We are thrilled to share that the first Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs (ATOD) – Mental Health Alliance workshop on 27 February was a great success! Over 50 representatives from across the ATOD and mental health sectors attended the workshop, helping to further the essential work of the Alliance.

The workshop provided attendees with opportunities to delve deep into cross-sector collaboration, highlighting how our sectors can work together to achieve the best outcomes for consumers.

The workshop was facilitated by Susan Helyar, a strong leader within the community sector and former CEO of ACTCOSS and the Alcohol Tobacco and Other Drug Association ACT (ATODA).

After some networking over coffee, the workshop’s first presentation was by Beth Garwood, the Director of Lived Experience & Innovation at Mental Illness Education ACT (MIEACT). Beth emphasised the importance of compassionate approaches in both sectors, and demonstrated how applying a ‘Do No Harm’ framework can help to prioritise recovery and foster acceptance.

We then moved to a panel discussion exploring the topic of how to enable cross-sector collaboration to enhance overall client outcomes, with panellists:

• Carley Thomas, Director of Service Excellence at Toora
• Chris Corcoran, a consumer representative and Senior Community Development Coordinator with VolunteeringACT
• Detective Sam Norman of the AFP, who is a Winston Churchill Trust Fellow researching world’s best practice in multi-agency case management of recidivist criminal offenders.

The discussion addressed the complexities of co-occurring mental health and ATOD use, while also assessing methodologies to strengthen effective, collaborative responses across the sectors. The discussion was followed by a Q&A, where attendees were able to gain more insight into these topics.

After a short break, Dr Elizabeth Paton of EveryMind delivered a highly informative presentation on language in the ATOD and mental health sectors. She discussed the impact of labelling within the sectors and highlighted how using respectful language can help to challenge assumptions, reduce bias and minimise stigma within the general public.

Angel Hellyer, MHCC ACT’s Program and Communication Manager, then facilitated an activity to gain input for developing a Community of Practice (CoP) for the Alliance. The online CoP will be designed to provide 24/7 engagement, access to resources and information for sector workers. As a group, attendees discussed the topics of content requirements, objectives and feedback mechanisms. The insights collected will inform the development of the CoP.

We are developing papers on the panel discussion and CoP activity, including attendee input, and will present these to the Alliance in the coming weeks.

We will also host a second workshop for the ATOD-MH Alliance, likely in September. Keep an eye on our channels for more information.

Thank you to all who attended the workshop, and particular thank you to our Alliance partners: Alcohol Tobacco and Other Drug Association ACT (ATODA) and ACT Health’s Office for Mental Health and Wellbeing.