Looking Ahead: How Social Workers are Shaping the Future of Mental Health

Looking Ahead: How Social Workers are Shaping the Future of Mental Health

On 23 September, we brought together the local social work community for a special panel exploring the future of mental health. Our guests, including Emma Shearer from Headspace, social worker and education consultant Rachel Higginson, and Laura Fletcher from Grand Pacific Health, shared powerful insights on prevention, early intervention, and how social workers are helping to build strong, connected communities. In this episode, you’ll hear what’s working, what’s needed, and how we can support one another to shape a future where mental health care is earlier, more accessible, and built to last. Don’t miss the Q&A section, it’s packed with practical reflections and real-world wisdom.

National Disability Insurance Scheme: what we are doing to support you

In this episode, we bring you highlights from our 2 September 2025 webinar, National Disability Insurance Scheme, what we are doing to support you, featuring AASW leaders and the AASW National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) Working Group. Tune in as we explore: * Recent advocacy with the NDIA and government * Evidence on the effectiveness of social workers in disability and the NDIS * AASW’s campaign to raise awareness of social workers in the NDIS * New resources currently in development

Pushing for change: national registration

In this episode, Matt Loads shares some information from the AASW Webinar: Pushing for Change: National Registration from 14 May 2025. Dominic Szeker, Senior Policy Officer, AASW shares an overview of how registration for social workers fits into the broader regulatory context.Jim Arneman, ACT Ambulance Service, takes us through a case study of how paramedics were able to become a nationally registered profession in 2018.

Health through the widest lens, Part 2: Kim Hobbs and award winning teamwork

Last month we brought you a repeat of our earlier conversation with Rosalie Pockett AM.  Just as we were planning to re-broadcast the follow up episode with her research partner, Kim Hobbs, Kim was named Allied Health professional of 2023 by Western Sydney, LHD.  When you listen to this conversation with her, you’ll understand why. Congratulations Kim! Kim’s award: https://thepulse.org.au/2023/11/23/since-1994-social-worker-kim-hobbs-has-been-dedicated-to-westmead-hospitals-gyaecological-cancer-patients-and-their-families/ Special Issue Australian Social Work Social Work and Cancer. Editorial by Rosalie Pockett and Kim Hobbs   Free Access.  https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0312407X.2021.1988664?src= AASW Members: Australian Social Work Special Issue Social Work and Cancer Volume 75, Issue 2, 2022. https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rasw20/current   Prof Irwin Epstein on Clinical Data Mining:  https://www.routledge.com/Clinical-Data-Mining-in-Practice-Based-Research-Social-Work-in-Hospital/Epstein-Blumenfield/p/book/9780789017093 Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners The Australian Association of Social Workers respectfully acknowledges the past and present traditional owners and ongoing custodians of the lands on which this podcast is being recorded.  We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, their ancestors and their families, and to the Elders of other communities who may be listening.

Social Workers Improving Healthcare: Part 1 Rosalie Pockett AM and Health Inequity

This month we bring you an encore release of our conversation with Rosalie Pocket AM who has spent years overturning the inequities and injustices built into our health system.  In this conversation, Rosalie describes her abiding interests in the social and community based factors that influence people’s health.  Next month we will follow this up with her research partner, Kim Hobbs, who will describe how to broaden the partnerships that research those factors  If you want to follow up this conversation and hear about the newest practice frameworks in healthcare, learn about effective advocacy for the health sector, or build your professional networks, join us at the AASW’s Online Health Symposium  “Practice Innovations, Challenges and Leadership  Register here! Mentioned in this Episode Dr Rosalie Pockett AM University of Sydney  https://fdp.edsw.usyd.edu.au/users/197 Social Work Health Inequalities Network SWHIN  https://blogs.coventry.ac.uk/swhin/swhin/= Mt Sinai Hospital Social Work Department New York – Social Work Leadership Enhancement Program  https://www.mountsinai.org/locations/mount-sinai/about/health-professionals/social-work-services/professional-development https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00981389.2018.1439134?journalCode=wshc20 Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners The Australian Association of Social Workers respectfully acknowledges the past and present traditional owners and ongoing custodians of the lands on which this podcast is being recorded.  We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, their ancestors and their families, and to the Elders of other communities who may be listening.