VTHM and Eating Disorders Victoria (EDV) entered into a partnership through VTMH Partners in Diversity (PiD) program in mid-2023. The PiD program provides the opportunity for VTMH to work with publicly funded mental health services who are committed to embedding cultural responsiveness within their organisations and service delivery.
Partnerships usually take place over a period of three years, before moving into a sustainability phase whereby the service continues to progress on the work that has been carried out during the PiD program.
As part of this program, EDV have engaged in a range of activities including successful advocacy for access to interpreters which has not been possible in the past. An interpreter policy has also been developed and implemented internally alongside a Diversity and Inclusion policy which was developed with the support of EDV’s human resources department.
EDV’s commitment to embedding Reflective Practice across the organisation has led to a program of experiential reflective practice sessions for leadership. It is intended that, through participation in Reflective Practice, leadership would be better positioned to consider ways of integrating reflective conversations with their teams, in addition to having greater confidence to hold these spaces and support these conversations.
VTMH’s self-paced, online modules have been incorporated into EDV’s onboarding for new staff as well as their induction manual. They are also in the process of reviewing and updating a number of policies and procedures to support considerations and practices relevant to cultural responsiveness.
VTMH has engaged in a number of workforce development initiatives across the life of the partnership. Most recently delivering a full-day workshop on recovery and diversity, which was complemented by our Cultural Diversity & Assessment online module. These intensive workshops have given participants a chance to learn and work with VTMH facilitators, providing the opportunity to fully engage with and explore the content.
Embedding cultural responsiveness within services requires a long-term commitment and engagement from both the partnership organization and VTMH and provides a rich learning opportunity for everyone.