Youth Enhanced Service - Gippsland
Free mental health and wellbeing support for young people aged 12 to 25 years in Gippsland.
Are you a young person who’s looking to get the right support for your mental health? Our Youth Enhanced Service, known as the YES program, is here to help you.
We help young people aged 12-25 years who:
- live, work and/or study in Gippsland
- need more mental health support than is available through their doctor, school counsellor or headspace
- find it hard to access specialist services, such as those provided in hospitals.
It can be hard to know whether a service is right for you. We invite you to contact us to speak to our friendly staff about our service and your situation.
How can we help?
We’ll work with you and your family to provide mental health and wellbeing support based on your needs and goals.
The best support for you can change over time depending on your needs, and might include:
- talking about your experiences and how they impact you
- thinking about new ways to look at and solve your problems
- helping you take part in work, study or other important activities
- counselling, group work and other types of support which can help you with your mental health
- case management (working with you to make plans) to help you achieve your goals
- developing a written care plan (a document which lists the support options you have talked about with the YES team member)
- including your family members in the process, if you want this
- connecting you with other services that can help.
If there’s another service which is a better fit for you, we’ll talk to you about this and help you to get the right support.
How can you access the program?
You can access the YES program over the phone, online via video call, or in person at several locations across Gippsland, including Wonthaggi, Bairnsdale, Sale and Traralgon. We can also meet you at another location that’s easier for you to get to.
We're available:
- Monday 10am – 6pm
- Tuesday 10am – 8pm
- Wednesday 10am – 6pm
- Thursday 10am – 8pm
- Friday 10am – 6pm
We also provide after-hours telephone support once young people have joined the program. This is available until 10pm, Monday to Friday.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
- Mental Health Navigators: Experienced healthcare professionals who are trained in mental health.
- A First Nations Mental Health Navigator to support First Nations and other young people in our service.
- Lived Experience Peer Workers: Young people on our team who have experience of mental health challenges and understand what you’re going through.
- A Youth Alcohol and Other Drugs Worker who provides support when young people are experiencing challenges with their substance use.
- Eating Disorders Victoria who provide telehealth appointments for young people with an eating disorder.
A group of healthcare experts guides the staff who support you. This includes a senior consultant psychiatrist, a general practitioner (GP) and an occupational therapist who has experience working with neurodivergent young people. 'Neurodivergent' describes people whose brains work differently to others, such as Autistic people and people with ADHD or dyslexia.
We also work with a range of services in Gippsland and across Victoria so that we can connect you with other support you may need.
Everything we do in the YES program is based on real (lived) experience. Most importantly, if you decide to come and check us out, you’ll receive support which is relevant to your lived experience.
You’ll be the one making the decisions about the support you receive and who you want involved. This might include our team and your family, friends and others that are important in your life.
When developing the YES program, we asked young people in Gippsland about the support young people need and how they want to be treated in their mental health journey. These answers have informed how we deliver the program. We’ll continue to listen to you and adjust our service based on what you tell us.
We’ll also ask for feedback from a range of people including our:
- Lived Experience Peer Workers
- youth reference group which is made up of local young people who understand mental health challenges.
- family/friends reference group which is made up of people who have experience supporting young people with mental health challenges.
You don’t need a referral to contact us or access the YES program. If you would like your practitioner, such as your doctor or psychologist, to contact us and introduce you, we welcome this.
Family members and friends can also contact us on your behalf, if you’re comfortable with that and tell them it’s okay.
Relationships Australia Victoria, also known as RAV, is leading the YES program across Gippsland. We are a not-for-profit organisation that supports people with their relationships, family and wellbeing. We work across Victoria and have been providing support in Gippsland for over 60 years. Our services include support for young people and we run 3 headspace sites in Bairnsdale, Sale and Wonthaggi.
The YES program is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care. Administration of funding is carried out by Gippsland Primary Health Network.
We work with several other organisations in the Gippsland area to provide our services. Our partners are:
- Youth Advocacy and Support Service
- Eating Disorders Victoria
- Dr Leeanne Fisher, Senior Consultant Psychiatrist
- Jo Rouse, Senior Occupational Therapist, The Social Confidence Collective
- Dr Erin Dolan, Clinical Psychologist, Erin Dolan and Associates
- Dr Anna Howsen, General Practitioner, Wonthaggi Medical Group
Contact us
Talk to us today about how we can support you:
- Phone 1300 071 166
- Email [email protected]
- Fill out the form below.
Please note that the YES program isn’t a crisis service. If you feel unsafe, call Emergency Services on 000. If you need to talk to someone straight away, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800.
