The Ministry of Health has published a series of reports which map mental health and addiction service provision in what is a New Zealand-first for the sector.
The reports, produced by Sapere, cover three areas:
- Mental Health and Addictions Services Mapping: Services accessed by the infant, child and youth population;
- Alcohol and Other Drug Services Mapping;
- Forensic Mental Health Services Mapping.
“For the first time, New Zealand has a clear picture of where mental health and addiction ringfenced funding is being spent, what is making a difference, and where more attention is needed,” said Mental Health Minister, Matt Doocey.
“Billions of dollars of taxpayers’ money goes into mental health and addiction every single year, but until now we haven’t had a clear enough picture of whether that investment was reaching the right services, in the right places, for the people who needed it most.”
The Government established the Mental Health and Addiction Ringfence Taskforce to address investment clarity.
“Three independent reports published today give us the clearest picture yet across infant, child and youth mental health and addiction services, alcohol and other drug services, and forensic mental health services,” said Mr Doocey.
“We can now see where investment is going, who is using services, where services are under pressure and where there are gaps.
“That means we can make better decisions about where funding should go next, rather than simply putting more money into the system and hoping for the best.
“Our mental health plan is focused on faster access to support, more frontline workers, and a better crisis response. We need to know that investment is translating into those better outcomes for New Zealanders.
“By publishing these reports, we are again proving that we are not afraid of being held accountable and being transparent with New Zealanders about where we need to do better.”
The Minister said the findings will continue to inform future policy and investment decisions.
“The dedicated youth mental health roadmap being co-designed by young people will complement this work by also ensuring their voices are heard and that it is designed around their needs and what works best for them.”
“This is a step forward in continuing to turn the corner, fix the basics and build a better mental health system.”
The reports can be found here and here.
Health New Zealand has also published the Mental Health and Addiction Ringfence Taskforce Close-out Reportnorth_east. This report summarises the key outputs, findings, and achievements of the Mental Health and Addiction Ringfence Taskforce and outlines how its work will be embedded into ongoing business-as-usual processes.
