On 25 July 2023, the NMHCCF and National Primary Health Network Mental Health Lived Experience Engagement Network (MHLEEN) launched three major projects in partnership:
1. Lived Experience Digital Library: a central repository of mental health consumer and carer leadership-related knowledge and initiatives. It strives to focus on work by those with lived experience but also includes work generated by non-government organisations and academic and clinical and / or biomedical documents to shed light on the role of systems and their readiness to recognise and provide support for those with lived experience to become leaders of change.
2. Lived Experience Governance Framework and Toolkit: created to guide identified priority organisations and jurisdictions when engaging with people with lived experience.
3. Lived Experience Training Scoping Paper: proposes a model of what is required for progressive, viable and sustainable lived experience (peer) workforces to develop and thrive in Australia. Recommendations in the scoping paper are aligned with the proposed model to support advocacy and actions that need to be taken to ensure the unique value and transformative impact of lived experience is realised.
The NMHCCF would like to thank MHLEEN as equal partners and contributors in the co-design of these three exciting pieces of work. Vicki McKenna from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Lived Experience Centre was also key to all three projects - and we thank her for her team's invaluable input. Additionally, we would like to thank Elida Meadows as the consultant who worked with us to develop the Digital Library, and LELAN who worked with us on the Governance Framework and Toolkit, and the Scoping paper. None of this would be possible without the incredible work from our partners.
Finally, to all the NMHCCF and MHLEEN members who gave their expertise as a part of the three Project Steering Groups who led these projects - thank you to each of you for your work, ideas, creativity and expertise.
To watch the launch webinar, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqpuJje8gmk
To watch the 'explainer' about the Lived Experience Digital Library, click here: https://youtu.be/K-31lI5niaI
