Page 2595 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 7 August 2013
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carers. In the early days of the federal election campaign, mental health has once again emerged as a health issue that demands national attention, destigmatising and appropriate resourcing. It is an incredibly complex area for the ACT health system to respond to, but we are not a government that turns our back on people because we face a difficult and complex challenge. The ACT government’s commitment to specialist mental health facilities and services is a long and continuing one. Now is the time to support our health care professionals and mental health patients alike with a secure mental health facility in the ACT.
I want to talk about the government’s record on specialist mental health. The government has been active in the delivery of consumer-focused mental health services over many years. The delivery of services is planned around four developmental stages: older persons, adults, young people and children. Over time, new facilities have enabled the delivery of more services and new models of mental health care with a framework of integrated and coordinated care. A mental health assessment unit was opened in the Canberra Hospital in 2010 and provides a six-bed assessment and observation facility which is closely coordinated with the emergency department. It is a specialised and safe environment for people who present with an acute mental illness.
Also, in 2009 the adult step up, step down residential facility was opened and has since helped 161 people who have been discharged from the hospital with mental illness to readjust to living in the community. Just this year the youth step up, step down facility has been opened with capacity for six people requiring intensive support. In 2012 the adult mental health unit on the Canberra Hospital campus was opened and has since admitted more than 1,250 patients. The new building has enabled the delivery of a therapeutic model of care in a purpose-designed environment, and it has been an important step in the treatment of many vulnerable Canberrans.
Community mental health teams operate in people’s homes and from community health centres in Phillip, Tuggeranong, Civic, Belconnen and the new Gungahlin Community Health Centre. Expanded facilities for mental health teams have been planned for the Belconnen and Tuggeranong community health centres that are currently under construction. In funding terms, the ACT government has committed more than $55 million to mental health community service organisations between the 2008-09 and 2012-2013 financial years.
The government has also funded mental health initiatives targeted to: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth; gay, lesbian and bisexual people; refugees and newly arrived migrants. These facilities and services—thanks in particular to their committed staff—have served many patients incredibly well. But the diverse needs of the mental health arena demand that government keeps diversifying the range of care provided for our mental health system, which is why the ACT government is planning for new facilities that will come on line in coming years. These include incorporating adult mental health rehabilitation in the University of Canberra public hospital, improved services for older people, and new adolescent mental health services.
There is a need for a secure mental health facility in the ACT, and a vital part of the government's mental health planning goes to forensic and secure services. Once again,
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