Linda is Director Training and Capacity Building (Disability and Aged Care) at LGBTIQ+ Health Australia. Linda has worked in human services for over 20 years in roles spanning direct support, operational management, quality improvement and policy both in the ACT and Victoria. Linda is a trained Improvement Coach and Lead Auditor with qualifications in applied Human Rights, Health Education, Disability and Social Work.
Linda is passionate about contributing to better health and social outcomes through system improvement, participatory practice and the power of lived experience.
Somewhere over the silver rainbow: A decade of LGBTI inclusion training – what have we learnt and what happens now?
Precis
Ten years since its launch Silver Rainbow has helped shape a more inclusive and affirming sector for LGBTI older people across Australia through training and capacity building delivered by LGBTI Community Controlled Organisations. As the current day aged care landscape embraces a legislatively enshrined rights-based approach, this program has remained steadfast in its mission: to equip aged care providers with the knowledge, empathy, and practical tools to foster cultural safety, visibility, and respect for LGBTI older people.
In real terms though, how much has been achieved in terms of actual changes for the LGBTI older person engaging with the aged care sector? When many providers still maintain “we don’t have any LGBTI people in our service” research shows many older LGBTI people are fearful of expressing who they are when they engage with aged care services.
This session considers the current and future needs of the sector while exploring the evolution of a training initiative grounded in lived experience and sustained by deep community engagement. The evolution of Silver Rainbow highlights how through consistent investment in inclusive education, providers can shift culture, elevate standards, and restore dignity for those historically excluded. Recognising that on the way to this ten-year milestone we have realised that training must consider the needs frontline care workers, leadership and governance teams.
Drawing on powerful stories shared by LGBTI elders through the National Advocacy Network, this session reveals the real-world impact of visibility and connection in later life. It explores how inclusion is not a nice to have but essential to a rights based Aged Care environment and how Silver Rainbow can support providers to reshape practice, and foreground inclusion and belonging as a fundamental right.
This session will explore:
• Silver Rainbow training evaluation data: what have participants told us?
• Research findings concerning LGBTI older people’s experiences and hopes for aged care services.
• What are the new and future training and capacity building needs of the aged care workforce and what is the role of the LGBTI Community Controlled sector?