Project Title:

Aboriginal Family Intervention Project

Project Summary:

The Aboriginal Family Intervention Project aims to train and support Family Mentors who will be able to assess needs, identify services required, negotiate documented care plans and provide ongoing monitoring and review of clients, their household members and extended family group. 

Project Objectives:

To reduce the rates of harm caused by drug use in urban Aboriginal households by training and supporting Aboriginal Mentors and their supporters to directly access those households hardest to reach by traditional health and welfare strategies.

To extend the range of support services with access to the most dysfunctional urban Aboriginal households by establishing a link between established services and household units.

To improve the response of household members to a range of health and welfare problems, including life threatening situations such as overdose and suicide ideation.

To support the physical and psychological health of those members of dysfunctional households who are taking some responsibility and attempting to assist other family members to deal with drug use and issues such as:

• Domestic Violence
• Financial Difficulties
• Physical and Mental Health Problems

To evaluate the program regularly and make adjustments periodically as indicated.

Project Strategies:

To conduct a series of workshops involving a wide range of families and individuals in the Adelaide metropolitan area, particularly targeting people who have expressed a desire to become involved in more proactive efforts to address the high rates of drug use, overdose and suicide amongst Aboriginal people. The aims of these workshops include:

• Educate community members about the proposed model of assistance,
• Identify and motivate people to become involved as mentors,
  
• Hear community concerns and adapt the model according to community feedback, and
• To tailor the training program to the needs of those indicating interest in becoming involved
  

Program Development

Develop a training program, based on the needs of the mentors, with the involvement of the Project Co-ordinator and ADAC staff. Included in the training program would be topics covering a basic understanding of the dynamics of drug addiction, effective interventions, avenues of referral, overdose prevention and response and intervention.

Project Status:

Current

Resources resulting from the project:

None to date.

Project Contacts:

Scott Wilson
Director
project="" officer Aboriginal Drug and Alcohol Council (SA) Inc.
53 King William Street
Kent Town, SA, 5068
Ph: +61 (08) 8362 0395
Email: adac@adac.org.au

This page last updated: November 2003