TESIAT Receives Recognition

At the recent LivingWorks Australia Conference in Canberra, Anglicare NT was awarded two certificates of appreciation. The first certificate is made out to Anglicare NT, for offering ASIST and safeTALK across the NT for 18 years. In this time, Anglicare NT has supported more than 10,000 people to be trained in suicide alertness and intervention. The second certificate recognises Anglicare NT staff members Sandi Ford, Gavin Coehn and Wayalwanga Marika for their contribution to building Suicide-Safer-Communities by supporting diverse communities with safety, care and respect.

Simone Dayer (a former employee of Anglicare NT and now a LivingWorks Consultant Trainer), presented the certificates to Jemma Wood and Sudha Coutinho from Anglicare NT. Simone’s speech is transcribed here:

“It’s really special for me to be able to present this Certificate of Recognition to Anglicare NT, because that is where my personal journey with LivingWorks began.

Way back in 1998, Anglicare NT’s Deputy CEO Ann Buxton sent two unsuspecting Youth Workers to a T4T (Train the Trainers course), so that ASIST (the Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training workshop) could be introduced to the Territory.  Two years later she was responsible for attracting funding to roll out 3 T4Ts across the Territory, training more than 70 trainers.  That was the inception of the NTSIT project, which has now become TESIAT (Top End Suicide Intervention & Awareness Training program).

Over the 18 years since ASIST (and later safeTALK) were brought to the NT, Anglicare NT have seen over 10,000 Territorians trained in ASIST or safeTALK – either through direct training provision or through their trainer support activity.

And we need to remember that this isn’t 10,000 people coming to a training room at Anglicare’s office in Darwin. This is about intrepid trainers travelling incredibly long distances, in all kind of harsh conditions, often to very remote communities, sometimes only accessible via plane trips in little 4-seater planes or gruelling 4WD trips.  These communities may or may not have a training room, they may or may not have power on any given day, and English is often the 3rd, 4th or 5th language of participants.  On most of these communities suicide is all too common, and grief and loss is very real and raw.

Needless to say it takes passion, dedication, commitment – and probably more than a little bit of craziness – to sustain a program like this, and to attain such amazing outcomes is remarkable.

Anglicare NT have demonstrated a whole of agency commitment to creating suicide safer communities, not just supporting trainers to travel far and wide, but they have also led by example by requiring that all staff members to be safeTALK I ASIST trained. Through their advocacy, LivingWorks’ training has now been embedded into the NT Government “Suicide Prevention Strategic Plan”.  They are also committed to working with Living Works to explore ways to develop resources to augment the cross-cultural delivery of ASIST and safeTALK.

Through 18 years, many people have made significant contributions to these incredible outcomes, and I couldn’t possibly name them all, but some that need to be noted – as well as Ann Buxton who remains committed to this program 18 years on – are: Anna Davis, Sally Weir, Rachael McGuin, Diane Linton, Luke Tipuamantumirri, Michelle Parker, Sandi Ford, Wayalwanga Marika, and Gavin Coehn – along with a big team of passionate and dedicated trainers.”