MD & Social Work Students Coming Together For An IP Lived Experience Workshop
As part of a Department of Health funded initiative responding to the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System, students from the MD2 and Master of Social Work programs came together for an interprofessional lived experience workshop with Listening to Voices. Delivered within the MD2 Discovery Subject When The Going Gets Tough, the emotionally powerful workshop focused on trauma, recovery, and person-centred care by fostering a more holistic understanding of people with trauma or mental health diagnoses.
On 8 August, over 30 students and staff from MD2 and Master of Social Work came together for an interprofessional lived experience workshop, delivered through the MD discovery subject, When The Going Gets Tough. Through powerful, firsthand accounts shared by the living and lived experience team from Listening To Voices, students engaged in emotionally resonant discussions around trauma, recovery, and the importance of seeing the person beyond their diagnosis, fostering a greater understanding and reducing stigma in these vital areas of care.
Students were able to learn and explore together through film, live performance and live interactive Q&A. The workshop was deeply moving and highly impactful, with many students highlighting the importance of listening without assumptions, recognising the complexity and individuality of each person's story as a key takeaway.
The workshop deepened students’ understanding of trauma as a subjective, deeply personal experience, and reinforced the need for compassionate, person-centred care that sees beyond diagnoses. Many noted a renewed commitment to creating safe spaces, maintaining hope, and truly acknowledging the strength and resilience of those they support.
By creating a safe space for learning through honest dialogue and interprofessional reflection, the workshop played a key role in preparing future clinicians and practitioners to approach person-centred care with greater empathy and respect.
This workshop was funded by the Department of Health and delivered through a collaboration between MD, Listening to Voices, and the Department’s Student Placement Project. The involvement of Listening to Voices in facilitating the workshop closely aligned with VMIAC’s commitment to valuing and amplifying the voices of people with lived experience, reflecting the broader shift toward genuine inclusion within mental health reform.
Sincere thanks for the opportunity to collaborate with all partners involved in making this important workshop possible.
