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During October last year an all day mental health early intervention, promotion and prevention seminar organised by the Early Intervention Round Table Committee (Division of Mental Health - FMC) was held. The seminar was introduced by the Chair of the Round Table (then Clinical Director of Southern CAMHS), Clive Skene.
Director of Mental Health, Statewide Division, Dr Margaret Tobin, presented the keynote address dealing primarily with issues concerning mental health reform throughout the state. Dr Tobin emphasised the importance of early intervention and relapse prevention while also discussing risk and protective factors within mental health. Dr Tobin also used the seminar to launch another initiative of the EI Roundtable Committee - the recently completed Stocktake of Prevention, Mental Health Promotion and Early Intervention Programs. The stocktake encompasses the southern regions including rural and remote areas.
Following Dr Tobin a number of prominent speakers addressed a variety of topics. These included Professor Martin who presented a range of early intervention issues and Professor Jim Barber (Flinders University) who discussed issues from his Relative Misery and Youth Suicide paper. Profes
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sor Michael Sawyer presented aspects of the Child and Youth Health Survey and Paola Mason ended the morning session with a presentation dealing with carers' issues and the impact of mental illness on families.
Following lunch an AMIGOS group provided an interesting session that included excerpts from their recently produced video, poetry and a number of dramatised experiential scenarios depicting young consumers negotiation the mental health system.
The final session was a hypothetical titled 'Message in a Bottle - A Lifespan Mental Health Approach'. Hosted by Helen Mayo House psychiatrist, Dr Anne-Sved Williams, consumers, careers and representatives from areas such as infant, child and adolescent, adult and older persons mental health services, Second Story, Health Promotion SA, consumers and carers, DETE and drugs and alcohol participated in the hypothetical.
The seminar was well attended and the feedback extremely positive indicating a shared interest in early intervention, prevention and promotion among consumers, carers and service providers.
Stephen Johns
Southern CAMHS
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