Patricia McNamara

Adolescent suicide in Australia: rates, risk and resilience.

Adolescent suicide rates in Australia have fallen significantly during recent years. The incidence, however, clearly remains a serious concern for young people, parents, professionals and policy makers. Some groups of Australian youth appear to be at heightened risk. Adolescents within the welfare system, indigenous, rural and refugee youth, along with same sex attracted young people often need very careful monitoring and support. Young men continue to take their lives more frequently than young women. Prevention programmes in Australia aim to develop resilience in young people, families and communities that can serve as protection against self harm and suicide. The improvement of mental health literacy, a fostering of adolescent self-efficacy and better access to early intervention strategies are currently privileged in national and state policies related to young people in Australia. More work is needed, however, to achieve a well integrated mental health framework capable of effectively addressing adolescent suicide prevention into the twenty-first century.

Safety as a Fifth Dimension in Supervision: Stories from the Frontline

Abstract Child and family practice is recognised as a field of social work that has become increasingly complex. While evidence is growing in relation to effective supervision, there has been little research about the attributes of an effective supervisor, or the components of effective supervision. This paper reports on research undertaken in Victoria, Australia, which explored practitioners’ and supervisors’ experiences of effective supervision in this field. Data collection involved in-depth interviews with experienced supervisors and supervisees in order to explore the concept of effective supervision from participants’ perspectives. The data were systematically interrogated using a thematic inductive process, designed to enhance the voice of participants in the research. The study findings confirmed the complexity and centrality of the supervisory relationship, with the experience of a safe supervisory relationship proving essential. The importance of contemporary knowledge, leadership skills, and an enabling organisational and community context were also highlighted.

Rights-based narrative research with children and young people conducted over time

Narrative research conducted over time creates opportunities for the co-creation of knowledge about the lived experience of children and young people as they grow and change. This article revisits two Australian studies with young people confronted by difficult mental health and welfare circumstances who have been successfully engaged in narrative research over substantial periods of time. Rights-based critique of these studies from a collective standpoint of inclusion, participation, empowerment and advocacy illustrates both opportunity and challenge. A set of research principles is distilled from this critique to inform rights-based longitudinal narrative studies with children and young people.

A forgotten cohort? Including people from out-of-home care in Australian higher education policy:

People from out-of-home care backgrounds are largely absent from Australian higher education equity policy. Compared with the UK, Australia has moved slowly to consider legislative and programme incentives for young people who leave state, foster or kinship care and who wish to access higher education. One major reason for the relative inaction of the Australian higher education sector towards this cohort is the rigidity of the national equity framework established in 1990. This article argues that policy reform is required to improve the participation of people from out-of-home care backgrounds in Australian higher education. Effort could be directed into revising the national equity framework, in particular by including out-of-home care as a specific group to be monitored. In addition to revising the national policy architecture, further devolution of equity policy to institutional level may enable greater engagement with the out-of-home care cohort.

Engaging Italian and Australian social workers in evaluation

English For social work researchers, engaging managers and practitioners in evaluation has always proved complex. A recent international seminar facilitated a comparison of challenges and opportunities for undertaking collaborative research evaluations in Italy and Australia. Issues concerning motivation and resistance regarding the evaluation process are discussed, along with the role for social work education. French Pour les chercheurs en travail social, impliquer les managers et les praticiens dans l’évaluation a toujours été complexe. Un séminaire international récent a facilité la comparaison des challenges et des opportunités pour entreprendre des recherches collaboratives sur les évaluations en Italie et en Australie. Les problèmes concernant la motivation et la résistance au regard du processus d’évaluation sont discutés, de même que le rôle de la formation en travail social. Spanish Para los investigadores de trabajo social siempre ha sido una tarea compleja el enganchar a los ‘managers’ y trabajadores en tareas de evaluación. Un seminario internacional reciente ha facilitado una comparación de los retos y oportunidades para colaborar en evaluaciones en Italia y Australia. Se examinan cuestiones de motivación para la evaluación y resistencia a la misma, junto con el papel de la educación en el trabajo social.

Changed forever: Friends reflect on the impact of a woman’s death through intimate partner homicide

Abstract Australian women killed by their partners have often been understood to come from backgrounds of poverty and marginalization. However, it has become clear that a number of more affluent women also fall victim to intimate partner homicide. Notwithstanding their socio-economic status, it seems that women victims of lethal violence lack the power to protest. This paper describes qualitative case study research with middle-class women friends1 of a victim of intimate partner homicide. These women are determined to ‘give voice’ to their friend; they explore how they relate differently now to issues of gender, power and violence within the family and in the community.

A new role for social work in remote Australia: Addressing psycho-social needs of farming families identified through financial counselling

Farming families in rural and remote parts of the world are often marginalized from social care. This article describes a phenomenological exploration of problems presenting to financial counsellors in remote south-eastern Australia. Individual and family issues, referral processes and professional competencies have been identified, along with suggested changes to service delivery. Complex psycho-social difficulties are revealed. Financial counsellors, working in isolation, are unable to adequately address these. However, no social work service has been accessible to many consumers living in remote farming communities. Social work, within interdisciplinary partnerships, is being piloted as a result of this study.

A consortium approach for child and family practice education

Abstract Child and family practice and child protection are extraordinarily complex. They require in-depth understanding of intra- and inter-personal skills and intricate service systems, and capacity to operate in a constantly changing policy environment. One way of meeting the needs of such practitioners is facilitating their access to experts working across direct practice, management and leadership and policy-making contexts. This article discusses the rationale for collaboratively delivered post-qualifying courses for child and family practitioners, and discusses a highly successful example of such courses delivered through La Trobe University. It outlines the unique developmental process and model of delivery adopted by the consortium responsible for the postgraduate programme. It concludes with reference to early evaluative findings indicating it as a promising pedagogical model.

Towards a National Policy Framework for Care Leavers in Australian Higher Education

International research has found that care leavers rarely transition to higher education in the UK, Europe and the USA. In Australia, however, there has been a paucity of research into the under-representation of care leavers in higher education. This chapter reviews the findings of a national research project into the university access and achievement of care leavers. The project was led by La Trobe University and involved four key stages: a global literature review; analysis of relevant data sources; an online survey of public universities; and interviews with community service organizations. Findings and recommendations are considered in the context of international research and policy initiatives.

Young People at Risk of Lifelong Poverty: Youth Homelessness in Australia

Youth homelessness is increasing in Australia. Whilst accurate definitions and data collection processes are still evolving, we know that homelessness is especially prevalent among particular groups. Unemployed young people, those who have experienced family violence, neglect or abuse, those living with mental illness and addictions, out-of-home care leavers, and young people involved with criminal justice are at heightened risk; GBLTQI, refugee, asylum seeking and Indigenous young people are also more likely to become homeless. Children growing up with family homelessness are at increased risk of becoming homeless in their own right, as adolescents or as young adults. There is, however, evidence that Australia has prioritized policy and programmatic responses to youth homelessness over the past two decades. Crisis accommodation, alcohol and other drug services, individual and family counselling, health and mental health programs, specialist secondary schools, pre-employment training, community outreach, residential programs and mentoring are some of the responses in place. Notwithstanding such initiatives, more young people in Australia continue to experience long-term homelessness each year. When homelessness endures into adulthood it puts young people at risk of lifelong marginalization and poverty. We need to better understand pathways to youth homelessness and poverty, especially child abuse and neglect, family violence, unemployment, criminality, mental health issues and alcohol and other drug use. This chapter describes contemporary patterns of youth homelessness in Australia and their links to poverty, along with promising intervention programs. It also suggests areas for further policy development and research.