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Category: Mental Health

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Advocacy

Future Planning 19 November – Focusing on Rights and Support

Future Planning Workshop: Focusing on Rights and Support – 19 November 2025 Our latest Future Planning workshop, held on 19 November at the Greek Club, brought together carers, families and supporters for an important conversation about rights, advocacy, and planning for the future. This session centred on understanding the systems that shape mental health care and social supports, and how to navigate them with confidence. Championing Rights in Mental Health Services We were delighted to welcome Margaret Murphy, an Independent Patient Rights Adviser (IPRA) working within the Metro South Hospital and Health Service. Margaret’s role is unique: although IPRAs work in public hospitals, they are independent from mental health services, allowing them to offer impartial advice to patients, nominated support persons, families and carers. Margaret explained how IPRAs support people to understand their rights under the Mental Health Act 2016, offer guidance during difficult or confusing periods of care, and help ensure that people feel informed and heard. She shared useful resources, including fact sheets, brochures and videos, which are easily accessible for anyone wanting to learn more. One story she shared captured the impact of this service: “Without the help of IPRA I would have left the hospital and

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November 28, 2025 No Comments
Make the Holidays Easier Blog Post
Carer Support

Making the holidays easier: support and tips for carers

Making the holidays easier: support and tips for carers The holidays can bring extra stress for mental health carers, especially if the services your person relies on are closed. While everyone is dealing with the usual summer holiday celebrations (and stress), you may find yourself juggling more organising, bigger emotions and more crisis moments than usual. Add in financial, time and family pressures and it’s easy to feel stretched. So how do you look after yourself and the person you care for when a supposedly joyful time feels overwhelming? The good news? You don’t have to go through it alone. Arafmi’s 24/7 Carer Support Line is open every day, including public holidays (call 1300 554 660 or 1800 351 881 from Regional Queensland). We can also offer one-on-one support, depending on staff availability and we’re always happy to be part of your end-of-year wellness plan (more on that soon). Another way we support carers during this time is through our End-of-Year Preparation for Carers workshop. Ben, one of our Carer Support Team members, has been running this workshop for the past two years. He helps carers plan for tricky social situations, practise responses to hard questions and build in small

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November 28, 2025 No Comments
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Advocacy

Regional highlights: connecting for mental health and celebrating carers across Queensland in October

Regional highlights: connecting for mental health and celebrating carers across Queensland in October October was a busy month for our team, as we travelled across Queensland, visiting Toowoomba, Gympie, Sunshine Coast, Cairns, Charleville, Bundaberg, Rockhampton, Gladstone, Ipswich and Kilcoy to connect with carers, families, communities and partners, and celebrate the vital role of mental health carers during Queensland Mental Health Week (4–12 October) and National Carers Week (12–18 October). We met many mental health carers who hadn’t connected with Arafmi before, giving us the chance to share information, offer support and listen to their experiences. These events also strengthened relationships with local services and organisations, opening new opportunities to work together to better support carers in regional and remote areas. Some of the highlights included: Noosaville Carers Lunch: Carers from Gympie and the northern Sunshine Coast enjoyed a relaxed lunch in Noosaville, organised with Meichelle Hughes from Family and Carer Support at Sunshine Coast Hospital. Ipswich Gala Dinner: Arafmi and Wellways Carer Gateway co-hosted the first Ipswich Gala Dinner on 10 October, with over 70 guests enjoying dinner, live music, dancing and prizes. 2025 National Carers Week Breakfast: Arafmi staff attended this event on the Sunshine Coast, hosted by Wellways

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October 31, 2025 No Comments
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Advocacy

Brisbane highlights: connecting for mental health and celebrating carers across Queensland in October

Brisbane highlights: connecting for mental health and celebrating carers across Queensland in October Across Brisbane, Arafmi hosted and joined a range of events throughout October for Queensland Mental Health Week (4–12 October) and National Carers Week (12–18 October), bringing carers, community partners and government representatives together to celebrate and recognise the vital role of mental health carers. Some of the highlights included: Attending the QLD Mental Health Awards hosted by Open Minds, shining a spotlight on the everyday heroes making a big difference in mental health. Launch of the Parliamentary Friends of Mental Health Carers Group (QLD) at Parliament House, an Arafmi-led initiative co-chaired by Kerri-Anne Dooley MP (Redcliffe) and Jonty Bush MP (Cooper), both with lived or living experience as mental health carers. We were proud to stand alongside carers, raising awareness and speaking with MPs about the challenges they face and how Arafmi supports them. Walk for Awareness, where our team walked side-by-side with carers to raise awareness of mental health and suicide prevention, showing the power of connection and community. Equine-Assisted Carer Wellbeing Workshop, a calming day that gave carers a chance to pause, reconnect with their wellbeing and explore practical tools for self-care. Community stalls at

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October 31, 2025 No Comments
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Advocacy

Shaping the Future of Mental Health – Arafmi at TheMHS Forum 2025

Shaping the Future of Mental Health – Arafmi at TheMHS Forum 2025 Arafmi was proud to be a gold sponsor at the TheMHS Forum 2025 in Brisbane (2–5 September), where sector leaders, carers and advocates came together to imagine a better mental health system. A big thank you to TheMHS Learning Network for creating such an inspiring space. Envisioning a Better Future This year’s theme, “Envisioning 2050: Towards a Better Mental Health System,” painted a bold vision of what mental health could look like in the future including: early intervention is routine and universally accessible support is holistic, skilled, culturally aligned, respectful and kind support from those with lived experience is valued and common short-term respite is available and hospitalisation is rare lived experience informs policy and shapes system culture mental ill-health is no longer a barrier to health, citizenship or employment everyone has a home, meaningful work, loving relationships and strong social connections. The Forum asked us to consider: What will the world be like in 2050? What steps must we take now to move towards this vision of an ideal mental health system? These ideas came to life through networking, presentations and panel discussions where delegates shared insights,

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October 3, 2025 No Comments
Meet Sasha and Farina
Advocacy

New policy and advocacy staff: welcome Sasha and Farina

New Policy and Advocacy Staff: Welcome Sasha and Farina Our Policy and Advocacy Team welcomes two new staff members – Sasha Ong (Engagement and Advocacy Officer, Lived Experience) and Farina Murray (Policy and Research Officer) – both bringing a wealth of experience and passion for supporting carers and shaping mental health systems. Sasha Ong – Engagement and Advocacy Officer (Lived Experience)  “I’ve grown up in the mental health world, with parents that were trained in psychiatric nursing; working in institutions in the 80’s and 90s. It embedded a view that everyone should have the right to be treated with dignity, empathy and respect. I’ve worked in the carer space for over 12 years in roles varying from carer advisory (phone intake), family carer support, education and community development. Outside of work hours I’m a mum that loves visually pleasing design, permaculture design principles, growing and using medicinal herbs, being by the water and learning electronics and survival skills. I’m excited about working with Arafmi. It is my hope that we can move towards recognising carers as holders of valuable knowledge and history of the people they support. I hope that mental health carers that come after us, have a more inclusive experience navigating our

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October 3, 2025 No Comments
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Advocacy

Working with Carers, Family and Kin – A Guide for Healthcare Professionals

We are excited to share a new resource Arafmi has developed, through our membership of the Queensland Carer’s Advisory Council. This new resource is designed for healthcare professionals, to ensure they are aware of the rights of carers, the challenges they face, and how working with carers can help them deliver the best care possible for their patient. It’s called Working with Carers, Family and Kin – A Guide for Healthcare Professionals, and can be found here. We’re working hard now to get this in front of decision-makers and clinical staff. We hope you like it, and if you have any feedback or ideas please email marketing@arafmi.com.au Read the guide here

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September 4, 2025 No Comments
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Mental Health

Volunteer Profile: Julie

Arafmi Volunteer Profile: Julie As part of National Volunteer Week (19–25 May), Arafmi Communications Officer Lilly Provenzano sat down with one of our volunteers, Julie, to reflect on her experience as a carer support group facilitator. Can you tell us a little about yourself as a Volunteer for Arafmi? I’m a 54-year-old Mum to 3 beautiful, strong women in their 20s. I’ve been a single Mum for 20 years and have only just been able to buy my own unit. I might have to work for another 30 years to pay it off, but it will all be worth it!!! What inspired you to volunteer with Arafmi as a support group facilitator? I had been coming to the New Farm meeting for approx. 7 years. The meetings had been run by Ailsa Whitehead for a very long time but unfortunately she lost her eyesight (in her early 90s) after having a stroke and was no longer able to facilitate. She had mentioned prior to the stroke that she could ‘fall off the perch’ at any time and wanted to know that her beloved New Farm group would continue without her at the helm. I fell into this role never thinking

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June 2, 2025 No Comments
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Mental Health

Volunteer Profile: Helen

Arafmi Volunteer Profile: Helen As part of National Volunteer Week (19–25 May), Arafmi Communications Officer Lilly Provenzano sat down with one of our volunteers, Helen, to reflect on her experience as a carer support group facilitator. 1. What motivated you to become a support group facilitator at Arafmi?I had been attending support groups for five to six years, participating as a carer myself. I was inspired. I have much admiration for them and observed the facilitators and staff clearly during this time. They were so clever and kind navigating big groups and people in trauma. The opportunity arose so I put my hand up. 2. Can you describe what typical support group sessions look like?Typically, they are varied in age, gender and circumstance. At my group, we see parents, serving long-term partners, sometimes both parents – different dynamics. Every support group session has an informal welcome, a check-in for newbies and then the more practical things like name badges. We welcome people, there are beverages. We do an Acknowledgement to Country.We spend time explaining the guidelines that the two-hour conversations operate under. We may talk about the time that every person gets to share – that there is no interrupting.

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May 30, 2025 No Comments
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Mental Health

Volunteer Profile: Margaret

Arafmi Volunteer Profile: Margaret As part of National Volunteer Week (19–25 May), Arafmi Communications Officer Lilly Provenzano sat down with one of our volunteers, Margaret, to reflect on her experience as a group facilitator of one of our Brisbane carer support groups. 1. What motivated you to become a support group facilitator at Arafmi?I have been to support groups for years, maybe 16–17 years in the same group. It’s moved from place to place over the years. I was offered to facilitate a group as a natural progression with staff and participants.It’s an amazing group of people. The organisation itself is a treasure. I wanted to join Arafmi as it drew me in and plays a valuable role in society. It’s the values of the Arafmi team that really encouraged me to remain. You can get a job anywhere but to live and breathe values is unique. I am grateful for the people, grateful for the leadership and have a lot of faith in the wonderful CEO who leads from the front. 2. Can you describe what a typical support group session looks like?There can be a new member or the same group of people at Inner Brisbane. It’s a

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May 30, 2025 No Comments
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