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The vital role of carers

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Pam Kiriakidis
Pam Kiriakidis
Pam Kiriakidis has worked as a journalist at the North Central Review since 2022, with a particular focus on the City of Whittlesea and stories for the Whittlesea Review. She graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Media and Communications majoring in journalism and focuses on politics, community, and health with the occasional niche sports story finding its way in front of her.

Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth made a stop at Wallan’s FamilyCare last Thursday after opening public consultation on the draft National Carer Strategy.

FamilyCare Wallan welcomed Ms Rishworth at their office, where she gained firsthand insight into the services offered through the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) provider.

Covering local government areas, including Mitchell Shire, Murrindindi Shire, and Strathbogie Shire, FamilyCare provides a range of services that helps families and individuals with parenting, carer support, men’s counselling, and other related services.

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FamilyCare Wallan Manager of Child and Family Services Naomi Mazzone and Men and Family Practitioner Jason Gatt provided an overview, acknowledging the impact their programs have on families and individuals.

Ms Rishworth said the visit provided an opportunity to hear about the vital role FamilyCare plays in supporting the community.

“It’s really good to hear FamilyCare run a program specifically that the Department of Social Services fund, we couldn’t do it without them,” she said.

“It was really interesting to hear the work that they were doing. What we hear is once you engage these men, they will open up and have a conversation, so that was a really powerful message.

“The other work that they do is really supporting parents, [to] get the confidence to be great parents, to build their capacity. [It] is also really important as well.”

Member for McEwen Rob Mitchell was also involved in the discussion, noting that having the Minister present provided insight into the challenges faced in the Mitchell Shire.

“FamilyCare’s been an organisation that the community’s relied on for a long, long time,” he said.

“They can rely on it, they know that it works, and they know it’s been helpful.

“But with the growth that we face, the challenges in new emerging communities, things are difficult, and we have, over the past decade, been starved of services and the ability to have the sorts of support that is needed in place for carers and for the wider community.”

Ms Mazzone expressed it was time to showcase FamilyCare’s work and underscore the vital support they offered to the community.

“It’s been a great opportunity to showcase the local work that we provide, and particularly to be able to talk about the work we do with engaging men and fathers, and their role that they play in parenting, particularly from early on,” she said.

On top of the visit, Ms Rishworth announced the launch of the public consultation for the draft of the National Carer Strategy.

The new strategy will support better decision-making for policies that affect carers.

The draft strategy has been guided by the National Carer Strategy Advisory Committee, and informed by public consultations in all states and territories in metropolitan, regional, and remote locations, as well as online, and through a public submission process.

While the former Gillard Government began the work in 2011, Ms Rishworth said there had not been a national carer strategy since 2015.

“What we really heard from carers, particularly as things like the NDIS and aged care policies have come in, [is that] they have not felt necessarily as visible,” she said.

“It was really important to recognise how we lift up the visibility of carers, but also make sure that their needs are being met.

“So who we’re talking about is the three million unpaid carers that might care for a family member, a sibling, [and] a friend, that goes above and beyond sort of what would be ordinary caring.

“They do an amazing job, and often take a sacrifice as a result, so what the National Carer Strategy is, is how we can ensure the voice of carers is across all government departments.”

Ms Rishworth encouraged residents to engage in the consultation.

Public consultation on the draft strategy is now open on the DSS Engage website and will close November 3, 2024.

For more information, visit www.engage.dss.gov.au/national-carer-strategy.

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