Advance Diversity Services has been chosen as a Silver Service provider in the 2023 Australian Pride in Health + Wellbeing Awards announced in a live-streamed ceremony on April 5.

This is the second consecutive year that ADS has been awarded Silver, an achievement which Thanh Nguyen, ADS Manager for Business Development and Quality, says ‘is great recognition for ADS and its efforts to build inclusion’.

The awards celebrate exceptional efforts in improving LGBTQ inclusion within health, wellbeing and human services organisations across the country. They are run annually by Pride in Health + Wellbeing, the national not-for-profit inclusion program for the health, wellbeing, human services, and community care sector, spearheaded by Australia’s largest LGBTQ health organisation ACON.

Silver recognition means ADS has been highly active in its inclusion of sexuality and gender-diverse communities in comparison to the national benchmark as assessed through the Health + Wellbeing Equity Index (HWEI) for the year.

Typically, Silver recognition is limited to organisations that have obtained a score range between the top 10–20 per cent of submissions and ADS congratulates the Network of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies for also achieving Silver.

Professor Kerryn Phelps AM, Co-patron of Pride in Health + Wellbeing, said the awards ‘are a tribute to those who make a difference, who are change makers, and who stand tall to be seen as LGBTQ allies or out role models’.

Claire Allen, National Program Manager, Pride in Health + Wellbeing (PIHW), said there had been an increase in Health + Wellbeing Equality Index (HWEI) submissions in 2023 and that PIHW now have membership in almost every state and territory across Australia.

‘It is wonderful that services are not viewing LGBTQ inclusion as optional or something that can be dropped when priorities clash – but rather, we celebrate that services are now embedding inclusive care throughout service delivery, and their workforce, as an everyday part of everybody’s role.

‘LGBTQ communities are often listed as a priority population in many strategies, but tonight we are celebrating the movement from a strategy to inclusive care in action.’

Mr Nguyen said it was great that ADS had achieved a Silver award for the second year running and he congratulated the Network of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies for a similar achievement.

‘I’m really proud of the work staff and management at ADS have done together to achieve this significant award as it comes from measuring our practice across 10 significant areas, including Strategy Development, Service Planning and Provision, Visibility of LGBTQ Inclusion and LGBTQ Community Engagement.

‘Our partnership with Queer Screen to host a subsidised screening of the Sydney premiere of El Houb – the Love as part of the Mardi Gras Film Festival in 2023 and the free inclusive practice training we offered staff from community providers in the St George area are just two of the successful inclusion initiatives we’ve run in the past year.’

ADS was proud to be named as a Silver Service provider along with the Network of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies (NADA) in the live-streamed 2023 Australian Pride in Health + Wellbeing Awards.

Some award categories and their recipients in 2023 were:

  • Service Provider of the Year – Uniting Vic.Tas
  • Gold Service Providers – cohealth, St Vincent’s Health Network Sydney and Uniting Vic.Tas
  • Silver Service Providers – Advance Diversity Services and Network of Alcohol & Other Drugs Agencies (NADA).
  • Most improved Service Provider of the Year – Jewish Care NSW and St Vincent’s Health Network Sydney
  • LGBTQ Inclusive Innovation – Swapna Chaudry, Chemist Warehouse
  • LGBTQ Out Role Model – Charles Broadfoot – Hunter New England & Central Coast Primary Health Network
  • LGBTQ Ally – Rebecca Roberts – St Vincent’s Health Network Sydney

See www.prideinclusionprograms.com.au for more information.