A successful week for the Thinker in Residence

The first phase of the 2016-17 Thinker in Residence program finished today with 100 professionals attending a seminar to hear Professor Jane Burns outline opportunities to improve mental health service delivery through the use of technology.

Seminar attendees also heard from Michelle Blanchard from the Butterfly Foundation about how they utilise social media and technology in their work to support young people with eating disorders, and from a young person Ming about her work as part of the Commissioner’s 2015 Advisory Committee that reported on how young people with sensory disability use social media.

Over the last five days Professor Burns has presented to around 1,500 people at 15 seminars and has met with a variety of other stakeholders.

The final day of Professor Burns' residency also inluded a briefing for directors general and other leaders from agencies and departments that work with children and young people.

From her meetings and discussions during phase one of her residency, Professor Burns will prepare a discussion paper prior to returning in March 2017.

The Commissioner will release Professor Burns' discussion paper later this year. 

To keep informed about this paper and other work of the Commissioner's office, subscribe to the Commissioner's e-newsletter.