Committee

Adam Lo OAM is an occupational therapist, mental health clinician and arts health practitioner/advocate. Adam works in Metro South Health’s Child and Youth Mental Health Service (CYMHS) in Queensland, across clinical settings as well as in partnerships development, community liaison and education. He is the creator and Festival Director of the Positive Mindset Creative Arts Festival and is currently researching the link between creative activities and mental health.

Elisa Yule is a lecturer in occupational therapy at the Australian Catholic University (ACU). Elisa joined ACU in 2013 when the Bachelor of Occupational Therapy course commenced on the Sydney campus and she has been involved in developing and teaching units about mental health, counselling and group work, community development and contextual determinants of health. Before entering academia, Elisa worked as an occupational therapist in adult mental health services in Australia and in international development programs in Nepal.

 Elisa is committed to preparing students for successful careers in contemporary mental health services. This is reflected in her recent teaching and research initiatives which have focused on demonstrating the important role and contribution of consumers in the education and development of capabilities for recovery-oriented practice by occupational therapy students, as well as exploring new methods for increasing consumer participation in the design, delivery and evaluation of curricula. Elisa has also been involved in other research studies exploring issues such as consumer-driven recovery plans, employer perspectives on the skills, knowledge and attributes required by occupational therapists in mental health practice, and consumer roles in community mental health services.