New Community of Practice bringing together best practice for AOD and mental health worker community

Health workers providing care in mental health and alcohol and other drug (AOD) settings are immensely compassionate and resilient people, who often face challenges outside of their control.

In the years since the first edition of the Guidelines on the management of co-occurring alcohol and other drug and mental health conditions in alcohol and other drug treatment settings (“the Guidelines”) were published in 2009, the evidence relating to the management and treatment of co-occurring mental health conditions in substance use settings has grown considerably. The Guidelines team have since published two further editions to bring them up to date with the most current evidence.

Now, they are expanding this support to alcohol and other drug, health and social service workers by providing an online community of practice where members can make connections, access resources, and engage and collaborate with other professionals. This online community, known as the Guidelines Community of Practice, is free for any professional in Australia who is employed, affiliated with, or works with people who use substances.

To learn more about the Guidelines Community of Practice, we spoke to Lead Researcher and Program Lead in Treatment and Translation in Complex Populations, Associate Professor Christina Marel.  

The idea for this Community of Practice really came about during another project Professor Katherine Mills and I worked on in 2017-18. At that time, we were funded by Central and Eastern Sydney Primary Health Network (CESPHN) to scope out the current practices and support needs of healthcare providers in the CESPHN area, in relation to addressing co-occurring alcohol and other drug (AOD) use and mental health conditions.

Through focus groups, interviews and surveys with people with lived and living experience, families, carers, loved ones, and healthcare providers, the project made several recommendations to improve the capacity of healthcare workers to respond to co-occurring AOD and mental health conditions. One of those recommendations was the development of an online community for workers in this space, which would allow for the sharing of evidence-based resources, networking, referrals, and so on. 

In 2023, what is now the Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, agreed to support the development of such a resource. The creation of the Community of Practice has really been shaped by the field, and we’ve had a lot of engagement since the site was made available just over a month ago. We held several focus groups in 2024 with AOD workers, people with lived and living experience, peer workers, service managers and other stakeholders to inform what the Community of Practice would look like, how it would work, and what people would find useful. We were also able to learn from colleagues in similar disciplines who generously shared their knowledge about online communities and forums.

This has been very much a team effort – Kathleen Palmer spearheaded and organised much of the development work last year, alongside Tanaya Narbey. They have done a fantastic job, with support from Alex Azzi and Erin Madden. More recently the team has expanded, with Madhu Senthil Kumar, Sally Boardman and Josie Schofield coming on board.

Communities of practice are ideal for connecting professionals from a range of disciplines within and across geographical areas, which is especially important for those working in rural and remote areas. They can also provide support to isolated workers, who are sometimes the only AOD worker in their service or geographical area.

Joining a national online professional network that is specific for those working in AOD and mental health means that workers can speak to, and collaborate with, other people in their discipline, and share and enhance best practice.

Ultimately, we’re aiming to positively impact the health outcomes of people who experience co-occurring AOD and mental health conditions. 

There are many barriers but from a workforce perspective, it can be difficult for AOD workers to work across services – sometimes it’s up to one worker within a service to advocate on behalf of their client, which means knowing who to contact in other services to coordinate their care. For workers who might be new or unfamiliar with their service’s (or client’s) geographical area, local network, or are more isolated for whatever reason – this can be a challenge.

It's also incredibly challenging to stay on top of the evidence, and AOD services are always in need of more resources.  

I would love to grow a community that is driven by its members and is a place where workers go to for support and advice to inform their practice.

Interested in joining the Guidelines Community of Practice or learning more? Check out their website today.