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2/31 Princes Highway Dandenong VIC 3175 T: (03) 9794 8677 Come and visit us, we’re open Monday to Friday from 10.00am - 4.00pm From the CEO 2 In House news 6 Articles 9 Get involved 12 Media spotlight 15 Health Bites 16 1 Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014

Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014 Words 2014 06.pdf• Media spotlight 15 • Health Bites 16 1 Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014. 2

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Page 1: Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014 Words 2014 06.pdf• Media spotlight 15 • Health Bites 16 1 Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014. 2

2/31 Princes HighwayDandenong VIC 3175

T: (03) 9794 8677

Come and visit us, we’re open Monday to Friday from 10.00am - 4.00pm

• From the CEO 2• In House news 6• Articles 9• Get involved 12• Media spotlight 15• Health Bites 16

1

Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014

Page 2: Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014 Words 2014 06.pdf• Media spotlight 15 • Health Bites 16 1 Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014. 2

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From our CEO

Winter is officially here! And things are far from dormant at the WHISE office. The month of May saw the celebration of National Volunteer Week. WHISE has amaz-ing volunteers who support our organisation through visiting clients, helping with admin/reception tasks and sitting on our Board. We cannot thank you enough for all your hardwork!

The WHISE family has grown in the last couple months with 2 new staff members commencing employment. To read more about the WHISE newbies, see page 9.

We would like to reflect the work that WHISE does in the areas of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Mental Health, inclusive of preventing violence against women in our newsletters. There has been much change over the last year and our health promotion team and PVAW of-ficer are working hard to establish sustainable preventa-tive actions in these priority areas. Hopefully by the next edition we will have some exciting things to report back.

In line with promoting Sexual and reproductive health and Prevention of Violence against women and children Sarah Smethurst, a student on placement and Samman-tha Mannix, the newest addition to the WHISE team have kindly agreed to write about their recent experiences working in this field. Be sure to read about Sarah’s adven-tures in Tonga and Sam’s time in the Kimberly’s in Front-line Tales on page 9.

The next few months will be both exciting and intense with the state elections just around the corner. Keep an eye out on our website and social media pages for all the latest updates. We have jumped on the twitter band-wagon and are now ‘tweeting’ away, page 13 has our facebook and twitter details. That’s all from me, till the next edition, stay warm.

Nastashjia KatuEditor

There has been a great deal happening for WHISE and the women’s health sector in recent weeks, so I will outline some of the events.

I am very pleased to convey that the Victorian Women’s Health Services have finalised the 3rd iteration of the priorities for women’s health services for the next four years. The document which builds on the original 10 Point Plan is now called Priorities for Victorian Womens Health 2014-2018.The Victorian women’s health sector seeks commitment to the development of a comprehensive women’s health policy and action platform for 2014–2018.

In order to reduce the burden of ill health and disease for better health outcomes for Victorian women, the women’s health policy and action platform should include five specific actions for government. These are:

1. Development of a statewide sexual and reproductive health strategy. 2. Investment and leadership in the primary prevention of violence against women. 3. Research and action on women in a changing society, specifically the impacts of climate change on the health of Victorian women 4. Development of a gendered mental health and wellbeing plan. 5. Further investment in the Victorian Women’s Health Program to implement initiatives arising from the actions above. In order to succeed, the women’s health policy and action platform must be developed and implemented in the following way.

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It must:

• beledbyGovernment–withtheOfficeofWomen’sAffairsreturnedtothe• DepartmentofPremierandCabinettoassureawhole-of-governmentapproach;• focusongenderequityacrossthewholeofgovernmentandatalllevelsof• government• includeclearperformancegoalsortargetsformeasuringachievements;• ensurecollectionandanalysisofgendereddata;and• investinVictorianwomen’shealthservicestoleadlocalandstatewidestrategies.

Overall features

1. Theplatformmustsquarelytacklegender-basedinequitiessinceevidenceshowsthatgender-basedinequi-ties are both the underlying cause of poor health outcomes for Victorian women and the barriers to achieving im-provements in Victorian women’s health (and thus Victoria’s health).2. The platform must be whole-of-government in its approach with its development and monitoring led by the Office of Women’s Affairs. As such, it is critical that the Office of Women’s Affairs is returned to the Department of Pre-mier and Cabinet. 3. The platform must include, among the specific actions for government detailed below, the consistent applica-tionofagenderequityscorecard(tobedevelopedbyVictorianwomen’shealthservices)toallgovernmentpolicydevelopment and implementation. 4. Victorian women’s health services should lead the implementation of initiatives arising from the platform and its specific actions – with sufficient resources from government.

All Victorian Women’s Health Services are using this document as the prelude to a meeting with State politicians lead-ing up to the elections seeking a pre-election commitment from them to the recommendations of the Priorities docu-ment. (A full copy of the document is available on the WHISE website)

Federal Budget

Secondly, WHISE has responded to the Commonwealth Budget and how some of the changes will impact on women. Women’s Health in the South East is alarmed by what national budget reveals about the priorities, vision and under-standing of health and wellbeing by the Commonwealth Government.

Health and wellbeing arises from factors that impact on individuals directly such as income security, housing security, employment, freedom from violence and discrimination. The budget will decrease disposable income of the most vulnerable by increasing the cost of essential services, increasing stress and reducing capacity of individuals to seek timely health and welfare support.

Women comprise a large proportion of that vulnerable group. Stressed and under resourced mothers, workers, retir-ees, young and old women are far more likely to lose hope, eat poorly and exercise less as they struggle to cope with day to day pressures. Twice as many women are primary carers than men. Two thirds of those women report negative impacts on wellbe-ing. While the parental leave scheme is a welcome support to working mothers it reinforces women’s role as primary carers and does not support couples to share parenting. Research into health and social issues shows that rigid gen-der stereotypes are clearly detrimental to both men and women. The budget reinforces this thinking.

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The other measures that significantly undermine women’s economic status, particularly low-income older women and young women just starting out are the changes to the Aged Pension which will disproportionately affect women. Raising the pension age to 70, the indexation changes, and pension income text will have a disproportionate impact on women who retire with only two thirds of the retirement income of men. The Abbott Government also missed the opportunity to re-instate the Low Income Superannuation Contribution (LISC) which had provided a $500 rebate to workers who earn below $37,000. Of the three million low-income earning Australians who had been able to boost their super savings through the LISC, 2.1 million are women

The increase in fuel costs alone will increase the number of times the decision is made not to check out that niggling health issue. To improve health we have to make it possible for people to reach health services – but also to reach training, employ-ment, recreation, shopping, child care, friends – all of those things that are part of being able to live in a healthy way. By reducing the safety net and increasing household costs, especially of low income families the government has shown a lack of understanding and support for prevention.

These issues can only be addressed by a systematic approach to creating environments in which health is encouraged – col-laboration by organisations in our region to build healthy environments, programs that promote healthy lifestyles, systems changes that increase economic participation of women. The budget has undermined our community’s ability to respond in a systemic way.

Itfurtherentrenchesunequalcaringresponsibilitiesandsaystothemostdisenfranchisedpeopleinourcommunitiesthatthey are not important.

WHISE appreciates that there is a need to rethink national and state government expenditure given worldwide economic drivers that have challenged growth and therefore the amount of funds available to governments. We are however dis-mayedattheprioritiesdemonstratedbythegovernmentandfearthatthedisregardforequityandpreventionwillincreaseillness, poverty and social problems and undermine resilience.

Victorian Budget 2013 -14

The Victorian budget delivered very little money for new family violence initiatives. There is some new funding to: • extendtheRiskAssessmentandRiskManagementFramework(CRAF),• continuetheStrengtheningHospitalResponsestoFamilyViolenceProjectandimproveemergencydepartmentresponses to family violence and sexual assault, • $4.5milliontoexpandcapacitytostrengthenriskmanagementforwomenandchildrenathighriskwithkeywork-ers in eight services connects sites.

There is also a further $3 million over 3 years (announced pre-budget) for the Foundation to Prevent Violence Against Women and their Children. However, the Foundation is a National organisation so they will have to divide their time and initiatives across the Country.

The announcement from Victorian ALP Leader Daniel Andrews that if elected, they will hold a Royal Commission into family violence would be an important step in determining the scope of what is happening in Victoria and who it is happening to, along with recommendations on how best to respond. Women’s Health Services are contacting Daniel Andrews to ensure that Primary Prevention is included in the scoping of the Commission. Victoria now needs significant investment in a pri-mary prevention strategy that functions across the whole of government and which ensures there are services and supports available where and when they are needed.

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WHISE has employed a Project Officer, Samantha Mannix, to work across the Southern Metropolitan Region, to coordinate, integrate and resource consistent Preventing Violence Against Women and Children (PVAW&C). There is currently a range of programs which have been developed in response to a range of different funding sources and criteria. This specific PVAW&C will facilitate a consistent approach in leading action to prevent violence against women and children. More specifically, it will develop shared tools and resources that are flexible enough to be adapted to the needs of local communities and make them available in a variety of formats. It will build agencies skills and capacity to advocate and implement prevention initia-tives which are based on effective, sustainable and common/shared approaches to prevention.

Health Promotion

WHISE has recently welcomed Sandi Scaunich as a Health Promotion Officer to complete the Team. The priorities for WHISE in health promotion can be found on our website but in summary are:

• OurGoalistopromotegreaterunderstandingandawarenessofthesexualandreproductivehealthissuesaffectingwomen in the Southern Metropolitan Region, with a particular focus on older women.• OurTargetGroupisolderwomenintheSouthernMetropolitanRegion–particularlythosefromCulturallyandLin-guistically Diverse (CALD) backgrounds and those who reside in socially and economically disadvantaged areas.Priority 2: Promoting mental health – including prevention of violence against women• OurGoalistoreduceinequitiesthatcontributetopoormentalhealthoutcomesforwomenintheSouthernMetro-politan Region, and• ContributetothepreventionofviolenceagainstwomenwithintheSouthernMetropolitanRegion• OurtargetgroupiswomenintheSouthernMetropolitanRegion–particularlythosefromCulturallyandLinguisti-cally Diverse (CALD) backgrounds and those who reside in socially and economically disadvantaged areas.

WHISE has a strong and committed team of women working for the betterment of women in the Region ad our accomplish-ments will be documented on our website, Facebook and Newsletters in the future.

WHISEalsowelcomesnewmemberstoourexistingBoardofManagement;ourmembersareRobynMasonChairperson,Diana Mumme Vice-Chairperson, Helen Keleher, Maha Sukkar, Rhiannon Matthews and Christine Allan. The WHISE Board are seeking new members so please consider a role with WHISE if you feel you are able to contribute to the skill base of our Board and offer an expression of interest.

Susan Glasgow

Chief Executive Officer

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Women’s Wellbeing GroupThe women’s wellbeing group has been trudging along quitenicely.Here’sanupdateofwhatwe’vebeenupto...

April saw us bring out the inner karate kid as the women participated in a basic self defence class. Lilley our instructor from Gabriel’s Martial Arts was fantastic and taughtthegroupbasicsafetytechniques.Thesessionwas well attended with everyone having a great time while learning some useful tips for keeping safe.

We got creative in May and had a Marvellous Mask Making day. We decorated masks and had a good time singing songs together. After getting glitter all over the floors we concluded the sessions with a high tea.

For the month of June we had a laughter therapy session (pictured right) We had lots of women attend and the proverb stood its ground, laughter is the best medicine.

The theme for July is ‘getting potty’. During the session

we will pot some herbs and have chat about Climate change and sustainability. A big thank you to Anne from Bunning’s who has kindly offered to run this session and donate the pots and herbs.

Women’s Wellbeing group is a free session and is run on the first Friday of each month. We look forward to seeing you there!

Deb PugsleyWomen’s Wellbeing Coordinator

Mentors in Violence PreventionOn the 19th of May 2014, WHISE held a ‘Mentors in Vio-lence Prevention’ training session. Ten women attended from a wide range of backgrounds, ages, professional experience, and cultures.

As an individual it is important to recognise that we are all leaders in someone’s eyes. People watch what we say and do and imitate how they see us responding to violent behaviour in everyday situations. Bystanders are neutral players who can see the situation clearly and make more rational choices about the confrontation, free from emotion and involvement. Bystanders have the power to change the circumstances with the goal of dif-fusing the situation and offering the person experiencing violence new options.

During the session we discussed real life situations and different ways to respond in the face of violence against women. Fear for safety was identified as the biggest

obstacle to intervening in a situation. We practised non confrontational responses to violence and delved deeper into the attitudes that support a culture of violence against women. Every participant challenged different ideas of ‘normal’ behaviour for men and women and what contributes to these stereotypes.

WHISE would like to thank all members that participated in the training. It was a very engaging morning and due to the enthusiastic feedback we received WHISE will be holding another Mentors in Violence Prevention train-ing session in the coming months. WHISE members that attended the last session will have the chance to build on the skills learnt, while new members of the community are also invited to join us.

Sarah SmethurstWHISE Student

In house news:

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Reg. No. AOO26387C ABN No. 90641895966

I am a new Member I am renewing my membership *Please fill out all of the following information *Please add name, update details if necessary sign and date. Please indicate membership type applicable to you:

Individual Member Individual members are 18 or over who live, work or study in the Southern Metropolitan Region

Organisational Member

Organisational members include women’s groups, agencies and community organisations located in the Southern Metropolitan Region who share the visions and goals of WHISE as defined in the Statement of Purpose. Each group/organisation is entitled to appoint one female representative whom is able to submit one vote on behalf of the group/organisation.

Associate Member Women with an interest in and commitment to women’s health who do not meet the criteria for individual membership can apply to become associate members. Please note voting rights do not apply and you must be endorsed by a current individual member.

Personal Details: First Name:.................................................................... Last Name:.................................................................. Address:........................................................................ Suburb:....................................................................... Post Code:.............. Home Ph:............................... Mobile No:.................................................................. Email:........................................................................... Preferred method of contact: Post Email Are you happy to receive information from WHISE via email? Yes No Membership is free and entitles you to vote, stand for election as a member of the Board, the opportunity to attend WHISE events and inclusion on our mailing list. Membership is for the current year only and expires at the end of every financial year on June 30th. If you wish to vote at the next Annual General Meeting, you must renew your membership before June 30th to be eligible to vote.

As a member of the Association I shall at all times comply with the rules of the service. I accept that Women’s Health in the South East’s Constitution requires that my name, address and date of entry into membership shall be kept in a membership register and that this is available for inspection by the members at the address of Women’s Health in the South East for the purposes of the Association. Signature of applicant: ………………………………………………………………………... Date: …………….…………………............

Please complete and return to: Women’s Health in the South East, 2/31 Princes Highway, Dandenong. Vic 3175 Ph: (03) 9794 8677 Fax: (03) 9793 1866 Email: [email protected]

MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION FORM for Individuals/ Organisations/ Associations

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WHISE Computer Classes

Beginners Computer Class1 class a week over 12 weeks

($24)

No experience with comput-

ers needed

Get comfortable with the

mouse and keyboard, type up

and save simple documents, surf

the internet, use Google Maps

and the Public Transport Victoria

website, learn to Skype with

family, start emailing friends!

Intermediate Word Class 1 class a week over 6 weeks

($12)

Great for someone who is look-

ing to upskill for work or further

studies

All about creating, editing and

formatting word

documents

One on One SessionsIndividual classes ($2.50 per

hour)

You decide what you learn and

how many sessions you need

Possible topics include You

Tube, Skype and Facebook ba-

sics, downloading photos from

your phone or tablet, formatting

an assignment, sending

text messages!

Tablets for Beginners1 class a week over 3 weeks

($6)

Great if you already own a

tablet but want to learn how to

use it better

Bring your own tablet or use

one of ours. We have Samsung

Galaxy tablets and Apple iPADs

to share

It has been a busy, busy few months at WHISE with over 60 hours of training being offered this term. We ran the Computers for Beginners program for four groups of women, introduced the Tablets for Beginners program and squeezedin20one-on-onetutoringsessionstoo.Allveryexciting!

The second intake is just starting, so if you’re keen to join us or know of someone who would like to gain confidence around computers, tablets, mobile phones and the internet ... there is still time.

All you have to do is contact Carline Hamdillah to find out when we might be able to accommodate you on(03) 9794 8677 or via email on [email protected]

In the meantime, here’s a summary of your options:

National Volunteer Week

WHISE was represented at the 2014 City of Greater Dandenong volunteer recognition afternoon tea held in the Summer Room at Springvale council offices. It was a well attended event and highlighted the great number of local organisations who depend on the generosity and commitment to community of their volunteers.Two WHISE volunteers were present to receive the cer-tificate of Appreciation from Councillor Long. They were long time Settlement Grant Volunteer Natasha and Admin volunteer Dusanka.

WHISE appreciates and thanks all the volunteers for their time and commitment and generosity

Marian SalvageSGP Volunteer Coordinator

Below: Natasha, Marian, Councilor Long, Dusanka

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Frontline tales Ta’ahine i Tonga - girl in the KingdomThe start of August will mark two years since I packed up and headed to Tonga. Two years since I was ac-cepted into the Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development program and shipped off to one of Australia’s closest island neighbours in the Pacific.

I was volunteering with a grassroots women’s organisation called ‘Ma’a Fafine Moe Famili’ (For Women and Children) and my assignment was to support and develop the first women’s led community radio sta-tion in Tonga. Two months into my placement we had created some strong plans for increasing the reach and audience of our radio. Things were looking good! That was, until

we discovered that something in our mobile radio station was broken and we had been broadcasting white noise across the island for the past two months.

I knew set backs were common when working in an international aid setting, so took a deep breath and pulled my socks up. We found a grant that would supply us with enough money to purchase new parts for the radio, and I spent the next few months writing an application. All the while I was surrounded and exposed to a whole new culture and work environment.

My manager was an incredible Tongan Woman who pioneered in

legal literacy classes in Tonga – help-ing people, and in particular women, understand their legal rights and obligations. Her door was open day and night to anyone needing coun-selling for family violence or any kind of relationship advice, and she frequentlytravelledoverseastotakepart in regional consultations and strategic planning.

While working on the grant applica-tion I starting getting involved in Transformational Leadership Work-shops my organisation was running for young women. These workshops focused on teaching young Tongan women to recognise different types of abuse, their rights as women, and

Sandi is the newest member of the Health Promotion team. She brings a wealth of knowledge to WHISE and has experience working in the community, local and state government health sectors. The focus of her work is Sexual and Reproductive Health and preventing violence against women. Out of the office Sandi is an

outdoor loving mum who appreci-ates opportunities to reconnect

with nature. She spent four years living in Italy where she picked up the language and one of her absolute favorite things to do is head out to the theatre - espe-

cially musicals.

Meet our new staff members!

SamanthabeganworkinMayofthisyear.Sheisaquali-fied nurse and also holds a bachelor of applied science in Health Promotion. Sam is the new Project Officer and will support the development, implementation, promotion and evaluation of a regional action plan to prevent violence against women and children. Sam is also currently completing her masters in Public Health at Melbourne University. Besides studies and work, Sam loves to travel and spent two years living in Jakarta, Indonesia. She enjoys the outdoors, is a dog person,isquitesurethatshehasnohidden talents and whips up a mean mushroom risotto!

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their potential as leaders for their community and their country. Hearing these young women dis-cover their strength, and hopes and dreams for the future was always an uplifting and inspiring experience. It connected us in a very fundamental way as women and surpassed any cultural and language barriers we otherwise experienced. Feeling vulnerable as a woman in Tonga was an everyday occurrence for me. Seeing violence in relation-ships was very common and very confronting, and hearing women I cared about swapping strategies for

avoiding their abusive husbands late at night was heartbreaking. This was counterbalanced by the incredible men and women I met daily who were fighting for change within their own country. Reducing and prevent-ing violence against women is a slow and difficult process, but momentum is building.The story has a happy ending – the grant was successful and Ma’a Fafine Moe Famili received the parts it needed to get the radio up and running. I have so many wonderful memories of my time on a tropical island, but after living in Tonga and

connecting with the amazing people I met, the violence is not something I can forget. I won’t forget the young women with so much potential, whose dreams and hopes were my dreams and hopes. My time in Tonga led me to connect with WHISE and continue working towards the pre-vention of violence against women on behalf of every girl and women, both in Australia and around the world.

Sarah SmethurstWHISE Student

After nursing in a tertiary hospital in Perth for two years, I packed my bags and ventured solo around India for six months. Upon my return home to Melbourne, I realised that working in acute care in a clinical setting was no longer for me. I packed my bags again, but this time for the Kimberley – where I would join a two week road show of young people who were visiting remote schools to talk about different careers. They say once you’ve had a swim in the mighty Fitzroy River, you’ll never want to leave – they’re right, my two week trip turned into two years. I started working for an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation in West Kimberley, where I took on the role of a maternal and child health promotion officer.

When I was in the communities running mothers groups and nutrition classes, the women would often approach me with concerns about the younger girls. They were worried about the number of teenage pregnancies and the number of girls who were becoming disengaged in school and other services. These concerns were reflected in National statistics, with the high adolescent fertility and STI rates for young Aboriginal women. With the female health promotion team, we worked on a small scale community consultation, talking with the young girls themselves, community members, elders, schools and health services to determine what the problem was, and what kind of program the girls wanted.

Above: Sarah (center) with her family and staff of the Women and Children Crisis Center , Nukualofa Tonga.

Take a swim in the Fitzroy River...

Wreck at Pangaimotu, Tonga

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Calendar datesJune

15 - 21 Refugee Week20 World Refugee Day

25 Orange Day

July6 - 13 NAIDOC Week

National Aboriginies and Islanders Day Observance

Committee

August

1 - 7 World Breastfeeding Week

22 Daffodil Day

30 Wear it Purple day

September1-5 Women’s Health Week15 Spring newsletter out

26 World Contraception day28 International Day of Action to Safe and Legal

Abortions

Throughout the consultation process, we found that the girls did not have enough information about sexual and reproduc-tivehealth,oradequateaccesstohealthservices–includingcontraception. The young women and community members also spoke of the importance of relationships, and the need for young women to be able to identify ‘healthy’ relationships. Another key finding was that there were no extra-curricular activities for those who weren’t interested in sports – and for those who were no longer engaged in school, there was very little else. Through these findings, and ongoing collaboration with girls and community members, we developed a weekly program called “Skutta Girls”. Skutta means deadly or cool in the local Kriol language. Skutta Girls was a program that used arts and crafts, dance, cooking and cultural activities to facilitate a safe and friendly environment where girls (aged 12-18) could dis-cuss issues that related to their health. The aim was to improve the sexual and reproductive health and knowledge of the girls as well as empowering them to protect themselves and in-crease their linkages with health care providers. The girls largely dictated the topics that we covered through the sessions – we spent a lot of time discussing healthy relationships and nego-

tiation. We created and recorded rap songs, had a weekly spot on local radio and developed edutainment about the perils of smoking and peer pressure. Wefeltlikethiswasquiteasimpleresponsetoacomplexprob-lem, but we were privileged with the great support of commu-nity members and the girls themselves. Together, we created a safe, fun and engaging space for the girls to learn, and impor-tantly – for the girls to teach. There were many Skutta Girls suc-cess stories, but these are not mine to tell. The inspiring stories I heard from the girls and women of the Kimberley will stay with me forever and showed me the impact that women can have on their own health and well-being in a safe and socially sup-portive environment.

Samantha MannixProject Officer PVAW

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Get involved There are a number of ways to get involved in the commu-nity. See below for the next WHISE run events as well as programs running in your neighbourhood.

•Women’s Wellbeing Group

The next WWBG session will be run on the July 4 with a focus on ‘potting’ and climate change. Be sure to RSVP to Deb at [email protected] or phone in on 9794 8677 for more info.

•Computer Classes

Intake 2 for computer classes have officially begun how-ever there is opportunity for 1 on 1 sessions with Carline. Foranyqueriesseethebelowcontactdetails.

[email protected] or 9794 8677.

•Story Time and Toddler Time @ the Dandenong Library

Get down to the Dandenong Library with your little ones every Monday at 10.30am for Toddler Time and Thursday at 10.30am for Story time and crafts. School holiday pro-grams will also be run From the 30th of June to the 10th of July. For more info or to check out the sessions head to the City of Greater Dandenong website at the below address

www.greaterdandenong.com/section/1456/library

•Noble Park Country Women’s Association general

meeting.

This group meets every second and fourth Monday of the month with the next session occuring on Monday the 23rd of June at 10am. For more info contact 9547 7261.

City of Stonnington

•Getmovingagain

The City of Stonnington has introduced a brand new heart foundation accredited excersise program - heartmoves. The ongoing program will run every Tuesday at the Phoenix Park Community Center in Malvern East. Ston-nington residents have the opportunity to trial the pro-gram free of charge for the month of June.

Time: 11.00am - 11.45am

When: Every Tuesday commencing on the 10th June 2014

Where: Ground Floor, Phoenix Park Community Centre, 22

Rob Roy Road, Malvern East

Cost: $5 per class

City of Casey

As part of the Winter Arts Festival held in the City of Casey there are a number free and low cost classes to particpate in. Here are my top 3.

•Botanic Art - Different Strokes

Free introductory session to Botanic illustrations.

Date: Tuesday 24th of June

Time: 12.30 pm - 2.30 pm

Where: Endeavour Hills UnitingCare Neighbourhood

Centre

10 Raymond McMahon Boulevard, Endeavour Hills 3802

Contact: 9700 3789

•Contemporary dance workshop

Cost: $5 for adult, child and concession

Date: Sunday 22nd of June

Time: 10.00am - 12.00p,

Where: 43 Strathaird Drive, Narre Warren South 3805

Contact: 8790 2733

•Fungi, Fairies and Elves

Bookingsrequiredforthisbotanicadventure.

Cost: $7.20 per child

Date: Wednesday 2nd of July

Time: 10.00am - 11.00am

Where: Cnr Ballarto Road and Botanic Drive, Cranbourne 3977

Contact: 5990 2200

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Women's Wellbeing GroupFree for all women of all ages

Come and meet other women, share your experiencesand learn about different services, interesting activitiesand health issues.

Join us to learn about climate change

and have fun potting herbs

When: Friday 4th July 2014

Time: 1:00 pm - 3.00pm

Where: Suite 2/ 31 Princes Highway Dandenong (Ground Floor)

Bookings: Please call Deb or Tash 9794 8677or email [email protected]

Please Note: Activities and dates are subject to change withoutnotification

THIS MONTHPot Planting

Women’s Health in the South East is supported by funding fromthe Australian Government / Department of Social Servicesunder the Settlement Grants Program funding program.

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Women’s Health in the South East Address: Suite 2, Ground Floor, 31 Princes Hwy., Dandenong Tel: (03) 9794 8677 Email: [email protected] Web: www.whise.org.au

Please return completed form to WHISE (Attention: Carline Hamdillah)

COMPUTER TRAINING REGISTRATION FORM Personal details Full name:

Telephone number:

Best time to call: Morning Afternoon

Age: Below 20 20 to 29 30 to 39

40 to 49 50 and above

Country of birth:

Australian Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent:

Yes

No

English language proficiency:

Beginner Intermediate Advanced

Experience with computers:

No experience A little experience Some experience

Course preference Course name Computer Skills for

Beginners Microsoft Word 2007

(Intermediate Level) Tablets for Beginners One-on-One

Training Content

Getting to know computers Managing your files and folders Using Word to create documents Using the internet and web-based email

Advanced formatting Working with headers and footers Working with objects and tables Applying styles and themes Mail merging

Getting to know your tablet Browsing the internet Installing and managing Apps Everyday tasks Camera and photos

Sessions are based on tasks that participants want to focus on. They can relate to basic Word, Excel, Power Point, Internet, Facebook, Skype or Email

Pre-requisites -

Mouse & keyboard Basic Word formatting

- -

Number of classes

12 classes 2 hours per class 1 class per week

6 classes 2 hours per class 1 class per week

2 classes 2 hours per class 1 class per week

No set number of sessions 1 hour per session

Cost Each class : $2 Course manual: $5

Each class : $2 Course manual: $5

Each class : $2

Each session : $2.50

Preferred day Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

No set schedule. Please contact WHISE for available slots.

Preferred time 10AM to 12PM 12.30PM to 2.30PM

10AM to 12PM 12.30PM to 2.30PM

10AM to 12PM 12.30PM to 2.30PM

Signature: Date:

Page 15: Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014 Words 2014 06.pdf• Media spotlight 15 • Health Bites 16 1 Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014. 2

Thisquartersmostengaged

with facebook post at 138 post clicks! Keep those clicks, and

likes coming!

facebook.com/whisewomen

15

Media SpotlightAustralia’s National Research organisation for Women’s Safety (ANROWS) LaunchOn Friday 16 May, ANROWS was launched at Parliament House, Canberra by Federal Minister for Social Services Kevin Andrews and Federal Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Women Michaelia Cash. They were joined by state and territory ministers from across Australia and by representatives from the services sector, women’s organisations and researchers.

ANROWS is funded jointly by the Common-wealth, state and territory governments to un-dertake research aimed at addressing the high rates of domestic, family and sexual violence

against women and their children and improv-ing outcomes for victims.

The National Research Agenda to Reduce Vio-lence against Women and their Children was announced which will target four key areas of experience and impacts of violence against women,genderinequalityandprevention,ef-fectiveness of service responses and interven-tions, and the impact of systems.

www.anrows.org.au

In case you missed our piece in the Leader for May 28...

WHISE recognises that sexual and reproductive health is not restricted to mothers only. It should encompass girls, women with children or without, women who are single or who have male or female partners. Able bodied women or differently abled, women who are HIV positive, transgen-dered women...you get the picture, sexual and reproductive health affects ALL women. WHISE continues to advocate for all women to ensure that we have both choice and access to informa-tion and services concerning this vital part of Women’s Health.

WHISE has joined TWITTER! Check us out twitter.com/whisewomen

Page 16: Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014 Words 2014 06.pdf• Media spotlight 15 • Health Bites 16 1 Women’s Health in the South East Newsletter June 2014. 2

www.whise.org.au•T:(03)97948677

2/31 Princes Highway, Dandenong VIC 3175

Find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/whisewomen

16

Susan GlasgowChief Executive Officer

Helena BishopHealth Promotion Coordinator

Deb PugsleyQualtiy and Compliance Officer

Nastashjia KatuMedia, Communications, Admin

Carline HamdillahIT Community Development Worker

Kristine HillHealth Promotion Officer

Tracey EganHealth Promotion Officer

Sandi ScaunichHealth Promotion Officer

Samantha MannixProgram Officer - PVAW

Marian SalvageSettlements Grants Volunteer Coordinator

Katrina SzeteyFinance Officer

Robyn MasonChairperson

Diana Mumme

Christine Allen

Maha Sukkar

Rhiannon Matthews

Helen Keleher

Green is the new black! Green foods are jam packed with minerals and nutrients, no wonder popeye became so strong from that can of spinach! Here’s the low down on the nutritional benefits of these shopping trolley frequentflyers.1. Green BeansThese winners are full of fiber which helps to lower cholesterol and stabilize blood sugars making it great for people with diabetes.2. AsparagusAsparagus is rich in vitamins K, C and A and posseses anti inflamatory nutrients. This veg is also famous for its digestivequalitiesasitishighinfiberandprotein.3. Avocado’s

Avo’s contain cholesterol lowering monounsaturated fats, these are the ‘good fats’ that we often hear about. They also contain an antioxidant called lutein that protects eye health, so it’s a great for maintaining good vision!4. Kiwi FruitThis furry fruit is extremely nutrient dense. It contains twice the vitamin C of an orange, more potassium than a banana and is also full of fiber. Not a bad topping to have on cereal or in fruit salads and smoothies.5. KaleKale is all the rage at the moment, it is a lettuce look-ing leaf that belongs to the cabbage family. This super veg contains cancer fighting compounds and has bone boosting vitamin K, and immune boosting vitamin A.

Health Bites