BUSHkids Annual Report | 2023-24

Annual Report • 2023–24

Capacity building is fundamental to BUSHkids: our clinicians can work one-on- one and build the capacity of parents to support their children’s development, but the more people in the community who can also provide this support, the more children will thrive across Queensland. Susan Harrison BUSHkids Director Clinical Services and Strategy

Megan is envisaging — and developing – a brighter future … view at ► https://t.ly/2pA9t Redefining boundaries and expanding connections based on mutual support is key to the new Envisage program: digital readers may click to watch the video; print edition readers can type the short link into a browser or scan the QR code to see BUSHkids 2024 videos.

Partnerships, research, and evidence-based practice

UQ and ACU research To improve clinical goal-setting practices, BUSHkids supported joint PhD research by The University of Queensland (UQ) and Australian Catholic University (ACU) identifying child and family goals in a community allied health service, and examining how these goals corresponded to the domains of the International Classification of Functioning . Titled “I Can Set MyGOALS” , the study also evaluated the alignment of documented goal-setting practices with child-centred and family-centred practice principles. The study has been submitted for evaluation and publication in Disability and Rehabilitation . PACT Online Another partnership is with UQ’s Child Health Research Centre , recruiting families for the Parenting Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (PACT) Online Study . This randomised trial provides free parenting support to families with children aged 0–10 years who have been diagnosed with neurodevelopmental disabilities — including autism, cerebral palsy, Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) — or developmental delays.

UQ OT Honours project Relationship-focused practice aims to strengthen the parent-child relationship, support the child’s development, enhance parent competency, and improve cue reading for children facing developmental delays. This was the subject of a 2024 collaboration between BUSHkids Lead Occupational Therapist Megan MacDonald and Dr Jacqui Barfoot from the Child Health Research Centre at UQ. They co-supervised an OT Honours student project that explored the lived experiences and perceptions of BUSHkids clinicians who employ a relationship-focused approach. It found that while all clinicians encountered challenges in implementing this approach, they still recognised its positive outcomes. This reflects a growing body of evidence supporting relationship- focused practice, underscoring the need for further research aimed at overcoming its challenges.

Envisage: empowering families Many families in regional, rural and remote locations struggle to raise children who may have disabilities, developmental concerns, or who are neurodivergent. So BUSHkids partnered with ACU to deliver the Envisage Families program . It’s designed to empower both First Nations and non- Indigenous families, instilling confidence and providing the support they need. Capacity building is part of every stage of the Envisage rollout: ► training to enhance our staff’s clinical knowledge, improving the quality of care provided ► creating local employment opportunities and developing skills in Parent-Peers, fostering the robust parent support networks essential for effective and sustainable services, and ► effectively delivering the program via a combination of qualified clinicians and local Parent-Peers, who bring their lived experience in raising children with developmental delays or disabilities, to build families’ own capacities in an accessible and culturally sensitive manner. We have begun delivery of the Envisage program in Bundaberg, Agnes Water, and Emerald.

88.15