Our blog
We believe in sharing the knowledge and learnings we capture through our work with people and organisations across the health and social services sectors.
Our blog consists of thoughtful and practical content and insight across a range of topic areas that aims to better enable people and organisations to plan, design, implement and evaluate their work.
6 months into our new way of working - what has changed?
Just over six months ago, Beacon Strategies started on a journey of re-discovering how our organisation works. This post shares what we’ve learnt from the changes we’ve made to our operating system—teams rule, limiting work in progress, working in sprints, retros and working in public—which have had a big impact on how we deliver high quality consulting services to our client partners.
Cairns Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan
The Beacon Strategies team (Rebecca Patterson and Mitchell Stalker) took a brief three day site visit to Cairns (Tuesday 22nd of January - Thursday 24th of January) to formally commence the the development of a suicide prevention community action plan for the region (on behalf of Northern Queensland PHN).
The First 2000 Days Framework
Primary Health Networks (PHN) and Local Health Districts (LHD)/Hospitals and Health Services (HHS) play a key role in identifying mothers and children who need specialised support and referring them onward to evidence based support programs. Strong and’ a timely impetus to buddy up and flesh out what a ‘good’ maternal and child health system could look like.
Aged Care Innovation: The Buurtzorg Model
The Buurtzorg Model has transformed community-based aged nursing in the Netherlands, at scale, to keep older adults healthy and out of hospital. But can the Buurtzorg Model be translated to the Australian context? Is it possible to reverse or better leverage the trend of an increasingly non-clinical in-home aged care workforce? How do we shift from delivering aged care services transactionally to relationally?
Utilising external resourcing to deliver on contracts that require a mix of technical and engagement capability
After the successful commencement of a recent stakeholder engagement and community development contract in partnership with a not-for-profit, we have gained a number of insights into how external resourcing can support the NFP sector to deliver on service delivery contracts. Read on for our thinking on how to strike the optimal balance of direct employment and external resourcing for your NFP.
What the ‘Every Life’ Plan Means for the Future of Suicide Prevention in Queensland
In a new wave of suicide prevention policies and activities aiming to stem the growing rate of suicide, the Queensland Mental Health Commission have recently released ‘Every life’, The Queensland Suicide Prevention Plan for 2019-2029. In this blog, we explore what the plan means for your organisation and clients.
2019 Year in Review
In our final blog of the year, we recap on 'the year that was' by showcasing the broad variety of projects we have delivered in 2019 as well as re-sharing all blogs released on our website throughout the year (ideal for reading over the holidays).
When to consider Social Return on Investment (SROI) over a traditional evaluation approach
Social Return on Investment or SROI is an evaluative approach that combines participatory evaluation with aspects of economic analysis. We take a look at what SROI is (and isn’t), how it differs from other evaluation approaches, and some tips on when to consider using it to evaluate your work.
What’s new in mental health in 2019?
In consulting, you have to remain at the forefront of many different areas of your field. Mental health is a nation-wide public health priority and thus a hot topic for many organisations that we work with in health and social services. Being informed about all the sectors we work across is one of our core values.