National Carers Week

Ms HOOD (Adelaide) (15:16): Imagine being a carer so young that you learn how to do CPR to the tune of Row, Row, Row Your Boat. That is how Joshua Patrick learnt the skill to be able to save the life of his baby sister, Charlotte, should she need it.

Row, Row, Row Your Boat was Joshua's favourite nursery rhyme. Why? Because Joshua was just six years old when he became a carer. His little sister Charlotte was born with a rare genetic condition that meant in her short life she has endured countless operations, is continuously tube fed and has many other physical anomalies which result in her requiring round-the-clock intensive medical care, much of which Joshua provides alongside his beautiful mum, Laura.

Last week, I had the honour of attending the Young Carers SA breakfast by Carer and Community SA, and listening to Joshua's story. He juggles his young caring responsibilities with school, advocacy work and public speaking, to spread the message of young carers across Australia. Joshua does this with a maturity beyond his years, quiet confidence and a positive attitude that is simply inspirational. There are up to three young carers like Joshua in every Australian classroom. There are more than three million carers like Joshua across Australia. During National Carers Week, we recognise, acknowledge and raise awareness of carers like Joshua across our country.

I would like to acknowledge the special guests in the gallery today: Carers SA and other caring organisations, including Siblings Australia, Family Drug Support, Centacare, Carers and Disability Link, Carer Council, Connecting Foster and Kinship Carers, Grandcarers SA, The Carer Project, many other organisations and individual carers in the room. On behalf of the Parliamentary Friends of Carers group, co-founded by myself and the Hon. Heidi Girolamo MLC in the other place, we welcome you and we thank you.

The call to action for this year's National Carers Week is 'Show them you care'. So how can we do that? One, by acknowledging and appreciating carers. Let's recognise the exceptional role that carers play in the lives of those who they care for. You can do this by expressing gratitude with a simple personalised note or message on social media, you can do this by being a compassionate and empathetic listener and you can do this by verbally recognising their efforts as we are doing in the parliament today.

Two, by encouraging self-care. I know how hard that must be, but remind carers to take care of themselves and prioritise their own physical and mental health. You can do this by sharing helpful resources, such as health and wellbeing apps and support groups. Simply go for a walk with them. And if you are an employer, then you can provide carers with flexible work arrangements.

Three, by offering them a break. Offer to provide carers with a break and time for themselves to recharge. You can do this by maybe running errands for them, helping with household chores, maybe planning a social activity together.

Four, by checking in regularly. Show your support for carers by checking in on them. You can do this by encouraging them to talk, if this is helpful for them, and validating their feelings without judgement.

Five, by initiating support. Carers often prioritise the wellbeing of the person they care for over their own. They might struggle to seek assistance due to a sense of guilt or fear of being judged, so ask them how you can help them. Listen to what they need and do not assume that you know.

Thank you so much to all of the carers in our community, in our state and in our country for the incredible work that you do, and a shout-out to the many young carers just like Joshua. In closing I wanted to share some words from Joshua that he sent me this morning.

I hope that my story on a broader scale raises the awareness of carers like myself—the unseen and the unsung people—who daily sacrifice so much out of the selfless love for their family members.

Thank you again and happy National Carers Week.