The scholarships are a product of recommendations made from the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System.
Twenty scholarships will be offered to postgraduate students specialising in addiction to bolster Victoria’s mental health workforce.
Victoria’s Minister for Mental Health Gabrielle Williams said the scholarships would help recipients broaden their ability to work with people receiving treatment, support and care for their co-occurring mental health condition and alcohol and other drug (AOD) use.
The scholarships are worth $10,000 each and will go towards helping students attain the Graduate Certificate of Addictive Behaviours, delivered by Monash University from February-November 2024.
The Hamilton Centre – which was founded following recommendations into the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System – delivers specialised addiction services at St Vincent’s Hospital, Eastern Health, Western Health, Austin Health, and Goulburn Valley Health.
The Victorian government allocated $97.4 million to growing the mental health and AOD workforce in the 2023/4 budget.
“Our dedicated mental health and wellbeing workforce is the backbone of reforms to the system; we are ensuring we provide them with the specialist training and support they need to deliver the best care for all Victorians,” Ms Williams said.
“In the past, there has been limited addiction specialists in Victoria – that is why these scholarships are critical to help fill that gap and improve outcomes for Victorians living with AOD and mental health conditions.”
Applications for the Graduate Certificate of Addictive Behaviours close on 1 October 2023.
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