2023-2024 COVID-19 Community Grants Program
Program Overview
COVID-19 continues to be an ongoing serious health concern that disproportionately affects vulnerable and disadvantaged Victorians.
The 2023-2024 COVID-19 Community Grants Program is part of the Department of Health’s continued commitment to addressing the ongoing pandemic response.
The Program aims to maintain the Department’s strong network of community organisations for continued pandemic response, as well as inform broader public health programming and policy.
OBJECTIVES
The COVID-19 Community Grants Program (the Program) offers grants to eligible not-for-profit community organisations to:
–Engagement & Information: Provide authoritative, trusted, accurate and tailored public health information and advice to priority groups
–Support access to COVID-19 supports: Support access to COVID-19 treatment and vaccination, and their adoption of COVID-19 preventative behaviours
–Joint initiatives with partners to address health issues: Strengthen partnerships with other key stakeholders, such as community organisations, local public health units, GPs, pharmacists, GP Respiratory Clinics and community health partners to address health needs of priority groups
–Community insights: Gather and share community feedback and insights to help guide the Department’s continued pandemic response
Our part in achieving program objectives
AfriAus iLEAC with our LUVPACKS partners is engaged with the multicultural community through:
- Community engagement and information activities conducted: health education info sessions, welfare calls and messaging, COVID-19 and other Health related education workshops, podcast productions, Community Stakeholder Expert Advisory Group (CSEAG) strategic Meetings
- Enable access to vaccination, treatment and other services to support preventive behaviours; Capacity building training and workshops for AfriAus iLEAC hosts & media staff for the Podcast Channel ‘Our Voice Community Wellbeing’, COVID-19 related Creative Artwork workshops with young people & women and COVID-19 related creative texts by youth
- Building partnerships through Health education workshops – Community awareness, health and wellbeing training workshops to address COVID
-19 related health impacts and needs. - Community Insights; Informal insights: COVID-19 narratives, focus group discussions, surveys, participant observations – to inform The Department of the priority groups’ needs and insights.
Methods of delivery
- Reinforcing COVID safe messages
- Podcasting/vodcasting
- Dissemination of accurate information
- Translations
- Creative arts through Poems or spoken word
- Workshops
Activities for communities with specific communication needs, are targeted with:
- Easy Read English
- Audio texts- spoken word with translated texts in various languages
- Audio visual texts
- Q & A
- Podcast & vodcast presentation of COVID-19 updates, Interviews & Talk shows e.g Multicultural Dinner, 22nd Dec 2023
-
CWIRE Dinner, Sat 9th Dec 2023: (a) RAT Kits & face masks distribution (b) Emphasized 6 steps to staying Safe during Summer (C) Nurse Onsite – COVID positive safe practices were emphasized, anyone unwell goes back home if they couldn’t co-operate to wear a mask.
-
Multicultural Dinner, 22nd Dec 2023 – presentations by Rob Koch, Rudo Mphande and Dr Nirav Parikh (COVID-19 safe messages, Heatwaves, High blood pressure etc, Nurse Onsite to ensure no-one unwell attends without face masks.
- Men’s dinner on “Mo-vember” men’s health awareness and COVID-19 updates and safe behaviours by Dr Emmanuel Ndukwe, Orland Green, Andrew Gai, Mabor Chadhuol and Rabecca Mphande.
Capacity building activities to improve the capacity of our member organisations or affiliates included:
- Making welfare check in calls
- Creative Arts Fair 3 days workshop (27-29 Dec 2023) for children and youth- infusing creative arts, mindfulness and COVID-19 updates and safe behaviours.
- Distribution of RAT Kits and face masks to young people, families, LUVPACKS partners and other new communities such as the Indian community in Cardinia and Casey councils.
- Joint development/creation of the COVID safe behaviour messages with Melton – Pasifika Community ; GoMoana and Latrobe Gippsland Local Public Health
- Podcast Production
- Interpreting , Translating
- Connected CALD Senior Women self-care education, health (physical and mental) education workshops
Which priority groups does this grant aim to support?
Victorians experiencing higher risk of hospitalisation and severe health outcomes due to COVID-19 and are experiencing social and economic disadvantage, specifically:
- older people (>65 years old)
- people with significant underlying medical illness or disability
- multicultural communities
- Children/young people (under 18 years)
The program also has a particular focus on the following language groups:
- Arabic
- Amharic
- Mandarin
- Samoan
- Hindi
- Punjabi
-
- Somali
- Harari
- Urdu
- Xhosa
- Shona
- Indian Punjabi
-
- Chichewa (Malawi Nyanja)
- Chitumbuka
- Persian
- Spanish
- Kiswahili
- Chinese
- Dari
IMPACTS
- Contribute towards reduced death rate at state level
- Increased community connectedness
- Increased individual’s productivity
- Increased education and awareness of accurate COVID-19, health information.
- Civic engagement and participation; Happy, engaged, willing to interact outdoors individuals
- Increased access to timely, accurate, authoritative and appropriate information related to COVID-19.
- Established collaboration with local Respiratory Clinical GPs, LHPU & community health services
- Decreased myths and misinformation about COVID-19
- Decrease in COVID-19 cases
- Increase in self-knowledge in health, self-care and healthy self-worth
- Ongoing use of COVID Safe practices, including scaled up intake of vaccine
- Enhanced feeling of sense of belonging
- Contribute towards the relief on hospitals and the health system as a whole – reduced pressure.
- Reduced mental health issues that result from COVID-19 pandemic
- Increased staff and partnership capacity building to increase performance
- Changed attitude towards mask wearing in public and using RAT tests at home
- Analysed, interpreted and recorded narratives about needs and insights.
- Increased women aware of their health needs and medical conditions.
- Increased women accessing relevant supports and services.
- Scaled up media expertise
- Informed health programs and policies
RESOURCES
“Our Voice Community Wellbeing” Podcast Channel
On our channel you will find:
- Translated health alerts and updates in multiple languages
- Talk-shows with different health experts on various health related subjects
- Youth giving health updates- with inclusive communication using auslan (sign language)
- Health updates and tips from health experts
Translations
Translated updates of COVID-19 & other health alerts
ARABIC
HINDI
PERSIAN
SOMALI
URDU
OUR ACTIVITIES
Multicultural Communities Dinner- Dec 2023
MO-vember Dinner for Men’s Mental Health Awareness
We look forward to seeing you, your family and friends!
Let`s share some wisdom on how to keep warmer, safer and well during winter ❄️ 🏔 🌨 ☃️
#afriausileac #aai #communitynetworking #communityatheart #communityvoices #australia #communitywellbeing
Empowering diversity, celebrating unity! Join us as we holistically connect diverse senior women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. It`s about embracing identity, amplifying voices, and fostering belonging. Together, we`ll explore fun, health, knowledge, and equity, creating a space where every woman shines. 🌟 👸🏻👸🏼👸🏽👸🏾👸🏿👸🧕🏽🧕🏾🧕🏿🧕🏻
#afriausileac #seniorsnetwork #connectedcaldwomen #healthcircle #communityatheart #DiverseWomen #IdentityVoiceUnity #EmpowermentJourney
Another look back at 2023 ✨️
We hosted a MO-VEMBER dinner on 27th Nov 2023 in honour of the annual "Movember" initiative involving the growing of mustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of men`s health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health, and suicide prevention.
Did you know that Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers among men? In 2020, there were an estimated 1.4 million new cases worldwide.
Many thanks to Dr Ndukwe and Dr Greene for joining us and being our guest speakers to encourage men to take proactive steps towards their health and to have open conversations about their well-being.✨️🙏🏾👌🏽
And thank you @emmavulinmp and Mayor Jack Kowarzik for joining us for this important initiative 🙏🏾
#afriausileac #diversity #movember #menshealthmonth #menshealth #communitynetworking #communityatheart #cardiniashire #AAI #multiculturalvictoria
A look back at the Dec 2023 Graduation ceremony of the amazing Diverse Women in Relational Entrepreneurship!
The CWIRE program has been the wind beneath their wings, leading to countless achievements.
Their hard work and dedication continues to bring some incredible wins for each one of them! 🙏🏾🥳
Heartfelt thanks to Mayor Jack Kowarzik and @emmavulinmp for joining us on this remarkable day!
🎓 Congratulations to all the amazing ladies 🎉 🎊
See more at www.afriausileac.org
#womenbusinessowners #CWIRE #diversity #womenempowerment #cardiniashire #afriausileac #graduation #smallbusinessowners
Hi Community Leaders & Members,
Please share below link with anyone who may have been affected or knows someone who may have been affected by the recent storm:
https://emergency.vic.gov.au/relief-and-recovery/1047
LINK IN BIO
From AfriAus iLEAC
Contact: [email protected]
www.afriausileac.org
#communitynetworking #emergencyresponse #Victoria #emergencyvictoria #aai #afriausileac
Please Join Us as we celebrate this announcement and change! 🥳🥳🎉🎉🎉🎉
WE ARE NOW A CHARITY!
#afriausileac #communityatheart #africanaustralian #charityorganization #communitywellbeing
Last one for 2023!! 🙏🏾🎉
We look forward to closing 2023 with this Multicultural Communities Dinner with you ✨️ and sharing a Succulent culturally appropriate meal with you as well.
PLEASE REGISTER AT LINK IN BIO for catering purposes 🙏🏾
#afriausileac #africanaustralian #communitynetworking #aai #communityatheart #communitywellbeing #multiculturalvictoria #cardiniashire
Cohort 2 of the CALD Women in Relational Entrepreneurship (CWIRE) is finally graduating 🎓 🙌🏾
Please Join Us as we celebrate their different achievements, journeys and dreams of contributing to the Australian society through their inspiring businesses ✨️
#afriausileac #africanaustralian #OfficeForWomen #CWIREChampions #cwire #multiculturalvictoria #graduation #communitynetworking #womenbusinessowners #entrepreneurs #empowerment
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