Horses for Hope & Kildonan UnitingCare Program Evaluation Report 2015

Research by Susan Geraghty and Danny Blay

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Executive Summary

The Kildonan UnitingCare Horses for Hope program mission is to use horse and human connection to address the needs of both in a safe and therapeutic environment. The Horses for Hope Equine Assisted Therapy (EAT) model brings the horse and person into interaction with each other, working with the parallels between their stories. Horses for Hope uses narrative therapy methods, combined with the experience of rehabilitating neglected, abused or traumatised horses (using Natural Horsemanship methods). This provides the scaffolding to enable people to transition from the domination of troubling life experiences, life stories and perceptions of themselves, to feelings of self-worth and self-efficacy. Horses for Hope has been operating since 2003 in the Shepparton region. After the Black Saturday bushfires in 2009 the program was extended to Kinglake. The program to date has assisted approximately 1500 people aged from 3 to 80, mainly from Victoria. Participants include bushfire survivors, children and youth, parents, and people with a range of mental health issues including anxiety, social phobia, depression and conditions such as autism and attention deficit disorder. The purpose of the evaluation project was to provide evidence of participant and careridentified outcomes, identify the strengths and limitations of the program and provide recommendations for future program development and ongoing evaluation. From an identified list of 150 participants, 60 contacts were made via email (representing all available email addresses on file). An online survey was then sent to these contacts to complete anonymously and a request for interested participants and carers to participate in a telephone, Skype or face-to-face interview. Respondents provided retrospective assessments regarding the participant’s sense of wellbeing and identified attitudes and behaviours pre and post their involvement with Horses for Hope. They also provided feedback about the processes and practices involved in the program.

Fifteen participants and carers provided authorisation to be contacted by the consultants for an interview and thirteen participated in an interview. The identified outcomes for the participants of the Horses for Hope program are overwhelmingly positive. Both participants and carers identified improvements in a range of participant behaviours and attitudes identified by Kildonan as evidence of a changed perception of self. These are:

• Greater sense of well being

• Increase in positive interactions with others

• Improved anger management and increased self control

• Greater engagement and attendance at school or work

• Greater engagement in community activities

• Improved social abilities

• Improved sleep

• Reduced use of alcohol and other drugs

• Stronger connection between children and parents

• Increased ability to self-manage and self-calm

In addition, participants also identified feeling greater confidence and trust in themselves as well as better self-awareness, emotional and behavioural control, resilience, assertion and communication skills, and reduced anxiety and fear.

Survey results indicate:

• an increase from 10 per cent of participants reporting a positive sense of self to almost 77 per cent

• an increase from 7 per cent of participants reporting feeling confident to over 83 per cent

• an increase from 38 per cent of participants reporting feeling capable to 91 per cent

• an increase from 31 per cent of participants reporting enjoying spending time with their families to 83 per cent

• an increase from 38 per cent of participants reporting an ability to adapt to change to 100 per cent

• a decrease from 23 per cent of participants reporting sometimes or often using drugs to calm down to 7 per cent an decrease from 77 per cent of participants reporting sleeping badly to 23 per cent.

Parents/carers of participants reported:

• an increase from 8 per cent of participants taking responsibility for their choices to 61 per cent

• an improvement from 53 per cent of participants never or not often enjoying being with family to almost 70 per cent enjoying being with family

• a reduction from 85 per cent of participants never or not often being happy with their ability to deal with problems to 7 per cent

• over two-thirds of participants never or not often being able to adapt to change which reduced to 15 per cent • a reduction from almost 77 per cent of participants often or always getting angry to approximately 15 per cent.

• a dramatic improvement from over 84 per cent of participants who could never or not often tell when s/he was getting angry, nor knew how to calm down, to over 69 per cent of participants now often being able to.

The strengths of the Horses for Hope program lie in its sound theoretical base, its adherence to its documented policy and procedures, the reciprocity of assistance between the participants and the horses, the relationships developed between the participants and the horses and staff, the skill and wisdom of the staff (and volunteers) and the flexibility of the program to meet each individual participant’s needs. The limitations of the program are due primarily to its lack of accessibility. There are only two locations where the program is being conducted, both in rural Victoria. This impacts greatly on the availability of the program for participants who could benefit and for those who are without transport. Training for additional staff members is also an issue as it requires people with particular skills and knowledge to be able to work effectively with the participants and the horses. The lack of a range of locations and the paucity of skilled staff seriously impact on the capacity of the Horses for Hope program to assist the many potential participants who could benefit from the experience.