HOPING FOR A HEALTHIER FUTURE
Plans on how Townsville can further expand as Australia’s first mentally healthy city, including mental health, Indigenous health and aged care were discussed at the Townsville Bulletin’s Future Townsville event held at The Ville on Friday.
Representatives from various sectors of the health community gathered to discuss issues and shared experiences on issues including mental health, aged care and Indigenous health.
The event was the culmination of two weeks of collaborative work between Townsville Bulletin and its partners the Townsville Hospital and Health Service, Mater Hospital, Townsville TAFE and Cowboys House.
Jaynie Seal from Sky News served as the host, with addresses from Health Minister Shannon Fentiman and Townsville Bulletin general manager Suzanne Wilson.
Ms Fentiman spoke on her role as the first Minister for Mental Health, saying more mental health care needed to be closer to home for people in Townsville.
She also spoke on the need to recruit and retain the workforce in healthcare, noting the free TAFE courses in social work and nursing.
Ms Fentiman indicated there would be more money flowing into the region in the lead-up to the election, with the three current state MPS sitting in marginally held seats that were vital to a Labor reelection effort.
“Something I’m really passionate about is making sure we can deliver those services close to home. When you’re unwell or sick, the last thing you want to do is travel to Brisbane away from your family,” Ms Fentiman said.
Demographer and co-founder of The Demographic Group, Simon Kuestenmacher, was the keynote speaker at the event, taking a closer look at the stats in Townsville and how they impact the population.
“Townsville is a bit younger on average than the whole
state, that’s largely due to the defence force, it’s a relatively young profession,” Mr Kuestenmacher said.
“You can’t tap into the young people in the Townsville population for the healthcare workforce, because they’re very much earmarked for the defence sector.”
Mr Kuestenmacher shed a light on the future of the skills shortage, noting a the significance of the need for more aged care workers.
“It’s not even up for debate that the 85 and older cohort is going to double in the next ten years,” Mr Kuestenmacher said.
He also spoke on the “ludicrous” statistics showing one in four young women in Townsville were living with a chronic mental health conditions.
“Young people these days have God-awful mental health. It’s up for speculation, but I would say this is the first cohort of people ever to grow up on mobile information technology,” he said.
“We have incredibly high suicide rates among men in particular, which suggests we have an under-reporting of mental health.”
The event concluded with a panel Q&A discussion lead by Townsville Bulletin editor Cas Garvey with Townsville Hospital and Health Service chief executive Kieran Keyes, acting chief health officer Associate Professor Catherine Mcdougall, executive director of regional health at the Mater Chris Went and Deputy chair of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community Advisory Council Angie Akee.