Bay’s mental health services ‘stretched’

Mental health services in Hawke’s Bay are over-subscribed because of growing demand and health workers are worried about the increasing number of children and young people they are seeing.

Hawke’s Bay District Health Board’s Baseline report – compiled by the Sapere Research Group – assessed the region’s health sector before the development of a Clinical Services Plan, which will set the course for medical services over the next 15 years.

The report noted the board’s development of a new inpatient unit [in 2016] and a new model of care that led to a reorientation of service away from the ward to managing patients in the community with a rapid response to acute situations.

But referrals to mental health services had ‘‘increased sharply and the system is stretched at many levels, for example mental health services for young people’’, it said.

Mental health is the region’s second most common chronic condition, with 13,691 patients. The only chronic condition more common was cardiovascular disease, with 31,844 patients.

The number of primary referrals to mental health and addiction services in Hawke’s Bay had risen by 38 per cent in the past decade and the report said the public health service was concerned about the boost it was seeing in mental health disorders, anxiety and distress in children.

‘‘Referral pathways are not ideal; child and adolescent mental health services are unable to see many children and NGOs [the eight non-government organisations in the region] are struggling with the increased volume of referrals,’’ it said.

Primary mental health services were oversubscribed.

‘‘The primary mental health programme is seen as important but it is funded and provided to a level well short of what is needed,’’ it said.

Those working in the service believed there needed to be a bigger focus on prevention and said more counsellors were needed.

Hawke’s Bay DHB chief executive Kevin Snee said the board was meeting all of its Ministry of Health waittime targets for mental health.

Snee said there was a lack of confidence around referral figures from more than four years ago, and the actual increase in referrals to mental health and addiction services was likely to be far less than 38 per cent.

In the past four years, specialist mental health referrals had grown by 4.4 per cent, and the investment in mental health and addiction services had increased by 5.7 per cent over the same period.

‘‘We ... believe there are fundamental changes in mental health awareness that is leading to an increase in referrals,’’ he said.

‘‘Greater awareness can only be a good thing but it does require a different health response, which is why a Clinical Services Plan is so important,’’ Snee said.