About Our Services

Barwon Health Mental Health, Alcohol and Drugs Services care team

Our care team is multidisciplinary and trained in a range of disciplines including the following roles:

Occupational therapists have specialist training in the assessment and treatment of functional skills, thus promoting health and wellbeing by enabling people to participate in activities of daily living.

Psychiatric nurses specialise in the nursing care and treatment of people with a mental illness, with a focus on the person's mental health.

Psychiatrists are registered medical practitioners who have undertaken specialised training in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of mental illness.

Clinical psychologists provide specialist assessment and treatment of mental health and/or substance use and addiction with the aim of supporting a person’s mental health and wellbeing.

Social workers provide counselling and advocacy including negotiating access to social and community supports, in particular housing and finances.

Consumer and carer peer workers are people with a lived experience of mental health or substance use challenges, who share a journey of recovery, growth and transformation, with a consumer of our service. A peer worker and peer (consumer) support each other as equals, supporting each other to grow beyond what has happened to them and find a new sense of self. Consumer and carer peer workers are part of a growing workforce at Barwon Health.

Harm reduction workers – Harm reduction workers come from a range of backgrounds, including living/lived experience of substance use. They provide a range of services including safer injecting advice, overdose education and naloxone training, education about the safer use of substances and referral to other services when required/requested. The harm reduction team also provides community education including overdose, needle syringe programs and stigma and discrimination along with community events raising awareness of issues such as overdose, HIV, hepatitis C and the rights of people that use drugs. 

Consultant psychiatrists are registered, qualified senior medical practitioners who have undertaken further extensive specialised training in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of mental illness.

Psychiatric registrars are registered, qualified medical practitioners training to become psychiatrists, working under the supervision of the Consultant Psychiatrist. Registrars are usually required to move locations every six months in order to complete their training. As a result, your treating doctor may change. We try to make the transition process as smooth as possible.

Junior medical staff have recently graduated and not yet commenced formal specialist training.

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Mental Health, Drugs and Alcohol Services leadership team

Our leadership team consists of the following staff: 

Clinical Director and Co-director work in partnership providing overall leadership and accountability for the provision and coordination of high-quality clinical services. The director of clinical services is also the Authorised Psychiatrist under the Mental Health Act 2014 and can delegate duties, functions, and powers under the Mental Health Act to consultant psychiatrists.

Consultant psychiatrists, program managers, and team leaders provide clinical and operational leadership to the programs and manage the day-to-day running of the program.

Discipline seniors (nursing, occupational therapy, clinical psychology, social work) provide professional discipline leadership, development, and supervision of the workforce.

Consumer consultants and carer consultants are staff members with a lived experience of a mental illness or of caring for a family member with a mental illness.

Administration officers complete a variety of office duties, including greeting you at Reception and providing clerical support to staff.

There are also a number of senior staff who provide targeted support and specialist input to clinical services, such as mental health tribunal coordinator, forensic clinical specialist, SUMITT (alcohol and other drug workers), clozapine coordinators, quality manager, and health information manager.