Evaluation of the NT MOS projects
Community networks
Up to Closing the Gap: Northern Territory
Table of contents
There is a need to establish understanding and support for the service and capacity with local services to enhance sustainability, and to maintain awareness of the service between visits. This will also go someway to establishing a 'service imprint' within community to redress the impact of the turnover of staff within the MOS Plus service itself.
There are a number of existing networks and forums in remote communities, and/or neighbouring towns. All communities consulted spoke of the importance of linking in with existing service network meetings, forums and stakeholder groups, to build upon what is already there.
This was considered to be a key strategy to foster community ownership and understanding of the service on the part of local organisations and service providers, and community leaders.
Examples of forums cited included, but were not limited to:
- Inter-agency meeting chaired by the Department of Justice - with a problem-solving action group focus. It involved key agencies including the school, clinic, Night Patrol
- Meetings chaired by the respective Councils, with organisations invited to present
- Initiatives such as:
- Family as First Teachers (early childhood focus, linking schools and clinics with families)
- Strong Women - Strong Babies Group (young pregnant women)
- Stronger Families - often lead and co-ordinated by Aboriginal health services
- Family as First Teachers (early childhood focus, linking schools and clinics with families)
- Child Abuse Taskforce (CAT) - case co-ordination meetings, involving police, DCF, SARCs
- Vulnerable Children and Families Committee
- BRISC Committee in the Barkly Region. An initiative co-ordinated by Red Cross Australia - a forum which co-ordinates effort, identifying gaps in funding, and which supports a committee comprising service managers and stakeholder group representatives. Membership of the Committee must be at least 50% Aboriginal with the aim of bringing the community together to enhance ownership of programs
- Family Violence & Sexual Assault Network meetings.
This was highlighted as both a necessary systemic approach, and as a practical response to a visiting outreach service. Some spoke of this in terms of the need to support and build upon the services and the community's own approaches to healing.
Stanley et al (2003) state that Aboriginal communities have the notion of 'healing' which described a dynamic and unfolding process of individual and collective problem solving26. Stakeholders interviewed spoke of the untapped resource of the Aboriginal people themselves and their skills. This was discussed in terms of the family's and community's own ways of dealing with trauma, and of the need for service workers to identify what is already happening, to best support those strategies.
Others discussed the potential to provide training and professional development to people and services in the local community.
Literature researched suggests a range of ways to appropriately engage the community, including: involving the community Elders and the wider Aboriginal community; and learning from the community both from their ways of doing things and from what they have seen other service providers do in the past - and to allow time for this (to do things in 'local time').27 It is further noted that there are many challenges for service providers in establishing and maintaining ongoing engagement with Aboriginal clients in remote communities, but also makes it clear that developing and maintaining respectful relationships is a key component of the effectiveness of a program.28
The non-case related MOS Plus services, such as community education and external professional development, offer potential to further enhance a collaborative approach with service providers and community members, and to support capacity building within community.
The other MOS Plus service element which does not directly involve casework, is community meetings. This is a descriptor for the activities and processes which foster community relationships and engagement, and encourage service referrals. At present this data set captures a broad range of interventions, and as such accounts for over 50% of MOS Projects services. Consideration needs to be given to reviewing this data definition, to enable more detailed information to be captured to reflect this significant area of activity, and to inform future service development and provision.
Non-case-related MOS Projects services are services which do not involve casework and include any of the following:
- Community meetings: significant contact with a community for discussion relating to MOS Projects activities that is not part of community education, professional development, or casework. This may specifically involve contact with one or more community members/representatives for the purpose of liaison or engagement.
- Community education: specific education or information sessions/programs delivered to community members in relation to management of, prevention of, or response to sexual assault or problem sexual behaviour.
- Professional development: Specific training or skills sessions for health, welfare, or justice agencies and their professionals. These include sessions delivered to incorporated bodies and committees, and non-government organisations that may employ family or community support workers.
Footnotes
26 Appendix D: Literature Review
27 Appendix D: Literature Review
28 Appendix D: Literature Review