Media release – Mental Health Council of Tasmania, 6 March 2024
MHCT calls on incoming government to prioritise prevention
“Our measure of success should be the number of people we can support to stay out of our hospitals, not the number of people we can fit into them.” That was the message from Mental Health Council of Tasmania (MHCT) CEO, Connie Digolis, at the launch of their election priorities on Wednesday in Hobart.
MHCT stood side by side with representatives from Tasmanian community mental health organisations to call on an incoming government to prioritise prevention to improve mental health outcomes for all Tasmanians.
MHCT CEO, Connie Digolis, said that while our public health system and hospitals will always play an important role in looking after our mental health, they should be the last resort and not the only option for Tasmanians seeking support.
“For a long time now the discussion about our health and mental health systems has focussed almost exclusively on how well our hospitals are equipped to meet demand. What we need is long term vision and innovative solutions from our MPs. Supports and services that help people be and stay well in their community. We know a prevention approach not only leads to better outcomes for individuals, their friends and family, but also helps keep people out of our hospitals.”
“No one wants to end up in hospital if they don’t have to. That’s why we must look at new and innovative ways to support people before they become unnecessarily unwell.”
Louise Cornish, CEO of Mental Health Families and Friends Tasmania (MHFFTas) said she regularly hears from members about the benefits of community based preventative supports, and the negative impact on those who are sadly missing out on these vital support.
“Unfortunately, we hear all too often about people who are unable to access vital support, and the huge toll that takes on their mental health, and their relationships with friends and family.”
“It makes an absolutely huge difference for the individual and their friends and family when they are able to access the community based supports they need. Many describe it as literally ‘life changing’, not only for those accessing the support, but also for their loved ones.”
MHCT’s election priorities focus on several key initiatives that would empower Tasmanians to look after their mental health and wellbeing, and make it easier and more affordable to access support before becoming unnecessarily unwell.
These initiatives include:
- Investing in Tasmanians mental health and wellbeing through the expansion of MHCT’s innovative mental wellbeing literacy campaign, Take a minute.
- Following through on long standing commitments to implementing five-year funding agreements with adequate indexation for community mental health originations.
- Expanding upon existing initiatives so they’re available to all Tasmanians, including the Mental Health Emergency Response Service and Central Intake and Referral Service.
- Committing to joint responsibility and funding with the Commonwealth Government to close psychosocial support gaps.
MHCT’s ‘Prioritise Prevention’ election document is available here.
Ted Mead
March 6, 2024 at 16:45
While Mental Health awareness has gained some traction in more recent times, it still remains way off the radar insofar as being a priority for political parties in Tasmania. Broken promises come with the vocation, it seems.
This is not old news, and I recall the ALP leading into the 2010 election announcing that it would spend $30 million to build an independent Adolescent Mental Health unit in Tasmania. Subsequent to that, when David Bartlett and then Lara Giddings held the reigns, that election promise was abruptly abandoned due to the ALP claiming the coffers were empty as a result of the Tas Liberals essentially bankrupting the state!
And now, several state elections later, Tasmania still has no Adolescent Mental Health unit – even though all the acknowledgements and planning proposals have been endorsed. Of course, the Liberals will claim there are another 16 beds in the mental health ward at the RHH, but that’s deception as they removed 11 during the reconstruction, so in reality, all that was added is 5 extra beds. Inpatient mental health care is even less active in Tasmania’s north.
From 2010 and beyond, mental health assistance declined rapidly to where, anyone who was admitted through the emergency ward was essentially just allocated a chair, placed on an emergency bed, and if they were lucky a curtain was drawn over them. I recall the appalling event in the RHH where someone was located in a storeroom and handed a hand bell to wave if necessary.
So where are these political announcements into the run-up of March 24th? I’m sure there must be policies, although once again there is little interest in governments ameliorating Mental Health issues and services.
Several years ago, I wrote to the Libs, Labs and Jacqui Lambie regarding a pressing issue of an adolescent in the north of the state who needed urgent attention. The Labs never responded, The Libs did, with a comment stating they’d get back to me, which they never did, and Jacquie Lambie, some-time later, claimed her office had never received my email.
The National Greens Party have a sound Mental Health policy, but down here the Tasmanian Greens have been completely mute. This is another reason why they don’t get my vote!