Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 10 Hansard (25 September) . . Page.. 3283 ..

MS TUCKER (continuing):

In this report, we have looked at ways to improve services for people who are experiencing mental illness. The committee was disturbed to find that the provision of services to treat and support people with mental illness was inadequate. While there have been some improvements, and we have acknowledged in the report the Government's work in this area, services in the ACT are still underdeveloped and underresourced. The national mental health strategy has resulted in dramatic changes in how we support people with mental illness. We are moving away from institutional care to a community support model and to an integrated approach of service delivery. The move into the community must be supported by appropriate resource allocations. The cost of mental illness in terms of human suffering is significant. The financial costs associated with the provision of adequate care service are an issue for government, but must always be considered in association with the social costs of failure to provide these services.

The committee has recommended that, as a matter of high priority, the Department of Health and Community Care, in partnership with stakeholders, develop a mental health policy and strategic plan. It is rather alarming that the report would have to make such a recommendation, in light of the current time of change we are in. The committee acknowledges the work of ACT Mental Health Services, the largest provider of mental health services, who are developing a plan of their own. However, this is not good enough. There must be an overall policy framework in place which will guide the service provision in this important area. I noted in the statement on mental health services tabled on Tuesday that a list of principles was set out to guide policy and service delivery in the ACT. The committee had not seen those principles before. The department told the committee that they had set up a policy unit but they had not had time to develop Territory-wide policy because their resources were taken up in the review of legislation.

As I said, in light of the changing times in terms of mental health service delivery, it is a rather back-to-front process. We should indeed have had the policy framework in place much earlier than this. We do acknowledge, of course, that the Government is saying that it will undergo this process, but the committee felt it was alarming that it was not here and we had to make that very strong recommendation. It must be seen as a matter of priority, and it should not have been left this late.

The committee's other recommendations fall into a number of categories, other than the planning area. We looked at services for children and adolescents particularly, forensic facilities, community-based assessment treatment and support, supported accommodation, services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, interface between mental health and other services, continuity of care, advocacy, complaints mechanisms, and monitoring of service delivery. Each of these areas requires significant attention from government. The committee has pointed out the importance of prevention and early intervention measures in designing mental health services.

I will address first the issue of young people. There were a number of concerns about services for young people with a mental illness. The committee was particularly concerned that no accessible youth-specific inpatient facility exists in the ACT for young people with a psychiatric illness. The committee has heard expert evidence of the extreme unsuitability of placing psychotic youths into the Canberra Hospital psychiatric unit.

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .