Australian Medical Association backs Labor’s commitment to focus on mental health

Dr Choong-Siew Yong, Psychiatrist and Chair of the AMA’s Public Health and Ethics Committee, today welcomed Labor’s commitment to focus on mental health as a national health priority, but said the promise of an additional $100 million over four years, while welcome, represented only a small proportion of the funds needed to address serious unmet need.

Dr Yong said additional help for GPs to better meet the health needs of their patients, together with a better coordinated approach to mental health from the top levels of Government and across State Governments and Government departments will make a difference to the lives of the high proportion of Australians with mental health problems.

“The proposals for a Prime Minister’s Council on Mental Health and an independent annual report on mental health to be produced by a new Administrative Group on Mental Health will increase the focus on mental health issues and ensure better coordination of programs and services,” Dr Yong said.

“This is a big step forward, recognising housing, employment and other issues that contribute to mental illness.

“The formal recognition of the need to involve both carers and sufferers in service planning, policy development and evaluation of services is a positive move.

“The extension of the Positive Parenting Program will help more young children make a safer transition through their teenage years to adulthood.

“Funding for young peoples’ health centres is worthwhile at first glance but additional funds must lead to better integration with hospitals and other services.

“The promise of an additional $27.5 million for the Better Outcomes in Mental Health Program to help GPs address the mental health needs of their patients is a good move, but the program should be fully evaluated before decisions on its future can be made.

“GPs have concerns about the effectiveness of this program in its current form. The program generates a lot of red tape and is poorly remunerated. In particular, the AMA rejects the linking of Better Outcomes for Mental Health Program to Service Incentive Payments.

“We need a Medicare structure that values quality care and longer consultations with a generic chronic disease item number.

“The AMA welcomes the ALP’s commitment to review GP mental health programs in a bid to improve access and reduce red tape but there are not details of how this will be done.

“We support Labor’s focus on young people and families, and welcome additional funds to help new mothers with post-natal depression, and young people at risk. Early diagnosis and treatment help prevent more serious problems down the track.

“The Telephone Health Line will offer support to people who find it difficult to access services, especially in the bush, but health services are better delivered face to face and not over the phone,” Dr Yong said.

While Dr Yong welcomed the additional funding outlined in Labor’s initiative, he said $100 million over four years was just a drop in the ocean.

“Australia spends seven per cent of its health budget on mental health. Other first-world countries spend somewhere between 10 and 14 per cent of their total health expenditure on mental health,” Dr Yong said.

“Twelve per cent of total health spending in Australia should be committed directly to mental health. This would require an increase of $1.3 billion each year through the Australian Health Care Agreements, PBS and other measures, taking total spending on mental health to $4 billion annually,” Dr Yong said.

http://www.ama.com.au