Welcome to our Birak (Summer) eNews.
As we approach the end of the year, the Road Trauma Support Team have been working hard to provide one-on-one support through our counselling service, delivering education and training across the state, and we were proud to launch our annual Six Supportive Steps Campaign in honour of the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims.
With the holiday season just around the corner, the team would like to wish you all a safe and joyful holiday season. We encourage you to think about how we can all contribute to making every journey safer during this time.
Please note that our office will be closed from the end of day 20 December, with staff working remotely until 6 January 2024. We will be taking a break from the end of day 24 December to the 2 of January 2025.
If you need immediate support during this time please reach out to 13YARN on 13 92 76 ( for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people in crisis) or LifeLine on 13 11 14, or text 0477 131 114.
Take care, and remember we are here to support you.
Join us by supporting the Six Supportive Steps Campaign
Week 4: Act
This week as part of our Six Supportive Steps Campaign we are encouraging taking action: to find the balance between celebrating and the need for quiet time and reflection.
The end of the year can bring along with it more social events and for someone grieving the loss of a loved one following road trauma, attending events might not be what they feel like doing. Keeping a healthy routine can help to focus on what is in your control and maintain a good balance.
For Anyone Affected by a Road Crash Webinar
Recording Available
If you missed our live webinar and would like to catch up on what our General Manager Ian Holbrook presented, the recording is now available on our Education and Training page. This webinar is designed to get you more informed on:
- The Road Trauma Support WA Service and levels of support.
- How to organise a third-party referral for individuals impacted by road trauma.
- Overview of the impact of road trauma in Western Australia.
- Where and when to access support for yourself and others.
If you are curious about webinar opportunities for your organisation or community – please contact our friendly team to secure a session for 2025.
Road Trauma Support in the Community
Over the last quarter Road Trauma Support WA (RTSWA) had the privilege of travelling to 6 regional towns, delivering 6 presentations, attending community events and meeting with our key stakeholders.
Highlights include accepting an invitation to present at the St John WA Dunsborough Sub-Centre in late October. Whilst in the region we had the opportunity to meet with the DFES team in Vasse and deliver additional presentations to colleagues at St John WA Busselton and St John of God Emergency Department in Bunbury. These sessions focused on raising awareness of RTSWA, the impact of road trauma and how frontline staff can refer those in need to our service.
In November we travelled to Hedland to provide counselling support and information sessions to South Hedland VFRS and staff at Hedland Health Campus. VFRS Marble Bar and Tom Price crews were able to attend online, extending the reach of RTSWA’s services further into the Pilbara. Thank you to the Hedland community for making us feel so welcome during our first trip to the region and it was inspiring to learn about the incredible work being done by local community services
RTSWA was honoured to present at the Department of Justice’s annual Victim Support and Child Witness Regional Conference. Our session focused on raising awareness of road trauma and how RTSWA offers support, information, and counselling statewide. It was a valuable opportunity to connect with colleagues and explore ways to collaborate in supporting families impacted by road trauma.
Looking ahead to 2025, we are excited to expand our regional travel and continue working with the community to raise awareness about the impact of road trauma.
We’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone we’ve had the privilege to work alongside this year. We appreciate the support we continue to receive from individuals, families, communities, and organisations across WA.
New refreshed Fact Sheets
Now available
This year, our Program Resources underwent a refresh, and we’re excited to have finalised this process. The entire suite of Road Trauma Support WA resources is now available and ready to download on our website.
Have something to share?
Let us know if you have an event or item you would like to include in our next quarterly eNews due out next year in March. Would you please email [email protected] with your request?
