The ACAP Clinic has been recognised for its remarkable education and contribution to community healthcare at the 2024 NSW International Education Awards hosted by Study NSW.
The ACAP Clinic was nominated in the education provider category.
About 150 students studying social work, psychology or counselling participate in the clinic each year, with around 70 per cent of student clinicians being international students.
The clinic was recognised for its program targeting suicide rates among Nepalese international students, as well as its support service for students across the country.
The clinic provides free individual therapy, group work and casework to people regardless of visa status, without a requirement for Medicare eligibility and runs programmes targeting vulnerable communities.
This means student clinicians often support other international students, who without this service would not be able to access any mental health support during their time in NSW.
The services are provided by clinicians accredited in Australia and student clinicians supervised by them.
ACAP’s Clinics Director Deb Gavan said: “I believe our recognition is twofold; the first thing being the way that we support international students in their professional growth and their work as emerging professionals in psychology, counselling and social work.
“The second being the work that we do with international students across Australia, not just in NSW but across Australia.”
The clinic is based in Sydney and offers national support through a telehealth service.
“We are always happy to accept referrals, including for people in regional and remote areas because we offer telehealth as well,” Deb said.
“We have lots and lots of programs and so there’s plenty of space always.”
Supporting the international student community
The clinic provides support to students from tertiary institutions across Australia with the International Student Wellbeing Support Group.
The clinic is also supporting the Nepalese community with the Community Development Project to Support International Students from a Nepalese Background.
“We came across some research that said that there’s a current spike in completed suicides by International students, particularly in the Nepalese community,” Deb said.
“We have a cohort of student clinicians from Nepalese backgrounds, and so we asked them to do some more research into that and then we ran a focus group to come up with some ideas of how we might be able to address that issue.”
One of the things the clinic has done is produce resources around mental health generally and the ACAP services in both Nepali and Hindi and distribute them to members of the community in Sydney and NSW.
“We [also] work biculturally and bilingually with those people around their mental health,” Deb said.
"It gives our student clinicians an opportunity to work biculturally, but also allows us to access members of the community that wouldn't be otherwise able to access mental health services, particularly in their own first language."
ACAP General Manager Lucy Schulz said the University College is incredibly proud of the Clinic’s contribution and recognition.
“The ACAP Clinic reflects our commitment to positively impacting the world through competent and passionate graduates. ACAP students are more than just graduates of their chosen profession, they are people who positively influences other people’s lives,” she said.
“The work of the international students in the clinic supporting the Nepalese community in particular is something we are incredibly proud of and shows the importance of supportive, hands-on clinical experience in shaping our future clinicians and workers.”
The winners of the 2024 NSW International Education Awards will be announced on Wednesday 6 November.
