Are you a health professional in the Illawarra Shoalhaven with an interest in mental health and suicide prevention?

Apply for a funded placement at Recovery Camp!

The Illawarra Shoalhaven Suicide Prevention Collaborative is funding 10 local health professionals to attend Recovery Camp, an evidence-based program for health professionals and people with lived experience of mental illness.

Recovery Camp runs for 5 days/4 nights. The funded placements cover the full cost of the camp as well as reimbursement for your time.

How does it work?

Recovery Camp is a great professional development opportunity for health professionals to work directly with people experiencing a mental illness, in a holistic, recovery-oriented program. It is evidence-based and focuses on nurturing people’s strengths.

Chris, a University of Wollongong nursing student who attended the camp in 2018, said, "Throughout the camp I was challenged by my facilitator to communicate with volunteers, which improved my ability to connect with individuals with a lived experience of mental illness. This encouragement from my facilitator enabled me to develop my skills in empathetic listening."

During the program, health professionals, students and people with a mental illness spend a week together at an outdoor recreation camp. Attendees participate in structured activities that involve problem-solving and teamwork, such as orienteering, rock climbing, archery and high-ropes courses.

One person with a lived experience of mental illness said about last year's camp: "I learnt to fully trust without fear or judgement. I felt stronger leaving, I learnt to have faith, and on the last day I was able to be roped on to the giant swing … I felt I achieved something that day, and having everyone cheer me on, I have never felt so good about myself.”

The upcoming dates for Recovery Camps in NSW are:

2019

9th - 13th December

2020

20^th – 24^th January

11^th – 15^th May

27^th – 31^st July

14^th – 18^th December

Apply now!

Don’t miss out on this valuable learning experience!

If you’re a health professional working in the Illawarra Shoalhaven region, or managing a number of staff in the region, you can apply via Expression of Interest (EOI).

Simply submit your answers to the following questions via email to suicideprevention@coordinare.org.au.

1. What do you hope to gain from Recovery Camp?
2. How do you expect this will benefit your workplace?
3. How do you plan to champion a recovery-oriented approach in your workplace?
4. Do you have support from your manager to attend?

For more information, go http://recoverycamp.com.au.