Public Sector Updates – South

Adult Community Mental Health Service (ACMHS)

The ANMF recently met with members from Adult Community Mental Health Service (ACMHS) sites in Southern Tasmania. This meeting was called, in relation to matters currently raised and being heard in the Tasmanian Industrial Commission (TIC). Informal correspondence was sent to Mental Health Services (MHS) management following this meeting to request members from all sites are sent a list of documents that had been inconsistently provided across the three services. This was to ensure equity in access to this material and opportunity for feedback was provided to all. A further follow up meeting has been set for Thursday 27 October 2022, where these matters will again be discussed, with all members fully informed. A further report back in the TIC is coming up in early November 2022.

Homeless Outreach Support Team (HOST)

The ANMF wrote to the Premier of Tasmania, Jeremy Rockliff MP, in relation to the closure of the Homeless Outreach Support Team (HOST). This was following two letters to the Mental Health Services (MHS) Executive Director of Nursing (EDON) without resolution to concerns raised. In the continuation of this case, the ANMF will also contact services that have been made responsible HOST patients/consumers to offer our support. The MHS EDON will be contacted to further around changes to the ACMHS Acute Care Team (ACT) and Continuing Care Team (CCT) Operational Service Models (OSMs) and Models of Care (MoC) that will now need to consider and reflect the addition of homeless patients/consumers. Further details of the letter sent to the Premier will be communicated via a newsflash flyer.

Child Health and Parenting Service (CHaPS) South

The ANMF has written to CHaPS South management to raise a Step 1 grievance as endorsed by members at the member meeting on Monday 12 September 2022. Issues raised include, but not limited to: workloads, lack of recruitment and retention, gaps in service delivery, lack of opportunity to apply for Grade 4, inability to hold face to face sessions with clients for assessments, service reduction and lack of a promised new model of care.

If there is no satisfactory outcome from this letter by close of business on Wednesday 12 October 2022, a member meeting will be scheduled (date to be confirmed) for member endorsement to raise it to a Step 2 grievance, bringing the South into line with the North and North West grievances before the Specialist Panel meeting which has been rescheduled to Monday 24 October 2022 from 1430-1600hrs.

Bruny Island Community Health Centre (BICHC)

The ANMF has submitted a letter to THS on behalf of members that strongly opposes the Change Proposal put out for discussion. We are awaiting a response.

Glamorgan-Spring Bay Community Nursing

The ANMF met with members at Sorell on Wednesday 5 October 2022. Members have concerns with workloads that they have escalated to management. We will await some response to member’s concerns and visit members again later this month to further discuss solutions. Members nominated a new Rep during our meeting.

Updates correct as at 13 October 2022.
Authorised by Emily Shepherd, ANMF Tasmanian Branch Secretary