Mental health services will receive significant funding boosts in the wake of the federal election but critics still don’t believe the increase is enough.
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) estimates one in five Australian adults experience mental illness in any one year while 45 per cent of the Australian population will be subject to mental illness at some point in their life.
Freedom Centre Youth Coordinator Dani Wright engages with LGBT youth living with mental illness on a daily basis and said she was bittersweet about the election outcome.
‘I was a bit disappointed from the discussions between Labor and the Greens that there was no revision and increase in mental health,’ Wright said.
‘It’s bittersweet. Generally, the Labor party are better at pumping money and resources into education and hopefully, health. There’s certainly a need for it.’
The Liberals pledged $1.5 billion to mental health services this election, more than five times the ALP’s promise of $277 million.
‘Even if there was more funding from the Coalition, there is no guarantee this money would go to LGBT services based on Tony Abbott’s reputation,’ said Wright.
Wright said the funding increase was definitely an improvement on former governments but was still concerned more resources were needed.
‘The demand on the Freedom Centre is far higher … than what we can actually do,’ she said.
‘There’s such a demand for it and there’s only so much we can stretch the staff we have.’
Wright isn’t alone in this view.
The most prominent voice on this issue has been Australian of the Year and mental health expert Professor Patrick McGorry who echoed Wright’s concerns in past criticisms of the Gillard Labor Government.
‘… We need to build a 21st century model of mental health care and we have the blueprints available in Australia,’ McGorry said.
‘Neither side (party) has committed to a long-term, sustained plan to turn this around which is what we need.’
Between 2007 and 2008, the AIHW said the national recurrent cost for mental health services was $5.3 billion.
Benn Dorrington
***
