Mental health care services to be improved, says DHB

Better access to services is on the horizon for mental health patients in Southland and Otago.

Several changes to the Southern District Health Board’s mental health, addiction and intellectual disability services are in the pipeline, but chief executive Chris Fleming told the board last week that many of the initiatives would be delayed because of the Covid-19 crisis and lockdown restrictions.

Chief among them is the Integrated Primary Mental Health Programme, which is aimed at increasing the range of mental health and addiction support services available through primary care.

The programme was announced by the Ministry of Health last year and Fleming said the board was waiting for ministry guidance on how and when the roll out would begin.

The full roll out is expected to take five years but pilots had already begun at 22 general practices in Northland, Waitemata, Auckland, Counties Manukau, Lakes, Capital and Coast, and Canterbury district health board regions.

The ministry sought industry feedback on the plan last year and Fleming said the board had suggested an expansion to existing Ma¯ori and Pacific primary services, along with an increase in nurses and youth mental health services.

The board had also proposed that mental health nurse educators be appointed for the Dunedin Hospital and Southland Hospital emergency departments and that peer-led support services should be made available for ED patients, he said.

Fleming told the board the ministry had signalled a commitment to increasing support for postvention work by providing more resources for groups throughout Southland and Otago who help patients after a suicide attempt.

This work is led by a WellSouth suicide prevention co-ordinator, he said.

Teams from Dunedin and Invercargill’s in-patient units are also testing a discharge calendar for mental health patients, Fleming told the board.

The tool provides tips for patients and their families after they’ve been admitted to hospital. A new Southern District Suicide Prevention Action Plan for this year to 2023 has been approved by WellSouth and the Mental Health and Addiction Network Leadership Group.

Fleming said the plan had four key objectives: to strengthen infrastructure for preventing suicide and self harm; to support families and communities, to offer support after a suicide, and to improve services for at-risk people.

The board is set to review how it offers mental health in the coming months.