Whose Care? Our Care! Launches with a National State of Play Staff Survey

A new MRFF funded project led by the ALIVE National Centre and partners is launching a national “state of play” survey to assess how structural inequalities are impacting wellbeing.

The MRFF funded Whose Care? Our Care! (MRF2032333; 2025-2030) project, conducted through the ALIVE National Centre, is taking a whole-of-community view of all new mental health, wellbeing and suicide prevention services being delivered by our project partners:

• Neami National
• Stride
• Roses in the Ocean
• Monash Health
• Children’s Ground

Data collection commenced in 2025 and we are now rolling out a “State of Play” staff survey across our partner services nationally to understand who is delivering care across the included service models. This survey will help build an understanding of their service models, approaches and how they are supporting their communities. It will also guide our efforts towards more equitable mental healthcare.

The survey will look at services across Medicare Mental Health Centres, Mental Health Hubs (adults and kids), Safe Spaces and Safe Havens, Community Led Safe Spaces, Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals as well as a First Nations led and governed model delivered by Children’s Ground.

Whose Care? Our Care! is co-led by Prof Victoria Palmer (Co-Design and Primary Care Mental Health), Prof Michelle Banfield (Lived-Experience Research) and Prof Sandra Eades (Noongar) (Priority Populations, Indigenous Health) with a national team of researchers.  The project seeks to understand how structural inequalities are impacting wellbeing across communities and how services are creating equity and relational outcomes in care.  The longer term aim is to develop collective strategies to address these structural inequalities across our partnered communities.

For more information about the Whose Care? Our Care! project or the State of Play Survey, contact whose-careproject@unimelb.edu.au.