Queensland Alliance for Mental Health

The Queensland Alliance for Mental Health (QAMH) launched the Psychosocial Peak Body (PPB) in March 2022.  Unlike other QAMH services which advocates for member organisations within the Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Sector, the PPB provides information directly to service users, training to boost inclusion and advocates directly to Government on issues affecting people experiencing psychosocial difficulties.

Through initial conversations with service users, it became evident that there was a need for people experiencing mental health challenges to be the primary decision makers when it came to managing their mental health challenges. They also need to share resources and service information to increase their own knowledge.

What is the wicked problem you explored?
The Wellbeing First Innovation Hub gave the PPB team an opportunity to more fully explore these issues and embrace human centred design thinking principles. From this it was determined that a sense of disconnection between a person needing assistance, service providers and wellbeing supports in the community was the the wicked problem that needed to be solved.

The design thinking and Wellbeing First Principles informed our necessary engagement and consultation with community and this in turn led to the development of our service model. The design of this model was developed within the limits pre-imposed upon us by our funding arrangements as an advocacy, information, and advisory service. The team discovered this limitation created both flexibility and innovation in our design options.

Human centred design thinking – what this looked like
Our team adapted the tools to suit our values / sector and make sure these reflected the ‘service’ focus and the work that we do. We utilised design thinking tools as part of our series of paid consultations with community in Queensland. The tools included Affinity mapping, idea generation, persona development, empathy mapping, Quick Six and the Wellbeing First Principles.

Through guiding community in the use of these tools we were able to engage their expertise to co-create and explore ideas and issues. We have applied idea generation and journey mapping to other projects including the Peer Work Scholarships Program. We continue to embed the Design Thinking Framework and Wellbeing First core beliefs and principles as part of our external consultations with sector stakeholders.

 How our project aligns to the Wellbeing First Principles

There is a need to build capacity so people with lived/ living experience of mental health challenges have opportunities / access to resources and training to advocate for themselves and their community. Therefore, the following three principles are applicable:

  • Provides opportunities for people to access help early in distress with their local community rather than waiting until they are in crisis.
  • Recognises we cannot empower or motivate people but provide opportunities for people to reclaim their power.
  • Specialises in providing coaching opportunities where people can experience, develop and sustain their autonomy, adaptability, and personal agency.

 What you have learnt

  • Consistent response around the theme of ‘connection’ across all consultations.
  • The ‘good will’ in the sector and willingness to get involved with the project.
  • We have a good subscriber base for our e-newsletter as many participated in the consultations or were consulted during the process.

Current project status and next steps
The knowledge and solutions developed through this ideation process led to the design of the online network meetings called ‘Architects of Change Network’ for people with lived/ living experiences of mental health challenges. A carers network has also been established. The purpose of the network is about ‘connection’, developing skills and sharing strategies for advocacy, along with linking up with peers and like-minded people. The Amplify newsletter was also the result of this exploration – amplifying the voices of those with lived/ living experiences. and is now distributed to over 200 recipients on a bi-monthly basis. We remain committed to ongoing consultation with and resourcing community. Our advocacy priorities all stem from this series of engagements, and the knowledge and ongoing community support we gained.

Contributed by Wellbeing First Innovation participants

Simon Clough Psychosocial Peak Coordinator
Lisa Greenaway, Project Lead- Brand and Communications

Queensland Alliance for Mental Health