Michael Power, Director Queensland Health Victim Support Service (QHVSS) and Catriona Harwood, Restorative Practice Lead and Senior Social Worker (QHVSS)
For more information please email: restorative@health.qld.gov.au
About this Profile
Profile source: An interview on behalf of the NED Foundation.
- Director (Michael Power)
- Restorative Practice Lead (Catriona Harwood)
- One of the support options for the person harmed participating in a formal Restorative Practice Meeting is the Queensland Health Victim Support Service
Catriona Harwood also participated in the interview. Catriona leads the implementation of the program.
About the Organisation
Implementation of Restorative Practices in Mental Health Services at The Prince Charles Hospital (Brisbane), is a collaboration between the Secure Mental Health Rehabilitation Unit (SMHRU) and Nundah community mental health service and the Queensland Health Victim Support Service (QHVSS), Metro North Mental Health, Metro North Health.
The RP model being implemented includes the establishment of a Restorative Ward in the SMHRU, and the use of RP interventions by Nundah community mental health service staff.
RP interventions are focused on building relationships to prevent conflict and harm, and repairing relationships after incidents of harm.
RP provides an opportunity to communicate about what led up to the harm, the impact of the harm, what needs to happen to repair the harm to the extent possible, and brings together those most impacted by the harm.
The RP model being provided aims to assist mental health consumers, mental health staff, family members of consumers and others who may have been harmed by a mental health consumer.
Suitability for involvement in RP involves a collaborative discussion by the external ARJC RP Facilitator and the consumer, the treating mental health team, the RP Lead and a support person (including professional) for the person harmed.
The RP model includes a partnership with Adult Restorative Justice Conferencing unit, Department of Justice and Attorney General, who provide trained, accredited RP facilitators for formal RP Meetings.
Michael Power at the Queensland Health Victim Support Service was aware there was no structured opportunity for communication between people who had been harmed by mental health consumers and consumers who were involved in the forensic mental health system to use restorative practice to repair harm.
In 2016 he received a Churchill Fellowship that enabled him to undertake international travel in 2017 to investigate the use of RP in forensic mental health and other mental health services.
Metro North Mental Health Services approved the establishment of a cross government and non government agency stakeholder group to develop a model for Restorative Practice, and in 2019 Catriona Harwood, a social worker, RP practitioner and mediator, was employed to lead day to day implementation of the model.
The implementation of RP in the SMHRU commenced in December 2019 and in July 2020 for the Nundah team.
Executive support from mental health services for the implementation of RP in the service was because it complements existing organisational and justice system responses to threats and incidents of harm involving mental health consumers, mental health staff, family members, and others who have experienced harm.
Funding to support implementation has been received from the TPCH Foundation and Queensland Health.
An external evaluation is underway to understand the impact and potential benefits of using RP in a mental health context.
The funding for the evaluation is from the Queensland Mental Health Commission with the final report due in late 2022.
Implementation of RP mental health services at TPCH is led by a Restorative Practice Lead (Catriona Harwood), who works closely with service staff, consumers, family members and carers, implementing a model of Restorative Practice, tailored to service the environment, the impact of serious mental illness on consumers and the needs of people who have been harmed.
The model is a continuum of RP interventions from Affective Statements; Restorative Questions; Impromptu Restorative Meetings; Circles and Restorative Meetings facilitated by the ARJC.
Implementation has included the provision of three day training workshops for mental health staff on RP interventions, collaborative resource development and short RP engagement sessions with consumers and other stakeholders, including support services for people harmed.
RP interventions respond to harm or threats between consumers, consumers and mental health staff, between consumers and family members and others.
- Government Department
- Referrals from mental health and forensic mental health services
- Services supporting people harmed
- Self referrals from individuals, families and others
- Other stakeholder agencies referrals (e.g. police, peer support workers)
- For the RP in mental health work at TPCH - the following have been offered:
- Mentoring and training for mental health staff to use preventative aspects of Restorative Practice
- Restorative Circles at the SMHRU and Nundah community mental health team
- Opportunity for people who experience mental health issues to participate in Restorative Practice
- Workplace training of mental health and staff of other services, such as alcohol and drug, peer support, and services assisting people harmed and other stakeholders
- Establishment of a Restorative Ward at the Secure Mental Health Rehabilitation unit - TPCH
- Support for implementation of Restorative Practice by community based mental health staff at Nundah
- Restorative Practice meetings facilitated by the Adult Restorative Justice Conferencing Unit, Department of Justice and Attorney General, Queensland