Hamilton Accident
In the aftermath of the tragic accident at Bochara near Hamilton, where four young people died and one was seriously injured, I’ve been very proud of the role that WVPHN and other local and national organisations have played in supporting the local community.
Along with headspace National, Brophy Youth and Family Services (which runs headspace Warrnambool), South West Healthcare, Wellways, Winda-Mara Aboriginal Cooperative, Western District Health, Mind Australia, Southern Grampians Shire and Dr Mark Johnson, a local GP who specialises in youth mental health, we’ve helped coordinate an immediate response to the accident.
Together we’ve worked to provide immediate support to the local community, providing community debriefing spaces, engaging with staff at affected workplaces and helping local schools with student support services.
We have further plans to coordinate service collaboration across all levels of mental health and suicide prevention services, making sure to include school wellbeing, primary care, community support and tertiary services.
I also acknowledge the work of Hunter New England Central Coast PHN who are supporting local providers following the recent bus accident in the Hunter Valley.
Men’s Health Week
This year’s theme for Men’s Health Week is ‘Healthy Habits’, which is all about developing long term habits that support a healthier lifestyle. We’ve come up with our own list of healthy habits that we will be updating each day this week. You can find the healthy habits here.
2023 King’s Birthday Honours List
I’d like to congratulate the western Victoria health professionals whose valuable work were recognised on Monday with the release of the 2023 King’s Birthday Honours List, including:
- Highton GP, Dr Susan (Liz) Lester OAM, ” For service to the community through a range of Organisations.”
- Geelong’s Dr Margaret Grigg OAM, “For service to mental health through a range of roles.”
- Ballarat and District Aboriginal Cooperative chief executive, Karen Heap AM, ” For significant service to the Indigenous community in a range of roles.”
- Ballarat-born Dr Misty Jenkins AO, “For distinguished service to medical science as an immunologist, to the promotion of women in STEM, and to the Indigenous community.”
Well done all.
Brett Sutton Steps Down as Chief Health Officer
Finally, I’d like to thank Adjunct Clinical Professor Brett Sutton, who recently announced his resignation from the role of Victoria’s Chief Health Officer. It’s probably hard to grasp the level of responsibility and pressure that Brett has dealt with during his time as CHO during a global pandemic, but he has performed his job with exceptional grace and professionalism, and I’d like to wish him well with all his future endeavours.
Rowena Clift, CEO WVPHN
14 June 2023