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I grew up in the South Island and moved north to study social work. My early roles as a social worker were in community social services with young people, and child protection work in the UK. Whilst overseas, I pursued my long interest in holistic health, and studied aromatherapy.
On returning to New Zealand, my ongoing interest in working with young people lead me to mental health. I have had a number of opportunities to work in youth and adult services in both the NGO and DHB sectors.
How we design and structure services to be responsive to service user needs led to an interest in strategic development. Being part of implementing a regional strategic direction to improve services highlighted the need to ensure workforce planning is integral to service planning and funding.
I am inspired by the ongoing improvements and innovations that so many are involved with in mental health. I look forward to being part of national workforce development initiatives to contribute to the ongoing improvement of mental health and addiction services - to ensure we are responsive to the challenges and needs of service users, their family and whanau.
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Life is a journey and you can never be too sure where your path may lead, hence why I have continued to work in the mental health and addiction sector for the last 20 years, full of surprises. After travelling for a number of years working in New York and South East Asia, I attended Victoria University in the early 90s and completed a BCA with an emphasis on social business management. I have had the opportunity to work in a number of roles in the mental health and addiction community sector, from being a support worker to a sector leader, never losing sight of the need for services to have a people centred approach. I believe it is important that our roles undertake meaningful work in the sector that will influence our communities to understand that everyone has the right to live as a full citizen in their community, regardless of their difference.
I am very excited to be part of the workforce thinking at Te Pou and to have the opportunity to develop and undertake projects that will assist and support workforce development for mental health and addiction community organisations.
I look forward to meeting many of you in my travels and having the conversation that tells the stories that shapes our learning.
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Talofa lava and Kia Orana!
I hail from the villages of Vaimoso, Saleufi in Apia, and Saleaula in Savaii Samoa. My family migrated to South Auckland in 1987 when I was ten years old. Now as an adult woman, I am blessed with my supportive Kiwi and Cook Island (Atiuan) husband and beautiful daughter.
On pursing a career in the social service sector, I aspired to contribute to the development and improvement of mental health and addiction services for all New Zealanders particularly vulnerable population groups.
Between completing a Certificate in Social Services, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Sociology and a Postgraduate Certificate in Public Health from the University of Auckland, I have worked in a variety of research roles at The University of Auckland (Clinical Trial and Research Unit), Massey University (Shore Centre), and Waitemata District Health Board (Clinical Research and Resource Centre).
I am pleased to join Te Pou in a project support role to further contribute, advance and grow my knowledge, skills and experience in the mental health and addiction sector while studying towards a PG Diploma and Masters in Public Health with a Pacific health specialisation at the University of Auckland.
Fa’afetai ma ia manuia le soifua.
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I trained in occupational therapy at the Central Institute of Technology in Wellington. During my training I discovered my passion and skill for working with people with mental health issues and thus have spent over 20 years working in this field.
I have held various OT positions in DHB services, gained experience across a wide spectrum of mental health services and held both clinical and leadership roles. Most recently I was Professional Advisor for Occupational Therapy in Mental Health for Capital & Coast DHB and a tutor of the National Certificate in Mental Health Support Work with Blueprint Centre for Learning.
I also completed the Executive Leadership and Management Programme and the Advanced Executive Leadership and Management Programme with Blueprint. At Te Pou I am enjoying supporting mental health and addiction services to strategically develop their workforce.
Read more about me and my work in the central region in the Regional Workforce Coordinators section.
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I hail from Aberdeen in the North East of Scotland, but I moved to Inverness to complete my training as a registered psychiatric nurse. My desire for adventure led me to New Zealand, where I have been for about 17 years.
My first nine years here was in forensic psychiatry, but most of my clinical work has been in the community setting, latterly with adult community psychiatric services. In the past four years I have taken on leadership and project management roles.
I hope to help build the sector's knowledge of workforce development issues and the drivers that contribute to them. One of the main goals will be to assist organisations to develop a consistent, planned and strategic approach to assessing their workforce development needs. I look forward to working closely with the national workforce development centres and the Southern region to progress key initiatives.
Read more about me and my work in the South Island in the Regional Workforce Coordinators section.
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Working in the helping professions is what I love doing, where I'm able to use my people skills to best advantage.
I've lived overseas as a volunteer in Nigeria for three years and there's nothing like living in a country that doesn't have the services that we enjoy, to make you appreciate New Zealand all the more.
Upon returning I worked in a role connecting people, projects and money to overseas partners through the Presbyterian Church global systems. Te Pou is a good fit for me where I can use my love of administration systems and helping people to best advantage, through a service that contributes to the health and wellbeing of New Zealanders.
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For more than half my life, and for all my working life, I have been a mental health nurse of one sort or another; a career that has spanned 29 years. I am proud of the vast range of experiences I have been privy to, and the many opportunities to nurse people into their recovery.
It is an understatement to say this has been a time of massive transformation of mental health nursing and how care has been defined and delivered. Throughout my experiences, I have thrived on opportunities to learn and develop new skills and to refine old ones.
My overriding sense of what is important in every experience is that of relationship. The relationships we build with tangata whaiora, their whanau/family, their community, their colleagues, their employers, my colleagues and nurses I have worked alongside, nurses I was mentoring and those who were my mentors. I believe that when we pay attention to our relationships with compassion and respect it enhances positive responses, and allows everyone to feel valued and important.
Outside of work I am blessed with a fantastically supportive partner and combined family of 7 children and we are about to move to 3 acres in Whitford.
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Kia ora koutou
I was born and bred in the small King Country town of Piopio and I am of Tainui descent, coming from both Ngāti Maniapoto and Ngāti Mahuta iwi.
I have recently returned from living in the UK. Prior to this I spent two years with a kaupapa Māori health organisation in Palmerston North. Within this position I worked alongside rangatahi experiencing alcohol and other drug problems, and was able to learn a variety of therapeutic interventions, while incorporating traditional Māori methods of health also. It was in this position that I developed a real passion for working with youth and addictions. I have gained a BA in Psychology under the Te Rau Puawai initiative at Massey University and I am working towards a Certificate in AOD Youth Work and Certificate in AOD Studies at WELTEC. Along with this, I have worked for a psychology journal publishing international research and found the process, and upcoming literature, both interesting and inspiring.
I am excited about working with Te Pou and learning more about the mental health and addictions sector. I hope to build on my knowledge and experience, growing further within the area.
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I have always been, and always will be, fascinated by and appreciative of people. I look for ways that people can realise their potential, this drives my own journey and my work with others. I knew I would join the mental health and addiction sector once I had clocked up some life experience. So I specialised in organisational psychology first, completing my undergraduate studies at the University of Otago and Masters at Deakin University in Melbourne. I then worked as a psychologist for three years, delivering assessment and research solutions to some of Australia's biggest companies.
In the UK I received my 'baptism by fire' to the mental health field through working in a community based crisis team as a support and recovery worker. I loved it and now want to dedicate myself to this sector. Outside of work I enjoy spending quality time with friends and family, immersing myself in nature, listening to our beautiful native birds, and singing my heart out!
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I have had many roles in my life, my best being mother to two fabulous grown up children. My career pathways have been diverse, from being a professional actress and ‘Sunny Day', Taranaki 7's weather girl (which causes great hilarity in the office) to spending the last six years working as consumer advisor for Taranaki DHB and many things in between! Performing dinner theatre teaches you all the skills and training you need to do well in any job!
Living with mental illness my whole life means that in this current role I can combine the feeling of doing something worthwhile with a satisfying career and linking with the most fascinating people ever! I have just shifted to Auckland and am loving it.
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It is the wounded oyster that mends its shell with the pearl.
Author unknown
After graduating with a Master's in Social Sciences (Psychology) from the University of Waikato, my career has been full and varied, though always with a focus on what's best for kids and their families/whānau. I started my career as a CYF social worker and have since worked as a health promoter, an EFL teacher/team leader in Japan and most recently as a researcher/project coordinator for The Werry Centre. Through this role I developed an awareness of the importance of a strong and capable workforce to ensure that consumers/tangata whaiora receive the best service they can. I'm really excited to now be a part of the Te Pou workforce team with the opportunity to work on primary health initiatives, such as Trailblazers, that promote the delivery of quality mental health services in natural settings.
A Rotorua girl originally, I've lived in Hamilton, Tokyo, Auckland and am now happily ensconced, with my family, on Waiheke Island.
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Janet Peters
Contractor - talking therapies, IIMHL, TheMHS
janetpeters "at" xtra.co.nz
As a contractor to Te Pou, I have had the opportunity to meet wonderful people across mental health and addiction services and work on exciting projects. Originally trained as a psychologist, I worked in mental health services for 10 years in a variety of roles. Since then, I have worked as a contactor mainly for national agencies, eg, I have worked on the Like Minds, Like Mine TV advertisements for 10 years and been on the New Zealand Psychologists Board for several years, and I work for one international agency, the IIMHL (International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership).
I love seeking people's ideas about improving services and writing reports (yes - it's true - I like writing reports!), and I am working towards increasing the creative writing I do.
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