The Ministry of Health does not take responsibility for funding children's mental health services. The Ministry of Community and Social Services has no legal obligation to fund children's mental health. Neither does it have children's mental health as a priority. No ministry is accountable for the cumulative impact of their funding decisions on our children with mental health problems. Effective planning and coordination is impossible.
Research shows that prevention and early intervention are key.
Getting service early is just as important to this child. But the average time on the waiting list for children's mental health services now is six months. And 7,000 children are waiting. A month is a very long time in a child's development - and for the child's family. In 1999 the cost of providing service to 120,000 children in 90 children's mental health centres was less than the budget for one large, urban, teaching hospital.