Integrated client service delivery, featuring mental health support ...

23The Family Law Courts’ Integrated Client Service Delivery ProgramThe mental health responsive protocol for possible mental illness requiresstaff to try and calm the person down, determine what type of referralthey may need, warm link the client (if they agree) and then take the actionrecommended by the mental health professional.“Having calmed the client, I then informed the [judicial officer’s] associate ofthe client’s state of mind and advised that I would seek help for her. It was welland truly after 5pm, I took the client and her support people into the registrywhere I then explained to the client what I could do to assist her if she agreed.“With her agreement I then contacted the Adelaide Mental Health Crisis teamand spoke with the triage nurse who conducted an over the phone assessmentwith the client and then advised me that the client required hospitalisation.“With the assistance of the client’s support people we were able to organisetransport from the Registry and admit the client to the District Hospital’smental health unit.“I also arranged for her dog to be cared for – this was an issue of concern forthe client as she lives alone.”Incident report from the Adelaide RegistryProgram observationsPreconceived beliefs of staff about suicide and mental illness were difficult to shiftand required a prolonged and ongoing effort. Approaches that helped bring abouta shift in attitude included:nnnnnbeing clear that the protocols were developed by leading expertsemphasising that the steps in the protocols were good practice, endorsed bythe Courts and mental health support agencies, and that other approacheswere not good practicerunning a two-day mental health training module to start to change attitudeshearing directly from crisis support teams that deal with suicide threats on adaily basis, with Courts staff being able to ask questions of them, andintegrating the approach set out in the protocols into staff performancemanagement tools.