohol and other drugs.

“Another focus for the Operation Compass Team during the 2018–19 financial year was the investment in 10 community grants which were awarded to community and veteran groups to provide wellness and resilience projects to improve mental health outcomes for the Townsville ex-ADF community.

“These grants have enabled us to further engage with the ex-ADF community, resulting in us now being able to reach more veterans to get them involved in mental health and wellbeing projects, helping them to live happier, healthier, longer lives. A second round of community grants is currently underway.

“Moving forward, we are working with Open Arms to co-design a neurocognitive pilot program to support veterans and their families who have been identified with, or impacted by, acquired brain injuries (ABIs) and/or traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), and is scheduled to commence in late 2019.”

Planning is currently underway to ensure the sustainability of successful Operation Compass projects through integration into long-term veteran support through the Department of Health, Department of Veterans’ Affairs, Open Arms, and The Oasis Townsville. The National Suicide Prevention Trial has been extended for all trial sites to 30 June 2020.

Through dedication to their patients, their local community, and to teamwork, Townsville Aboriginal and Islander Health Service (TAIHS) has made some commendable achievements over the past year, all of which contribute to improving health outcomes for communities in the Townsville region.

TAIHS aims to empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to take control of their individual, family, and community health, which encompasses physical, social, emotional, cultural, spiritual, and economic wellbeing.

Their community has access to holistic primary health care that is culturally appropriate and incorporates prevention, promotion, and treatment.

In 2018, TAIHS was named Aboriginal Medical Service of the Year as part of Australian General Practice Accreditation Limited’s (AGPAL’s) Excellence Awards. The Excellence Awards recognise accredited practices, organisations, and services which consistently go above and beyond to implement and embed quality improvements, have teams that love to innovate, demonstrate a dedicated approach to patient and consumer services and/ or care, and have a clear understanding of related industry standards.

TAIHS Chief Executive Officer Kathy Anderson was also featured on the front cover of Queensland Aboriginal and Islander Health Council’s (QAIHC’s) Sector Leader magazine, highlighting her strong leadership and dedication to making sure TAIHS is more than a health service.

Dr Anderson said that the recent recognition of their achievements is a culmination of the principles and values of the TAIHS workforce.

“All of our services are developed and based on the needs of the community to deliver health and wellbeing outcomes,” Dr Anderson said.

“Our approach to business is underpinned by principles of collaboration and sustainability, as we ensure we provide culturally appropriate service provision, enable client self-determination, deliver services that are evidence and needs-based, and provide non-discriminatory access to health care services and non-judgemental support.

“Our efforts are driven by community aspiration, empowerment, and self-determination, and we ensure our activities make a positive difference to primary health and social and emotional wellbeing.

“Our programs provide quality holistic care integrating local, cultural, and scientific knowledge, and it is important to us that our people maintain strong connections with community.”

TAIHS has been working closely with Northern Queensland Primary Health Network (NQPHN) on a number of projects providing maternal and child health support, youth psychology services, psychiatry services, increased access for chronic disease management, as well as contributing to the children in out-of-home care pathway development.

Dr Anderson said working together in partnership with other organisations is essential to delivering appropriate services to their community.

“TAIHS has built strong partnerships with NQPHN, the Department of Health, service agencies, community groups and members, and peak bodies with the aim to improve health outcomes for people within our community,” Dr Anderson said.

“Working together with other like-minded organisations is an important way that we can pool resources to develop and provide quality services and programs so our community can receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time.

“TAIHS is grateful to NQPHN for recognising the need for essential maternal and child health, youth, and psychology services to help Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residents in the Townsville region to live happier, healthier, longer lives.”