Michael Keenan (Stirling, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Digital Transformation) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to congratulate a local organisation in my electorate of Stirling, Black Swan Health, on winning the Community Hero of the Year category at the Stirling Small Business Awards held recently. I had the pleasure of sponsoring this award category, which recognises outstanding community organisations, not-for-profits and charities that provide a significant social contribution to the Stirling community.

Last week I had the opportunity to visit the centre and congratulate the staff personally on their award and to see firsthand just how beneficial their services are. I would like to acknowledge the other finalists, the Edmund Rice Centre of WA and the Telethon Type 1 Diabetes Family Centre, which are both fantastic not-for-profit organisations that support the Stirling community as well. During my time as the member for Stirling, I've had the privilege of working with each of those organisations, whose staff go above and beyond their regular business duties for the benefit of others.

Black Swan Health was established in 2014 and offers tailored medical, mental health and disability services to hundreds of Western Australians each day to achieve the best health outcomes for all of them. Emerging from changes in the funding and service delivery model for primary health care over 2015-16, Black Swan Health acquired all service delivery programs previously provided by the Panorama Health Network and One Healthy Community. In late 2015 they were also awarded the Healthy Lifestyle program contract by WA Health, in recognition of their success in delivering exceptional health programs.

Some of the organisation's many services include their Partners in Recovery program, which delivers support for people with severe, persistent mental illness with unmet needs, their carers and their families. Black Swan Health also deliver headspace clinics and continue to embrace the needs of young Australians with the development of the free app based service called YAppEE. This service assists young people with mental illness to remain employed in those times when the illness makes it more challenging for them to feel motivated at work. Through the app, young people undertake daily check-ins with a mental health professional and receive a timely response, helping them to deal with the issue as soon as it arises.

The Stirling Business Awards are just one of the many accolades won by Black Swan Health over the past two years. In 2017 they won two categories at the WA Disability Support Awards, including Excellence in Advocacy and Rights Promotion, as well as awards at the Fremantle Business Awards and the North West Metro Business Awards. With almost 80,000 occasions of service in the last financial year, Black Swan Health has made a significant impact on the health and wellbeing of the community of Perth, and that is expected to grow significantly in coming years. I'd like to thank executive director Terina Grace and her staff for their many achievements and wish the organisation every success for the future.

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