Supporting family carers in Melbourne’s West Presented by Jenny Mitchell Supporting Caring Families in Refugee Communities
Supporting family carers in Melbourne’s West
Presented by Jenny Mitchell
Supporting Caring Families in Refugee Communities
Supporting family carers in Melbourne’s West
Why people from refugee backgrounds?
• Demographics of refugee settlement in Melbourne’s West
• Culturally inclusive services
Supporting family carers in Melbourne’s West
At first glance…
Government policies select “healthy” refugees:• 69 refugees 65 + (2010)• No refugees with disabilities
BUTWar has an impact for life
Supporting family carers in Melbourne’s West
The refugee experience
• Violence • Loss and grief• Trauma• Lack of basic
human rights• Resilience
Who is coming to Australia?
Culture shock and settlement
Case study
Barriers to supporting carers in new arrival families
• Family duty and honour
• The stigma of mental illness
• Lack of understanding of services
• Distrust of “authority”
• Lack of bicultural carers and staff
• Inaccessible information
• Settlement v. carer needs
Dismantling barriers
• Awareness raising in settlement organizations
• Community education
• Knowledge of settlement data
• Translations for new arrivals
• Respite workers in new communities
• Cultural competency review
Ask ourselves …
Do our values, governance, staff team, planning, policies, practices, procedures, and communication strategies demonstrate our cultural competency?
Post-war care