Forum gauges mental support

NATIONAL Mental Health Commission representatives gained a valuable insight into the level of mental health services in Townsville during a forum this week.

The event was attended by NMHC CEO Dr Peggy Brown who said the commissioners and executives met consumers, carers and other members of the community with interest in the industry.

“We wanted to get a sense of what’s actually happening for people in Townsville in terms of their experience currently with mental health,” she said.

“We provide a report every year on the state of mental health and the suicide prevention systems and to do this we inform ourselves in a range of ways in terms of what’s happening and where.”

Dr Brown said the Federal Government was investing in mental health and needed to know what was working.

“People often bring up the level of services, whether access is there when they need it, whether they are followed up after discharge, the connection between GP and services, communication, the supports for carers and the NDIS,” she said.

“These are the sorts of things we hear a lot but it helps us reinforce the message when we take it back to our masters.”

Herbert MP Cathy O’Toole attended the forum and said she was very impressed to see the number of commissioners and the CEO come to Townsville.

“The community should feel very happy that the NMHC is taking this very seriously,” she said.

Ms O’Toole said it was important for the Government to understand there still needed to be funding specifically for mental health services not connected to the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

“We need to determine what services will be available for those people not eligible for the NDIS,” she said.

Dr Brown said the reform would improve the quality of services and the experience that people had when they approached them.

“It’s acknowledged across the country that we still have quite a long way to go to get to the point where people can say their experience was good and their needs were met.”

The 10 commissioners and executives who came to Townsville from Sydney and Melbourne also visited relevant services and organisations covering primary healthcare, the public and private sectors and non- government organisations.

Co- chair for the NMHC Lucy Brogden said some of the biggest issues the commission focused on was the roll out of 31 primary health networks across the country.

“We are also working closely to understand people with psychosocial disabilities and their experiences in the NDIS, and we want to hear thoughts, ideas and experiences,” she said.