Social Work Practice: Mental Health

This subject focuses on social work practice in the mental health field and examines the variety of practice perspectives that inform mental health service delivery in Australia. Topics covered include the nature of mental illness and how consumers, their relatives and friends experience it, and contemporary approaches to treatment and recovery. Also, examined are the national and state policy context, how services are organised and the particular contributions of social work practitioners within the different settings that they operate. There is a focus on psychosocial understandings of mental health and the importance of lived experience perspectives. Students will develop skills in psychosocial and risk assessments, approaches to trauma-informed practice, and working with complex forms of distress. The elective will utilise guest speakers to provide practitioner and consumers perspectives.