Collective Effort Will Ensure The Auditor General’s Recommendations On Mental Health Support Hit The Mark

Recommendations in the Meeting the mental health
needs of young New Zealanders report released today
by the Auditor General show there is a long way to go to
ensure every young person who needs support can access
it.

“We’ve got to do everything we can to ensure
rangatahi and young people get support with mental health
issues in a timely and appropriate way. These
recommendations provide further impetus for change,” said
Karen Orsborn, Chief Executive of Te Hiringa Mahara | Mental
Health and Wellbeing Commission.

“While many reports
and recommendations have come before this one, we are not
seeing these translated into action.

“We see this as
an opportunity for the first Minister for Mental Health to
make a real difference. The recommendations call for system
leadership. For this to become a reality the Minister could
create a sense of urgency and drive improvements that will
deliver for rangatahi and young people.”

“The emphasis
on the agencies that plan and fund services working together
is the key to untapping collective effort that will make
real change.”

The Auditor General highlights how
tailoring support to the specific needs of young people
helps overcome the barriers accessing services faced by
young people.

“Services have got to be where young
people commonly spend time, and designed to be accessible,
youth appropriate and holistic. To get the best outcomes,
young people need to lead in the design and delivery of
services that are tailored for them,” Ms Orsborn
said.

This report comes at a time when rangatahi and
young people are experiencing higher rates of mental
distress and longer wait times to access support. In the
Commission’s recent Briefing to the Incoming Minister, we
pointed to the need to expand access to youth mental health
and addiction services so no matter where people live or
what their ethnicity or gender is, people can get the help
they need.

“We know that Māori, rainbow young people,
and young people in state care have higher rates of distress
yet can’t always get access to the care they need. We need
to see this change,” Ms Orsborn said.

The findings of
the Auditor General mirror conclusions we have reached, and
those of the Cross-Party Mental Health and Addiction
Wellbeing Group whose report Under One Umbrella, released in
September 2023, focused on integrated mental health, alcohol
and other drug use care for young people.

“Te Hiringa
Mahara will continue to advocate for changes that improve
access to and quality of mental health care for young people
and their wellbeing, and we’ll keep monitoring how things
are going,” Ms Orsborn said.

“It is very encouraging
to see other agencies taking up these issues and considering
how they contribute. We welcome the report from the Auditor
General and are very pleased to see he has committed to
following up.”

Youth
services focus report – Admission of young people to adult
inpatient mental health services

Released
May 2023

Young
people speak out about Wellbeing: An insights report into
the Wellbeing of Rangatahi Māori and other Young People in
Aotearoa

Released May 2023

Improving
access and choice for youth
report

Released November
2022

© Scoop Media