Page 4102 - Week 13 - Thursday, 2 December 2021
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Mental health services—mental health, alcohol and other drug use disorders
MS LEE (Kurrajong—Leader of the Opposition) (4.11), by leave: On behalf of Mrs Jones, I move:
That this Assembly:
(1) notes:
(a) the current mental health system in the ACT is comprised of the following facilities and teams:
(i) mental health teams including Adult Community Mental Health teams, and the Older Persons Mental Health Community team;
(ii) accommodation and inpatient services, including the Dhulwa Secure Mental Health Unit, Gawanggal Mental Health Unit at Calvary, the Mental Health Short Stay Unit, Adult Mental Health Unit, Adult Mental Health Rehabilitation Unit, the Adult Mental Health Day Service, the Older Persons Mental Health Inpatient Unit, and Ward 2N; and
(iii) community-based services, including the Forensic Mental Health Service, the Perinatal Mental Health Consultation Service, the Adult Step Up Step Down Program and the Alcohol and Drug Service Medical Services unit at the Canberra Hospital;
(b) mental health disorders are prevalent amongst people in the custody of the ACT at the Alexander Maconochie Centre;
(c) drug and alcohol rehabilitation services are provided by the community sector and are not co-located with, or delivered in conjunction with, mental health services in the ACT;
(d) in 2018, the NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Mental Health and Substance Use found that:
(i) more than one-third of individuals with an alcohol and other drug use disorder had at least one comorbid mental health disorder, but the rate was even higher among those in alcohol and other drug treatment programs; and
(ii) there are a large number of people who present to alcohol and other drug treatment who display symptoms of disorders but do not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of a mental health disorder;
(e) the Productivity Commission Inquiry Report on Mental Health of 30 June 2020 found that “[m]any people with mental illness and comorbid physical health problems or substance use disorders do not receive integrated care, leading to poor outcomes, including premature death,” and recommended that “[m]ental health services should be required to ensure treatment is provided for both mental illness and substance use disorder for people with both conditions”; and
(f) the Territory has a responsibility to treat people with both mental health disorders and alcohol and other drug use disorders in a holistic and integrated way;
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