Final Report Strong Fathers Strong Families Programme Descriptive Analysis

An organisation runs this health screening bus which is funded by NSW Health. It checksblood glucose levels and cholesterol. This bus has come to our events and is an exampleof an informal partnership.As noted in 3.2.2, most SFSF organisations invited partner organisations to run workshops or educationsessions at camps and other events. Many SFSF staff commented that they were not trained counsellorsand did not feel comfortable advising SFSF participants on sensitive issues such as suicide and mentalhealth. Workshops or education sessions run by partner organisations provided SFSF participants withadvice on where they could go for support and assistance, thereby relieving pressures on SFSF staff whoare often seen as the first port of call.Interestingly, some organisations had cultivated partnerships with the Police and governmentdepartments (eg Department of the Environment, National Parks and Wildlife). These partnerships wereseen as particularly positive because they helped break down barriers between Aboriginal and TorresStrait Islander men and the Police, and in one case provided SFSF participants with employmentopportunities:The relationship with Department of Environment and SA Water has helped some men intoemployment.I would go so far as to say that crime by Aboriginal youth in [location] is now extremely lowbecause of young people’s involvement with the Police – the crime rate is minimisedbecause of the SFSF programme. Students will go and have a yarn with the Police now.While partner organisations regularly contributed to SFSF events, SFSF organisations also contributed toevents hosted by partner organisations. For example, one SFSF organisation contributed to a communityNAIDOC event by setting up a health tent and paying for the hire of a marquee.In addition, several SFSF staff said they ran or attended community forums or meetings where they hadan opportunity to promote the SFSF programme and develop relationships with key communityorganisations. One organisation noted tapping into an existing Aboriginal Coalition for guidance andadvice on aspects of the programme:The Aboriginal Coalition is a reference point to inform the decisions we make. The Coalitioncomprises a Medicare Local rep, a GP rep, Aboriginal elders, an Aboriginal project workerfrom City Council, and a representative from the Aboriginal Health Unit at the Hospital.However, this same organisation had also participated in a working group comprised of key peopleworking in the area of men’s health. This group fell apart reportedly because of community tensions andconflicts. Apart from the Aboriginal Coalition which provided high-level guidance and support, the site nowhas few partnerships, and is struggling to recruit the target audience (fathers) into the programme.While most organisations found having partnerships with other community organisations invaluable, therewas a view that the focus should be on engaging participants rather than developing partnerships. This,however, appears to be a circular argument because the consultations suggest that strong and effectivepartnerships can assist with engaging and recruiting participants.3.2.7 REPORTING TO THE DEPARTMENTOverall, most sites were satisfied with the action plans and progress reports prepared for the Departmentof Health, with many saying that action plans provided a useful framework to guide activities, andprogress reports helped sites ensure they remained on track. In this sense, the documents were seen asmore beneficial for planning as opposed to reporting:I’m happy with the reporting process so far. For me it’s working and it has made usaccountable and I think it is a good reflective exercise. I can see the goals and objectivesand see we are still not targeting the younger fathers and so we need to change tack.They keep us on task and are good for accountability.I’m happy with reporting – can’t think of ways they could be improved.URBISFINAL REPORT RESEARCH FINDINGS 17