Vast scope to mental health look

A sweeping mental health review could take a year to complete but the scale and scope is set to go far beyond mental health services.

It could look at mental health education, Corrections, workplace attitudes to mental health and building long-term resilience.

However, the Government has made no decisions on what type of inquiry it would be, the size or its purpose and scope, MPs on the health select committee have learned.

Ministry of Health officials briefed the committee on Wednesday about the inquiry’s progress. It is a promise on the Government’s 100-day plan, and an announcement is still expected to be made some time before February 3.

Officials also revealed there had been no progress in the allocation of a $100 million fund that the previous Government had set aside for 17 new initiatives, announced just before the election.

That was to include a new school-based package focused on building resilience and improving support for children and young people, as well as the rollout of a suite of new ‘‘e-therapy’’ options.

The new Government was considering whether to spend that money elsewhere but some of its policy commitments were similar.

‘‘The situation with the change of Government on that funding, was none of that funding had actually been allocated and drawn down to initiatives,’’ said Ministry of Health deputy chief policy officer Hannah Cameron.

‘‘So the previous Government had indicated which initiatives would be supported. The incoming Government is still looking at whether the particular programmes that were suggested under that, are the right ones to draw that money into.’’

Cameron said the promised mental health inquiry would have a ‘‘broad scope’’.

‘‘It will be looking at the current approach to mental health and how to achieve best outcomes.

‘‘It will cover both mental health and addiction. And really the broadness of the inquiry is that it will cover the prevention of mental health problems and the promotion of wellbeing, as well as just a response to those who are suffering from mental illness.

The inquiry would not be limited to looking at the health service’s response to mental health presentations. It would also likely look at ‘‘wider determinants’’ of poor mental health, and have a strong focus on inequalities in the mental health system.

Cameron said the current expectation ‘‘is that we’re looking at an inquiry that reports back before the end of next year’’.

But the new Government had other manifesto commitments around addressing immediate need that it would not wait on the inquiry to enact.

There have been dozens of inquiries into aspects of the mental health system over the past few decades, and six into the entire sector. Ministry of Health officials had been working on advice for Health Minister David Clark, however officials told MPs they expected the inquiry would likely be independent of them.

No formal decision had yet been made by the Government as to whether it would be independent, what the terms of reference would be, how much it might cost and who would conduct the inquiry.

Ministry director of mental health services Dr John Crawshaw said there was ‘‘already a considerable body of knowledge’’ about the issues driving pressure in the mental health sector.

But the inquiry would be useful to bring communities, services and the public on board with what changes did need to happen.

‘‘What we don’t necessarily have is a consensus between the mental health sector and the wider community. One of the options that would potentially come out of an inquiry is consensus building as to the next stages of transformation of the system,’’ he said.

On suicide figures, Crawshaw said: ‘‘Our suicide rates are stubbornly static and too high, and I think that we do need to do things to reduce those. Whether it’s ever possible to get to zero suicide ... It’s something most of us would aspire to ... however I do think we need to set realistic goals.’’