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October 2019

Update from our CEO

Welcome to Boab Banter!  Our way of informing you of our good work and inviting you to be more involved in what we do.
While 2019 has seen many changes within Boab Health, frontline staff remain true to the task and are dutifully continuing to deliver valuable services across the Kimberley region.  Such is the depth of the team at Boab Health, and the quality of the systems and supports.
 
With new management comes new ideas, and many of you have contributed to those ideas through the various surveys we disseminated during the year.  Thanks to those who provided feedback.  We have certainly listened and are incorporating many of your ideas into our Strategic Plan 2020-25, due to be released towards the end of this year.
 
Boab Health Services is well regarded both in the Kimberley region and in the State.  Our services, often in challenging circumstances, are high-quality and often life-changing.  It is no wonder other providers in the area are increasingly looking to Boab Health for collaboration and support.
 
Our staff are now actively supporting other organisation employees in the Kimberley with clinical supervision (mental health) and Employee Assistance Programs (EAP).  It’s great to know the depth of talent in our organisation is now at a position where we can provide another level of support to the Kimberley workforce.  We are seeing Boab Health in a regional stewardship role and taking some pressure off government services as the default provider.
 
Enjoy reading this edition of Boab Banter and catching up on just some of what we do.  With rainfall now recorded in the region and the first signs of the changing of seasons, I wish you well.  Until the next edition!

Matt Burrows | CEO

Virtual Multidisciplinary Foot Ulcer Clinic rolled out for Kimberley people

A new initiative between Royal Perth Hospital, Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Service and Boab Health Services using new laser technology, aims to reduce the alarming rates of lower limb amputations across the Kimberely.  Read more here.

Donations help treat diabetic foot ulcers across the Kimberley

For two years in a row, the Rotary Club of Hawthorn has supported Kimberley residents to reduce the risk of diabetic foot-related complications by donating funds to provide specialised Diabetic Foot Offloading Kits to hospitals and remote health clinics across the Kimberley; and more recently Foot Care Action packs for use at home by people living with diabetes.  Read more here.
 


Our Art for Wellbeing Exhibitions are on again in Broome and Kununurra during Mental Health Week 2019.

You are invited to visit the free exhibitions and enjoy a number of interactive activities to support mental wellbeing.

Broome
Boulevard Shopping Centre
9 am to 3 pm, 8 - 10 October 2019
Official exhibition closing event:  10 October 3 pm to 6 pm
Schedule of activities - Broome

Kununurra 
Coolibah Health Centre
8 am to 4 pm,  8 - 10 October 2019
Official exhibition opening event:  8 October, 3 pm to 5 pm
Schedule of events - Kununurra

For more information visit our What's On page.
Supporting families with Circle of Security

At times all parents and carers can feel lost or frustrated about what our children might need from us. Imagine what it might feel like if you were able to make sense of what your child was really asking from you. The Circle of Security® Parenting™ program is based on decades of research about how secure parent-child relationships can be supported and strengthened.

Our Mental Health Professional Carolyn Stevens is a trained facilitator to work with parents, carers and those working with families to help them to:

  • understand children's emotional world by learning to read emotional needs
  • support their child’s ability to successfully manage emotions
  • enhance the development of their child's self-esteem
  • honour the innate wisdom and desire for children to be secure
Carolyn is passionate about the Circle of Security Parenting Program because it helps parents and caregivers engage with their children in a secure, supportive and non-prescriptive manner.

During these workshops, participants learn to:

  • shift caregiver focus from behaviour management to enhancing the quality of the relationship
  • build self-reflection in caregivers
  • help caregivers manage their own emotions
For more information on this program contact Carolyn Stevens on 9168 2560 or  by emailing mhek5@boabhealth.com.au

Source:  Circle of Security

Get on Track -  Healthy Workplace Initiative

As part of our healthy workplace action plan, we recently ran an 8-week pedometer challenge using the Get on Track online physical activity tracker.

The Get on Track challenge is based on the latest behaviour change research, which supports consistent, small changes for long term health outcomes.

Sixteen staff competed in the challenge in teams of four and together covered an astounding 6,903.56 km.

Every step or exercise session moved staff along a virtual version of the Warlu Way Trail from Coral Bay to Broome, with staff tracking all forms of physical activity including walking, running, cycling, yoga, gym sessions and Tai Chi just to name a few!

As well as daily physical activity, participants were also encouraged to track their fruit and vegetable intake to move further along the track.  Some staff became quite competitive towards the final leg of the competition with only a few hundred kilometres between the four teams.

Congratulations to our winning team Footloose Four, and our top individual stepper Kimberley Fairy (Stacey) who covered an astonishing 764.76 km!

For more information please visit Get on Track.

What is art therapy?

Art therapy is a field of therapeutic practice and holistic healing that values the client as the expert of their lived experience.

Art therapy is a type of psychological support that aims to explore emotions and feelings via art materials, images and other forms.  Art therapy focuses on the creative process of art-making, rather than the end product created within the therapeutic encounter.

The ability of art-making to offer a form of communication other than verbal creates a sense of safety and often a deeper exploration of subconscious processes which in turn leads to increased self-awareness, a more integrated sense of self and personal growth.

Aboriginal people have been using art practices as a healing technique since time immemorial.  Therefore, art therapy is an important and valuable therapeutic approach to use with Aboriginal clients.

Boab Health’s Stacey Larke has a Masters in Art Therapy.  Stacey has been collaborating with various organisations to deliver art therapy groups in Kununurra. One such program is ArtHeal.  Over the past two years, Stacey has supported Waringarri Aboriginal Arts to deliver ‘ArtHeal’. ArtHeal is a grassroots program based on an experiential healing model combining art, culture and therapeutic counselling practice. Stacey facilitates this monthly program in collaboration with Traditional Owner and Gallery Support Worker Dora Griffiths. 

For any further information about art therapy or ArtHeal please contact Stacey Larke on 9168 2560.

Upcoming Events

8 - 10 October         Art for Wellbeing Community Exhibitions 

21 October              Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Course 

23 - 24 October       Kimberley Maternal, Child & School Workshop
 
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Copyright © 2019 Boab Health Services Pty Ltd, All rights reserved.

Our Head Office address is:
5 / 20 Hamersley St Broome  WA  6725


t:  08 9192 7888  f:  08 9192 7999  e:  reception@boabhealth.com.au
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Boab Health Services · PO Box 1548 · Broome, WA 6743 · Australia

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