Boost to mental health services
The Government is putting millions of dollars into the mental health of residents living in the severely quakedamaged regions of Kaikoura and Marlborough.
Health Minister Jonathan Coleman has announced a $3.76 million support package for the two towns.
He said the Government was ‘‘committed to ensuring the people of Kaikoura and Marlborough can access the health services that they need’’.
‘‘We know that after a serious earthquake, people can feel stressed and anxious for long time after the event. The psychosocial recovery needs of the communities will change over the coming months and years.
‘‘The support package is deliberately short term (one year) to allow immediate assistance to be in place while a longer term, wider psychosocial recovery response is considered,’’ he said.
For Kaikoura the package includes $2m to pay the balance of the new health centre and $810,000 for six additional health practitioners with two health navigators for one year.
The Government will also pay for an extra psychologist for a year, an extra counsellor for a year, an extra mental health clinician for six months, and an older persons’ health clinician for six months.
Coleman opened a new $13.4m Kaikoura Health Centre in April, which has withstood the quake and subsequent aftershocks. ‘‘In 2013 Government approved the health centre, with the DHB contributing $10m and the community agreeing to raise $3.4m. To date the community has raised $1.4m.
‘‘We have decided to gift $2m to the Kaikoura District Council to clear the balance. Given the challenges facing the people of Kaikoura, we did not want them to be worried about fundraising at this difficult time.’’
For Marlborough, the package differed and included, $500,000 for three additional health practitioners, including a health navigator for one year, an extra mental health clinician for one year and a health promotion worker who will to help extend a mental health campaign that was developed in response to the Canterbury earthquakes.