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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 2 Hansard (27 February) . . Page.. 572 ..

MRS CARNELL (continuing):

ACT Mental Health Service has been signed. It will be reviewed jointly by the police and the Mental Health Service every six months. Interviews have been held for the chair of psychiatry at the Canberra Clinical School and the appointment is expected to be announced shortly. A review of forensic psychiatry services has commenced, and two nursing liaison positions have been created and filled at the Canberra Hospital. These nurses provide assessment and triage services in the emergency area of the hospital, streamlining access to services. A psychiatric nursing position has been established at the Belconnen Remand Centre.

Finally, as a means of keeping the Assembly and the community aware of developments in mental health care, the first annual report on all mental health services in the ACT will be produced in September 1997. This will become an annual event. The annual report will provide the impetus to maintain our commitment to the reform of access to, and delivery of, mental health services in the ACT. I hope members will agree that I have outlined some overdue changes in the area of mental health. I am pleased to be able to assure the community that mental health continues to be a high priority for this Government. I present the following paper:

Mental Health Services in the Australian Capital Territory - ministerial statement, 27 February 1997.

I move:

That the Assembly takes note of the paper.

MR BERRY (3.48): Mr Speaker, it is a $150,000 priority, it seems. Mr Speaker, mental health services in the ACT have been the subject of much interest because of the Government's mishandling of the whole affair. For example, since Mrs Carnell came to office, there has been plenty of opportunity for her to fill permanently the position of Director of Mental Health Services. We recall vividly that the Acting Director of Mental Health Services was made a scapegoat because of some sort of a disagreement between him and the Carnell Government. But that is something that we have become used to, in terms of the Government's management of its employees.

Mr Speaker, we have for a long time heard about the imminent appointment of the professor of psychiatry. Strong rumours prevail that the position could be downgraded to associate professor. I would like Mrs Carnell to deny that in her response to the debate on this issue, because it is a serious and strong rumour that the University of Sydney will downgrade the position from professor to associate professor, against the background of the inability of the Government to provide the proper basis for a professorial chair. So, Mrs Carnell, I call on you to deny that that will occur.

Mr Speaker, I saw a press release in the last little while about a world-renowned psychiatrist coming to guide the ACT's community mental health program. I thought to myself, "If you were going to have a world-renowned psychiatrist coming to help guide the ACT's community mental health program, you would really want the captain of the ship to be around to see what he wanted to do". But still we have this ship without a rudder.

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