The CPH program
Survey of CPHs
The CPH forum
Forum evaluation
Participating mental health services

The CPH program

The Victorian Mental Health Branch has encouraged mental health services (Area Mental Health Services and Psychiatric Disability Rehabilitation & Support Services [PDRSS]), to appoint Cultural Portfolio Holders (CPH), whose work will be to facilitate appropriate developments within their services under the Cultural Diversity Plan. The VTPU will support CPHs in their role and indeed VTPU staff are very enthusiastic at the opportunities offered by the CPH program in making important reforms that will benefit CALD clients and their families throughout Victoria. The CPH role is pivotal in reducing the policy-implementation gap, a long-standing problem Australia-wide. It will enable local developments within each mental health service that will address quality of care issues in a meaningful way and, where it matters most, at the point of the service. To date, over 60 services have nominated a CPH and this alone makes this one of the largest resources ever to be brought to the task of supporting mental health services to address mental health issues of CALD communities. The VTPU looks forward to working with mental health services, their CPHs, management and others.

Survey of CPHs

A survey was developed and sent to all Cultural Portfolio Holders, seeking additional information about their location in the services and their understanding of the CPH role.  This information has been analysed and the results documented in the report "Cultural Portfolio Holders Snapshot", May 2008 and can be downloaded here.

The CPH forum

An inaugural forum of CPHs was held at the VTPU on 9th April, 2008.  The forum was attended by 28 CPHs from CAMHS, Adult and Aged Persons’ clinical Mental Health Services, and Psychiatric Disability Rehabilitation & Support Services and included participants from rural, regional and metropolitan areas.  In presentations by the VTPU, CPHs were invited to consider a potential Service Reform Agenda, and how their role might be performed. The document with the Service Reform Agenda, CPH role proposals and VTPU support processes may be downloaded here.

After lunch, during which much networking occurred, CPHs engaged in debate in small groups, about their perceptions of the CPH role, their current strategies, planned activities, and the kind of support that would be useful (both inside their service and from the VTPU), in working towards a culturally sensitive approach in their services.

The report "Cultural Portfolio Holders Snapshot", May 2008,  provides an analysis of the main findings from the group discussions and documents the outcomes from the meeting can be downloaded here.

Forum evaluation

CPHs completed evaluation forms rating the usefulness of the forum.  Asked to Reflect on the day as a whole, verbatim comments included:

• "Well organised and purposeful.  Great to hear about challenges from other CPH's";
• "It was a great way of connecting CPH roles".

In response to the question, What more would you like to know at this point? CPHs gave some of the following answers:

• Ways of educating CALD groups about mental health (to prevent stigmatising), raising awareness within the community.
• Projects that other service providers are planning/implementing
• Where to from here? What outcomes?

Detailed results of the evaluations may be downloaded here.

Contact with other CPHs

The VTPU has developed a database of all CPHs that have been nominated by mental health services. Once the VTPU has received permission from CPHs, the VTPU will make available CPH email addresses to all CPHs who agree, to enable them to communicate with each other.  This information will remain confidential and not available on the VTPU website.  In due course, it is envisaged that a CPH chatroom may be established.

Participating mental health services

To see a list of mental health services that have appointed CPHs click here.

KEEP WATCHING THIS SPACE FOR MORE DEVELOPMENTS.