Health Services We Fund

Mental Health

Service Development (Projects/Strategies)

Counties Manukau had one of the lowest levels of mental health service provision in the country and as a consequence increased funding was made available in 2002/2003 and 2003/2004 for the development of mental health services. The Counties Manukau District Health Board prioritised the development of mental health services and established a Mental Health Development team led by Sue Hallwright to work with the mental health sector to better meet mental health needs.

In early 2003, the team conducted a series of consultation meetings with key stakeholders to identify the issues facing the mental health system in Counties Manukau and to consider how mental health services can be developed and improved.

The initial emphasis has been on adult services including Kaupapa Maori and Pacific Peoples services, however similar work will be undertaken in relation to other services at a later date.

Key systemic issues identified were:

Fragmentation Of Services
Poor alignment between different service types
Workforce Capacity
Size/availability of Services

Specific service-related issues included:

Configuration And Role Of Core Community Teams
Acute/Crisis Responsiveness
Lack of Flexible Crisis Respite Options
Lack of Flexibility in Support Services Options

The proposed projects to address these issues are detailed on this website. Summaries of progress can be tracked through our newsletters.

Other related work that will address the identified issues includes:

Collaborative Planning For Utilisation of Blueprint Funding
Development of New Funding Mechanisms (to promote flexibility and responsiveness)
Development of Mental Health Service Partnerships
Development of Inter-sectoral Partnerships
Identification and Collation of data re high users of services
Enhanced access to /integration with CADS
Enhanced effectiveness of RCS
Enhancement of DHB Provider Arm Quality Assurance Structures
Development and Implementation of Quality Monitoring Systems

Published: 01-Sep-2008 | Website enquiries: Web Content Manager