On October 9, the Minister for Mental Health released its workforce report, Shaping the future: The Victorian mental health workforce strategy. The report is a key element of the government’s response to developing Victoria’s specialist mental health workforce and sits within the broader framework of workforce and mental health system reform provided by Because mental health matters: Victorian mental health reform strategy 2009-19.

You can download the report from here .

The Green Paper sets out what the Victorian Government sees as the areas it needs to reform. It contains a strong emphasis on childhood and adolescence. It advocates a system that focuses on recovery and increasing the ability of Victorians with a mental illness to be able to fully participate in the community.

The Green Paper identifies preventative measures as important as well as measures which will reduce the severity of mental health problems. A greater emphasis on early intervention for young people, a broadening of the response to the spectrum of mental health needs, the development of a responsive  system that intervenes before there is a crisis and a higher level of cooperation across sectors to support recovery and facilitate social participation.

The Victorian Government is aiming for a more flexible, consumer-oriented service which makes it easier for those affected by a mental illness to access treatment and move between the various levels and sectors of care which means a higher level of integration of community-based services.

More on the Green Paper can be found at: http://www.health.vic.gov.au/mentalhealth/reformstrategy/index.htm.

The Green Paper itself can be found here, and a copy of the summary can be found here .

HACSU's response can be found here .

The Victorian Family and Community Development Committee received references from the lower house and references from the upper house regarding Supported Accommodation for Victorian’s with a Disability or Mental Illness. Given the similarities in the terms of references it was decided to combine both inquiries.

As the inquiry discussion paper notes:

We are looking into issues, such as the standard, range and adequacy of care and accommodation currently available, the appropriateness of the current service providers, how unmet need is managed in Victoria, accessibility and appropriateness of accommodation for rural communities, ethnically diverse communities, indigenous Victorians, and the impact of the current service provision on families and carers.

For more information on the inquiry, got to the Victorian Family and Community Development Committee web site: http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/fcdc/inquiries/support_accommodation/default.htm.

HACSU's Response

A copy of HACSU's Mental Health Component response can be found here.

A copy of HACSU's Disability response can be found here.