Integrated Client Services Delivery Program for the Family Courts of Australia

The Family Law Courts’ (comprising the Family Court of Australia and the Federal Magistrates Court of Australia) Integrated Client Service Delivery Program aims to improve people’s access to mental health services by ensuring the courts’ systems and processes are as supportive as possible.
 
The Courts recognise that separation and divorce contribute to three-fold and four-fold increases in suicide rates for men and women respectively. Overall, men remain at the highest risk of suicide accounting for almost 80 per cent of all suicide deaths in Australia. People who access the court system tend to experience distressing life events such as family separation, which often leads to an increased risk suicide.The program also assists court staff to support the mental health and emotional wellbeing of clients by promoting awareness of mental health patient's needs, providing skills in risk assessment and providing resources.

The project has attracted national and international interest and recognition. The following awards have been received:

• 2008 Achievement Award - Australia and New Zealand Mental Health Service Achievement Awards
• 2007 Honourable Mention - LIving Is for Everyone (LIFE) Awards, public sector category. This is an award under the National Suicide Prevention Strategy.  

Aims

The Integrated Client Service Delivery Program aims to:

• provide clients with access to the resources, counselling and support they need to look after their mental health and overall wellbeing;
• ensure clients, particularly those who may be mentally ill or distressed, are treated with respect and without judgment by staff; and
• ensure clients receive services tailored to their particular needs, with particular attention paid to the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse clients and clients with fears for their safety.

Duration

The Courts commenced a pilot program of the Mental Health Support Project in 2004. At the time the pilot was completed, other relevant client service initiatives were also reaching their conclusion. The learnings from all these initiatives were gathered together to form the Integrated Client Service Delivery Program, which commenced in 2006. It was jointly funded under an agreement between the Courts and the Department of Health and Ageing’s National Suicide Prevention Strategy. The program was subsequently rolled out nationally to all the Court’s registries.

Activities

• Staff mental health training.
• Regular mental health updates from project partners.
• Comprehensive referrals to (external) mental health organisations for services such as counselling, dispute resolution, group programs, children’s groups and parenting information sessions.
• Development and provision of help-seeking literature i.e. brochures covering mental health risks and referral.

Evaluation

The evaluation component of the program is incredibly important. The evaluation includes a 360 degree feedback review, with evaluators speaking to:

• people currently accessing the court system
• internal staff e.g. court registrars and judges
• external partners e.g. Centacare

The evaluators also conduct an environmental scan e.g. assessing help-seeking behaviour in the broader community.

Lessons learned

• Providing staff with basic mental health training increases the overall morale of the organisation.
• De-stigmatising mental illness improves (help-seeking) work performance and reduces workplace stress.
• Be prepared for people throughout the organisation to not fully understand a new national program when it is first implemented.
• Continue to undertake internal awareness strategies across the organisation, even after the initial program launch. This awareness raising includes highlighting judges and other senior members of the organisation involvement, as their presence facilitates the program’s success.
• Evaluation costs should be budgeted for when planning a project.  

Project partners

Project partners are key to the success of the courts program. These include a wide variety of other mental health providers across Australia such as:

• service providers, for example Centacare and Anglicare; 
• crisis lines, for example Mensline Australia and Lifeline;
• general practitioners;
• psychologists; and 
• psychiatrists.

Family Law Courts partner testimonial
Christine Hodges, of Centacare Brisbane, says: ‘A key benefit of the Family Courts coordinated approach is our clients experience less distress and maintain a greater sense of dignity. When people come to us from a referral by Family Courts, it is easier for them to consider services such as counselling or parental education sessions.’

More Information

For a copy of the final report please click here.