Opportunities presented by the Churchill Fellowship

The chance to travel in order to fulfill the expectations of the Fellowship is a unique opportunity to discuss and share ideas with colleagues one would never normally have the fortune to meet.In the convivial atmosphere of Melbourne, and Australia in general it confers the opportunity to explore and revisit old ways of thinking. I was delighted to spend the day with Lena :seeing an aspect of clinical practice in action and then to share dinner (Malaysian noodles) at her eco-friendly  and inviting home, complete with lemon trees.

It is also an opportunity to meet with the movers and shakers, as I was lucky enough to do on Tuesday. In the morning I met the State Minister for Community Services at the launch of an early Family intervention service at Geelong, at the invitation of the Director of Take Two: a state funded service which works with children assigned to the child protection services who are suffering significant emotional and attachment disorders. In the afternoon I met with the Chief Adolescent Pyschiatrist in Victoria, Dr Sandra Radovini, who explained the context and future direction  of developments in child and adolescent psychiatry in Victoria. The state is the first in the world to restructure its services around an age range of 0-25 yrs  and its progress will be watched with interest by clinicans around the world.