Meet Dr Maggie Turczynski, one of our Social Work Site Managers at Austin Health.

Maggie joined Austin Health in 1988, over 35 years ago, and has never looked back.

Her current role is a tapestry of leadership, education, coordination, and advocacy. Maggie leads a team of 10 social workers who provide social work services to sub-acute wards, the Better@Home program and paediatric outpatient clinics. Her responsibilities also include the management of discharge planning to aged residential care and coordinating the Transition Care Residential waitlist.

"The most rewarding aspect of my role is working with others to achieve the best outcomes for our patients. I enjoy encouraging, empowering and educating others including the new generations of social workers,” shares Maggie.

“It is a privilege to be part of our patients' lives when they are at their most vulnerable and help make a positive difference in their lives through our intervention,” she adds.

Today is World Social Work Day and the theme is ‘Buen Vivir: Shared Future for Transformative Change’.

“Today is a celebration that aims to highlight social work's achievements, raise social services' visibility, and defend social justice and human rights. For me, it is a day to celebrate the contribution we make to individuals, families, communities, and the wider society.”

The social work role also includes the coordination and completion of applications to VCAT for the appointment of a guardian and/or administrator where the treating team is concerned that:

• a person with a disability is not able to make a decision that needs to be made
• there is no other less restrictive way the decision can be made
• there are concerns about the decisions the person is making or others are making on their behalf

These applications are made as a last resort where there is no less restrictive alternative to protect and promote the human rights of an adult with disability. In 2023 we lodged 45 applications that on average took 43.5 days to be scheduled for a hearing. This wait significantly extended the patient’s hospital stay with psychosocial implications for the patient and their loved ones.

Maggie has been working on an important initiative with the VCAT Deputy Manager Human Rights Division and the hospital hearing coordinator to establish an Austin Health VCAT Hearing Calendar with hearings being scheduled monthly, and at times twice per month, to reduce the wait time for hearings.

Maggie says, “We held our first hospital-based hearings in February 2024. This initiative results in better outcomes for our patients as the VCAT member can meet patients, who otherwise would not be able to attend the hearing, on the wards.”

It also improves discharge planning as hearing dates are known in advance and allows the treating team to attend the hearing and contribute to the presented evidence.

For those starting their career as a social worker, Maggie advises “Find an area of work you are passionate about, keep learning. Remember it is not your job to save everyone; take care of your wellbeing and set boundaries.”