2013 Inaugural Group Award
This group of 2011 GLF Program graduates worked with the not-for-profit organisation Children of Mentally Ill Consumers (COMIC). COMIC’s role is to advocate for, and raise awareness of, the needs of children who have a parent with a mental illness.
Global research highlights the benefits of considering and addressing the needs of children in the treatment regime of the parent. Those benefits include improved medical outcomes for the parent, a reduction in the negative impacts for the children, and a greater sense of family cohesion.
The team realised that one simple way of addressing these needs would be to provide a space within the hospital for children and parents to spend time together in a safe, family-friendly environment. What was less simple, was raising the $65,000 to cover the cost of this! With the generous support of Variety Club of SA, Macquarie, and other sponsors and suppliers, the first COMIC Space opened at the Lyell McEwin Hospital at the end of September 2012.
Team members: Martin Cooper, Brenda Dilettoso, Karen Fullagar, Lois McKellar, Rebecca Murrie and Jed Richards
