Dear Here to Help, My son has been engaged with adolescent mental health services for some time and I'm so frustrated!! It took months to get a psychologist appointment and when we did, we could only get them during school hours, and he's already missing too much...
Dear Here to Help, I read a recent article about a Japanese woman who decided that she couldn’t look the other way. She pushed the Japanese government to take action, including through her petition. The article is here. Is this an isolated example of ordinary people pushing...
Thanks Antony Gaddie for featuring and introducing me in this month's newsletter! It's a privilege to be part of Symphony Seven. "From Surf Lifesaving to System Change: Get to Know Elaine Abery Get to know Elaine Abery—policy translator, community champion, and the kind of person you...
Dear Here to Help, During the past 2 school holidays, violence and bad behaviour has been increasing along the Fernleigh Track, particularly from kids on e-bikes. Over Easter, you may have seen the petition “a safer Fernleigh Track for all”, as well as extensive local media...
Dear Here to Help, All this rain has damaged my house structure. I lodged a claim immediately. The insurance company said they would send someone to “make safe”, then an assessor. The “make safe” team simply cleaned up some of the debris. I had to follow...
Dear Here to Help, I’m at my wit’s end. My dad has been in hospital for 6 weeks and nobody seems to have any idea what is happening! We feel like we have been living in a Fawlty Towers episode. Here are just some of the things...
I like to have my hands occupied. So, when I watch TV, I am usually doing something with my hands. One of these things is tapestry. In their final form, tapestries can look good as cushion-covers or wall adornments. When people ask me how long it takes...
Dear Here to Help, I am the CEO of a professional association. A constant frustration with government decisions is that they don’t talk to us – the profession – before they make their decisions. Government “consultation” is often after the fact and our input then doesn’t...
Dear Here to Help, We are a small industry association, with a limited budget, and have been talking about doing advocacy for some years now. However, we haven’t had any impact in advocacy to date and we feel advocacy-stagnant. We represent clinicians and one of our key...
Dear Here to Help, I’m so frustrated. I don’t know where to start! I guess the best way to explain is that so many large bureaucracies insist that we, ordinary unsophisticated people, abide by ridiculous rules they create, but those same bureaucracies refuse to follow their...