Engage Aotearoa

New community action stories on the It’s not OK website

January 23, 2013 3:09 pm ⋅

North Shore Family Violence Prevention Network & Safer Whanau Project have a great new page on their website that tells stories of community action projects from around the country.

You can read about what other networks and groups have done to change attitudes and behaviours towards family violence – everything from whole town campaigns, to working in sports clubs, universities and businesses, through to ideas for small projects/first steps.

An attempt has been made to write about what people did, the changes, challenges and learnings.

Have a look here: http://www.areyouok.org.nz/community_stories.php

 

Posted in: Families/Whanau, Human Rights and Legal Issues, Men, Online Resources, Parents and Parenting, People with Disabilities, Women, Young People and Youth Issues ⋅ Tagged: , , ,

Bullying Can Lead to PTSD Symptoms

January 23, 2013 3:05 pm ⋅

A new study has found a high incidence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms among teenagers who have been bullied.

The study of 963 teens aged 14 and 15 in Norwegian schools found symptoms of the disorder in about 33 percent of the students who said they were victims of bullying — though it did not determine that these students were diagnosed with full-blown PTSD.

“This is noteworthy, but nevertheless unsurprising,” said psychologist Dr. Thormod Idsøe from the University of Stavanger (UiS) and Bergen’s Center for Crisis Psychology.

“Bullying is defined as long-term physical or mental violence by an individual or group. It’s directed at a person who’s not able to defend themselves at the relevant time. We know that such experiences can leave a mark on the victim.”

Read the full article at Psych Central

Posted in: Online Resources, Research, Trauma ⋅ Tagged: , , , ,

New Year Updates Out From Changing Minds

January 23, 2013 2:47 pm ⋅

The latests newsletter is out from Changing Minds (previously Regional Consumer Network/RCNet).

Read the Changing Minds Newsletter online here

Changing Minds provides information about events, jobs, workshops, and research in relation to mental health issues and addictions in the Auckland region,  and welcome your feedback and contributions.  

To contribute to future mailouts contact the editor

 

Posted in: Service-User Movement ⋅ Tagged: ,

Glenn Inquiry into Domestic Violence and Child Abuse Seeks Community Input

January 23, 2013 2:40 pm ⋅

In July last year Owen Glenn announced that he would fund an independent inquiry to establish why domestic violence and child abuse remains such a major problem in New Zealand and to identify what needs to be done to address this issue.

If you have personal experience of child abuse or domestic violence or work with those who do the Glenn Inquiry team would like to hear from you!

Visit their newly launched website for more information at www.glenninquiry.org.nz

Follow the link below to check out the first newsletter from the Glenn Inquiry https://glenninquiry.org.nz/uploads/files/TheGlennInquiry_Newsletter.pdf

 

 

Posted in: Community Participation, Families/Whanau, Human Rights and Legal Issues, News, Older People and Aging, Parents and Parenting, People with Disabilities, Service-User Movement, Social Change, Young People and Youth Issues ⋅ Tagged: , , , ,

New Changing Minds Website Live

December 20, 2012 1:00 pm ⋅

Changing Minds saw their brand spanking new website go live on Monday 17 December 2012.

Pop along to changingminds.org.nz  to find out more about Changing Minds, link in with a community forum, sign up for their newsletter, join the Reference Advisory Group, meet the team and join in on upcoming projects to increase self-determination and service-user leadership.

Posted in: News, Online Resources, Service-User Movement, Social Change ⋅ Tagged: ,

Two Free Engage Groups to Run in 2013

December 20, 2012 12:49 pm ⋅

Community Mental-Health Resources Trust (CMHRT) is pleased to announce that funds have been obtained to deliver two of Engage Aotearoa Ltd’s successful Engage Group programmes for FREE at Youthline next year.

Dates for each group are still to be confirmed, but as we come to the end of one year and the start of the next, it’s the perfect time to start thinking about signing up. If you feel like anxiety has been holding you back this year, Engage Group might be just the ticket for a more empowered 2013. With two groups running, that’s 20 free opportunities to overcome anxiety in the New Year.

Visit the Engage Group Programme Information page in CMHRT’s Community Treasure Chest on the Engage Aotearoa website to find out more. Almost anyone over the age of 18 is eligible to take part.

Contact Youthline on (09) 361 4168 or email Services@youthline.co.nz to enroll on the waiting list.

And don’t forget to pass it on and spread the word – sharing is caring.

Posted in: Engage Updates, Personal Development Tools, Service-User Movement, Support ⋅ Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,

Curious.org.nz Website Relaunched by Rainbow Youth

December 20, 2012 12:27 pm ⋅

PRESS RELEASE: 15 December 2012
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | Rainbow Youth

Have you been wondering what happened to the website curious.org.nz? Well ponder no more as the cat’s out of the bag: Aotearoa New Zealand’s premier hub of information, resources and cool stories for queer and trans* youth, curious.org.nz, is completely revamped and back online.

Rainbow Youth website committee and staff have spend the past six months restructuring the website – which was taken down due to technical issues – into a forward thinking site which is accessible to young people across the country.

Rainbow Youth Board Chair Duncan Matthews says over the last few years curious.org.nz has established itself as an important resource for queer and trans* youth. “The relaunched hub retains this original purpose but is now completely designed around regional management by youth for youth. I hope everyone enjoys using curious.org.nz as much as I’ve enjoyed being part of its creation.”

Curious.org.nz has a new visual layout and is fully integrated with social media for better engagement. Features include a search bar and a map of Aotearoa New Zealand which clicks through to blog rolls in each region of the country. These are to be facilitated by groups in each area and will include info on local meet ups, resources, events and news.

Rainbow Youth Executive Director Thomas Hamilton says it’s exciting to see curious.org.nz running again. “It’s important that the website is sustainable and manageable for our small organisation, and that the information, resource and content comes from a youth perspective.

“We fully intend to incorporate the health and well being promotion that was included in the previous version of curious.org.nz, but this platform will grant more national collaboration from youth organisations and be more sustainable economically.”

And the best part? Keeping with Rainbow Youth’s youth run, youth led model, curious.org.nz will continued to be developed and shaped by the people who use and engage with it. “Our volunteers have started the project,” says Hamilton, “And more work will be needed to successfully integrate the regions nationally. This will be fun!”

So what are you curious about? Rainbow Youth urges you to check out the site, share the information with friends and family, and if you’ve got a suggestion or would like to add information to a region, then email info@curious.org.nz to put your request forward.

Rainbow Youth thanks @clintyminty for his effort and experience designing the website, Webwise for turning the design into a website, and 247hosting.co.nz for hosting the website free of charge. Curious is funded thanks to the generous donations received through wtf.org.nz.

Ends

For interviews or more information, contact:
Thomas Hamilton – thomas.hamilton@rainbowyouth.org.nz – 021529778
Duncan Matthews – duncan@rainbowyouth.org.nz

Posted in: News, Online Resources, Rainbow / LGBTQI+ Community, Young People and Youth Issues ⋅ Tagged: , ,

Early Childhood Education and Disability Survey Report Released

December 20, 2012 12:20 pm ⋅

The Parent & Family Resource Centre final Early Childhood Education (ECE) and Disability Survey Report.  This report evolved from the ECE and Disability Survey conducted by PFRC in July-September 2012.   The report is now uploaded onto the Parent & Family Resource Centre website and has been distributed to survey participants.

Click here to open a copy of the final Early Childhood Education and Disability Report

Contact: Lisa Martin

Parent & Family Resource Centre

09 636 0351

www.pfrc.org.nz

CC21603 – is a registered charitable entity in terms of the Charities Act 2005

Posted in: Disability Issues, Research ⋅ Tagged: ,

Dispute Resolution Services Online and Nationwide

December 20, 2012 12:01 pm ⋅

Dispute Resolution Services Limited (DRSL) is a specialist dispute resolution Crown Entity company. It provides services and systems to solve disputes between organisations and the people they come into contact with.

DRSL operates throughout New Zealand, and across a range of industry sectors. It is the primary dispute resolution service for settling disputes between consumers and the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC), and it operates independent dispute resolution schemes for phone and internet providers and for mortgage, finance and insurance companies or advisers and many other types of financial service providers.

DRSL also provides dispute resolution services to other industry sectors, including in employment, health and disability, real estate and environmental areas.

The Telecommunication Dispute Resolution service (TDR) was established as an independent dispute scheme for consumers. The majority of phone and internet providers are members of the scheme, so that TDR covers approximately 98% of the residential and small-to-medium market. The scheme was established in 2007, and has received thousands of calls since it was launched.  (Contact Freephone 0508 98 98 98). A typical complaint is about unexpected phone charges.

DRSL also operates the Financial Dispute Resolution (FDR) scheme. FDR was established as part of the regulations introduced to the financial industry by the Government in 2010, which were designed to encourage consumer confidence in the industry and improve the practices of financial service providers and advisers.

DRSL set up and operates FDR, which is the Government’s scheme for consumers who have a dispute with mortgage, finance and insurance companies or advisers that are FDR Scheme Members.  (Contact Freephone 0508 337 337).  A typical complaint is about unexpected finance charges or actions by a finance company Recent research suggests minority groups are under-represented as complainants.  People who speak languages other than English, or are not confident readers, are less likely to use specialised complaint handling services.

To help overcome this issue DRSL and other specialised complaint handling organisations have developed resources for teaching the language of complaint to these groups. The resources are available free online.  Anyone can download the information from www.complaintline.org.nz or www.fdr.org.nz or www.tdr.org.nz

You can also contact DRSL on:

Auckland: 09 915 8200

Wellington: 04 918 4900

Christchurch: 03 962 9000

Posted in: Human Rights and Legal Issues, Online Resources, Support ⋅ Tagged: , , , , ,

Hikoi Seeks National Big reTHiNK about Mental-Health Services

December 16, 2012 1:18 pm ⋅

Media Release: 11/Dec/2012.


Annie Chapman, a former support worker for a mental-health trust in Porirua, is on a mission to reduce reliance on “medical mental healthcare” which she says can result in dependence and disempowerment, in a bid to promote healthier mental healthcare.

This summer, Chapman will spend five months walking the length of the North Island to advocate “change and choice in mental-health care“.

Annie Chapman’s One Woman Walking: Hikoi for a Big reTHiNK of Mental Healthcare Choices begins in Cape Reinga on December 12th and finishes five months later in Wellington. From December to May Annie will be stopping at towns along the Te Araroa Trail for community meetings to screen short stigma-busting films, discuss what a truly empowering mental-health system would look like and support the Petition for Better Mental-Healthcare Choices, which Annie will present at The Beehive in Wellington in May. Donations to cover costs are gratefully received. Any additional funds raised will be donated to Hearing Voices Network Aotearoa NZ, which provides information and support for people who experience voice hearing.

“I have witnessed life long dependence, drug withdrawal problems and the limited effectiveness of some psychiatric medications,” Ms Chapman says. “Research suggests positive and empowering alternatives exist for better long term outcomes,” she continues.

Chapman advocates a reduced systemic reliance on medications as the first-line treatment for mental-health problems. Ms Chapman wants to see funded access to psycho-social interventions and treatment options for people with mental-health problems to reduce long-term dependence on pharmaceutical interventions and compulsory models of treatment. “We need personal advocacy and psychotherapeutic help promoted and more tailored advice about diet and exercise provided,” says Chapman, “Walking can be one of the most effective anti-depressants there is,” she adds.

Miriam Larsen-Barr, from the Like Minds team at Mind and Body Consultants who coordinate the ongoing Like Minds Big reTHiNK Festival, comments, “We are proud to include One Woman Walking as part of the official Big reTHiNK calendar of events. The message that people with mental-health problems need whole-person approaches to empower their recovery is an important one.”

“It is time our society did some serious analysis. Let’s use our legendary Kiwi kindness and ingenuity to create mental-health services that offer hope of real recovery,” comments Chapman.

Find out when One Woman Walking is visiting a town near you

www.rethink.org.nz/?page_id=1692

> KAITAIA KICK OFF MEETING
>>>Wednesday 20th December
>>>11am to 1pm
>>>at Te Ahu Community Centre

www.facebook.com/events/317503728358665/

For more information contact: Annie Chapman | 0221739954 | anniechapman@actrix.co.nz

One Woman Walking Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hikoi-for-healthy-choices-in-Mental-Health/150792058391076?ref=ts

One Woman Walking Blog:
http://hikoiforhealthychoices.wordpress.com/

Follow this link to find out more about The Hearing Voices Network Aotearoa NZ  www.hearingvoices.org.nz 

Posted in: Community Participation, Families/Whanau, Human Rights and Legal Issues, News, Older People and Aging, Parents and Parenting, People with Disabilities, Social Change, Young People and Youth Issues ⋅ Tagged: , , , , , ,