Forum planned for mental health

Kariong branches of Australian Labor Party and Transport Workers Union are organising a joint public forum on Mental Health on Saturday, November 1, at Umina CWA Hall from 1pm.

"The aim of this forum is to bring awareness into the community of the problems associated with having a family member being mentally ill and improve outcomes for the patient and their families," Kariong ALP branch secretary Mr Harish Velji said.

"This forum is also intended to exert pressure on both the State Government and Federal Government to improve outcomes for health practitioners who have to often work under extreme conditions, circumstances and trying times.

"Kariong branch of Australian Labor Party had started discussion within the branch early last year as a result of number of personal experiences, where people were having to deal with a family member who has had mental illness," he said.

"It was already recognised early in the piece that for the people who had no experience in dealing with this issue, it became a civil rights issue.

"It was also recognised there was a balance between patients' rights and families' rights and this was not existing at present.

"There was no desire at present to rock the apple cart by either of the political parties to make any changes to Mental Health Act," Mr Velji said.

He said the branch would lobby to have an urgent study be carried out to find the impact on the families of the mentally ill since the patients have been put into community care.

He said that the aim of the meeting was to engage the Minister for Health, Minister for Science and Research, the Premier and head office of Australian Labor Party.

The branch hoped to have mental health adopted as the next subject for a summit as a natural follow-on from drugs and alcohol.

He said there needed to be an increase in funding for mental health to reflect that it is the most urgent priority for the government to address.

The government should adopt recommendations of upper house select committee on mental health, he said.

The meeting would also address "the need for an increase in the numbers of personnel in mental health as well as an increase training places".

It would also "pressure the federal government to increase training places in the universities and the number of specialist training positions".

Press release, October 13