A cultural interpretation to the National Communications Charter

Posted 30th May 2019 in The Charter

There are many issues that as a community we find difficult to discuss, but through signing and embedding the National Communications Charter (The Charter) many are becoming more comfortable with talking about suicide and mental ill-health.

Last week the Life in Mind team were invited to speak at the Transcultural Mental Health Centre, looking at ways The Charter could be embedded and translated to support culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities.

Maria Cassiniti, Manager of the Transcultural Mental Health Centre NSW said The Charter has the ability to strengthen and support communities all across Australia as suicide is a national priority.

“We must empower communities to talk about suicide, in a culturally appropriate and safe manner and when we have these conversations we are open to a range of varying and shared perspectives to ensure we include all voices,” Ms Cassiniti said.

The Life in Mind event touched on the current implementation and activities around The Charter, which was followed by an interactive workshop, encouraging attendees to share knowledge and ideas about how The Charter could be used in their communities.

What’s next?

For The Charter to be embedded and operationalised by CALD communities, ongoing work and consultations need to be done.

From the event at the Transcultural Mental Health Centre it was evident, that further consultations and workshops need to occur to be able to capture the diverse cultural understandings of mental ill-health and suicidal behaviour.

Next steps involve consultations with cultural leaders in communities and representative organisations, to ensure Life in Mind capture the voices of diverse communities across Australia and how they respond to and are impacted by suicide and mental ill-health concepts.

Quote

Mental health and wellbeing cross language and cultural divides. Supporting individuals and families holistically and in partnership, we build stronger communities that flourish as a whole.

Maria Cassiniti, Manager of the Transcultural Mental Health Centre NSW

To find out more on the Transcultural Mental Health Centre,visit: https://www.lifeinmindaustralia.com.au/organisations/nsw-transcultural-mental-health-centre.

Access the National Communications Charter here.