No wrong door - Alpine Health and Victoria Police partnering in family violence support
9 December 2020
Left to Right: Lisa Neville, SHRFV Project Officer Alpine Health, Sam Burke - Mt Beauty Victoria Police, Damien Peppler - Detective Senior Sergeant Wangaratta & Wodonga, Victoria Police, Romina McEwin - Bright ,Victoria Police, Nick Shaw, CEO Alpine Health.
Victoria Police and Alpine Health are working together to strengthen family violence support in the Alpine communities. Alpine Health and Victoria Police are strong partners and community members can confidently approach either organisation for assistance and support.
Christmas and New Year can be tough - this year might be tougher since many people have been under employed or unemployed due to COVID 19. Stressors such as alcohol, and unemployment can contribute to behaviours that lead to family violence becoming more serious and potentially more dangerous so it is very important to call for help. In an emergency, call 000.
Family violence is not limited to physical or sexual abuse, it includes emotional abuse and any threatening, coercive or controlling behaviour. Family violence directly affects one in five Victorian women over the course of their lifetime. It is the leading contributor to preventable death, disability and illness in Victorian women aged 15 to 44 years. Additional layers of discrimination and complexity exists for people who have a disability, are from LGBTIQ community, identify as Aboriginal or are older members of our community.
As a community member, you have the power to contribute to a community characterised by respect and dignity, where all members are treated equally and where we all can live without fear of harm and violence. We ask the community to ‘call out’ sexist and/or disrespectful language or behaviour, either in the moment or following an incident.
#RespectWomen and #Callitout
How to seek help through Alpine Health
- Staff at Alpine Health have been trained to recognise the indicators and signs of family violence and as an organisation, introduced family violence screening in October 2018. Screening includes asking our patients, residents, clients and staff “Are you safe at home? We can assist you with accessing the necessary supports and help you need”.
- Alpine Health are not family violence experts, but we understand how to recognise the signs, to talk about family violence and where to refer you through your experience of family violence. We are normalising the discussion and conversations around family violence and provide a safe haven for community.
If you or someone you know is experiencing family violence, help is available.
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More information:
Lisa Neville | CTC Alpine Coordinator / SHRFV Project Officer
[email protected] | 03 5755 0132