Communications and advocacy update: 7 July
7 July 2022
Here’s an update on a few of the issues AMA Victoria is working on for members, including:
- Independent COVID review
- AIFS Sector Survey - Future-proofing Safety: COVID-19 and Family Violence in Victoria.
Independent COVID review
Members may be aware that an Independent Panel comprising former Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, Peter Shergold, Doherty Institute director, Sharon Lewin, and former head of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Peter Varghese, has been asked to review Australia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The panel’s objective is to provide a small number of practical, high-impact recommendations on how Australia can become a more resilient nation that is better prepared for future health crises.
MORE: COVID Review Submissions | e61; COVID Australia: Independent inquiry into how pandemic was handled (smh.com.au)
Both AMA Federal and AMA Victoria will be providing submissions to this review.
The terms of reference are extremely broad (essentially encompassing all aspects of the pandemic response), and submissions are limited to 1500 words.
If you would like to contribute to our response, please send your reflections through to Senior Policy Adviser, Lewis Horton, at LewisH@amavic.com.au by Sunday 24 July.
AIFS Sector Survey - Future-proofing Safety: COVID-19 and Family Violence in Victoria
The Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS) has launched its Future-proofing Safety: COVID-19 and Family Violence in Victoria Sector Survey.
The AIFS is partnering with Drummond Street Services’ Centre for Family Research and Evaluation and RMIT University’s Centre for Innovative Justice to examine service interactions for people who experienced and used family violence during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Survey will examine:
- Practitioners’ views on how client experiences of family violence changed during COVID-19.
- How client service needs changed during the COVID-19 pandemic and how services changed to meet these needs.
- The strengths and limitations of services to adapt to clients’ changing needs as well as practitioners’ views on key elements of disaster/crisis response plan for services.
Healthcare professionals working in Victorian organisations providing services to people who experienced or used family violence during the COVID-19 pandemic (April 2020 to present) in Victoria are invited to participate in this survey.