Kia nidja Noongar Boodja, naan djerapin nidja ngalla boodja.
I acknowledge the Noongar sovereign people of the land on which we meet. I pay respect to their elders, their culture and their law. This always was, and always will be, Noongar land.
One in every five Australians is likely to experience some form of mental illness in their lifetime.
I would like to pay tribute to the many organisations here today I think they have done enormous good in helping people to recognise mental illness like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression and also in trying to change the community approach towards mental illness, and to help de-stigmatise mental illness.
The greatest burden falls on the families of those with mental illness. Families often do the bulk of caring with insufficient support or understanding from the wider community. Research shows that most mental illnesses begin between the ages of 15 and 25. Family breakdowns, peer group pressure and social ostracism can all play contributing roles, leading to the onset of mental illness.
Country areas are particularly badly serviced by mental health services. Natural disasters—droughts, floods or bushfires—can exacerbate the pressure on many Australians living in rural and remote areas. Suicide rates in regional Australia are significantly higher than those in major cities. I would also be re-miss not to note the effect of inter-generational trauma on our first peoples as a result of previous government policies such as child removal, institutionalisation and over-incarceration. The present political football of detention of asylum seekers and their children also raises similar concerns. The matter of the over-representation of people with mental illness in prisons and the criminal justice system is ringing major alarm bells. These areas, in particular, need better support services.
The Barnett government has acknowledged the importance of mental health, and has established the Mental Health Commission. That is potentially a very far-reaching reform. The Commissioner, Mr Eddie Bartnik, said this week that he wants to work in partnership with WAAMH and the non Government mental health service providers.
With appropriate treatment and early intervention, people can often recover from mental illness. But it is vital that the necessary treatments and supports be made available, allowing people to participate in the community and lead fulfilling lives.
We need to see real reform and not just cosmetic changes, we need to see a substantial shift in resources from the acute clinical approach, to the community sector organisations. The community sector organisations currently receive around 7% of the WA mental health budget, we we would like to see that shift to 25% within five years.
In the past there was a misperception that mental health care is a luxury item on the health budget and where higher mortality diseases win the lion’s share of financial support.
We now have good reason to challenge this thinking.
Mental health problems are real disorders. They cause death and disability. They cause suffering. They have symptoms. And they can be managed, with appropriate resources.
This is the message we can now communicate with confidence.
