Street Maryan: Mental Health Commission Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Street Maryan: Mental Health Commission Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
[Sitting date: 24 July 2007. Volume:640;Page:10663. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
MARYAN STREET (Labour) 
: 
 It is a pleasure to rise to speak to the Mental Health Commission Amendment Bill this evening. When we adjourned on Thursday I was in the middle of talking about a recent experience of attending the opening of Waiatarau which is the new acute mental health unit of the Waitemata District Health Board. It was a wonderful experience. I was very familiar with the conditions in which people worked and patients were treated in the former acute unit in my previous occupation. It was interesting to see a brand new acute unit established by the Waitemata District Health Board to accommodate those people who from time to time require residential acute facilities. 
During the course of the hearing of submissions and also in the course of the health estimates this year it became apparent that a great deal has happened over the last few years in respect of the provision of mental health services. On questioning it became apparent that there are twice as many psychiatrists now than there were 10 years ago—a fact mentioned in the Health Committee’s report. There has been a huge improvement in the services provided.  
One of the significant things that I learnt at the opening of the Waiatarau centre was in response to my question about staff retention. Sometimes there has been difficulty in applying all the mental health blueprint money to mental health services because of a lack of staff. I was delighted to be informed by the Waitemata District Health Board that—in large measure because of the Public Service Association’s multi-employer collective agreement that was reached in the last year or two—the board has the lowest turnover rate of mental health nursing staff in years. People are getting jobs staying there and enjoying them because the pay rates are better and much more satisfactory. But more than that the direction of mental health services provision is becoming increasingly satisfying for those mental health professionals who are committed to their work. 
 I want to talk about a couple of things in particular. First of all I want to talk about a couple of the Mental Health Commission’s new functions. The first new function of the commission as outlined in the amendment bill is service-user and family advocacy. The commission has articulated the voice of service users particularly well since its inception in 1996. The service-user advocacy role that the commission has taken on is not a function of the commission under the current Mental Health Commission Act. Submitters to the policy consultation process expressed very strong support for this role and some felt that the commission represented service users of mental health services in a way that had not occurred before the commission was established. The bill before us tonight now makes this role transparent. 
Some submitters to the policy consultation process expressed concerns that in the commission’s advocacy for service users the voice of the families and whanau of mental health service users had been lost. There was a sense of alienation in some of the submissions—not only those to the ministry I believe but also those to the Health Committee—of those representing the families and whanau of mental health service users in the policy consultation process and as noted in our report in submissions to the committee. I am pleased to say that I believe that the bill addresses that problem by extending the commission’s advocacy role to the families and whanau of mental health service users. The commission will be able to identify and articulate the needs and aspirations of mental health service users and their whanau. This will often be a difficult balancing act as not all interests will align smoothly. However it is vital to the future cohesion of the sector that the commission works to promote a balanced view of the issues facing the sector. In carrying out its advocacy roles the commission will work at a systemic level; that is it will identify and articulate the needs and aspirations of mental health service users as a whole and of their whanau as a whole.  
The second new role of the commission is to foster collaboration and dialogue in the mental health sector. Much of the commission’s work over the last decade has been well-received. For example the commission’s work on the recovery model of care and the blueprint for mental health services come to mind as being highly significant in the development of the sector. However submissions to the Health Committee indicated that not all stakeholders believe that the commission engaged with them appropriately. We believe that an inclusive approach to mental health is very important and will be particularly so in the future. Te Kokiri emphasises this inclusive approach. The collaboration of district health boards providers whanau caregivers non-governmental organisations and clinicians will be critical in achieving the Government’s broader objectives in mental health. The commission can play an important role in supporting collaboration by engaging with stakeholders and facilitating dialogue over issues facing mental health. Although an important focus of the commission will be to identify the needs and aspirations of users and their families it is important that the commission engage collaboratively with all relevant interest groups and endeavour to reflect a broad range of perspectives in their work. This includes those engaged in the planning and delivery of mental health services and those engaged in the research community. 
There is a lot that can be said about this bill. One of the things that I want to touch on briefly as well is that in this bill the Mental Health Commission retains its role of addressing the stigma associated with mental illness. I think this House needs to commend the Mental Health Commission for its consistent work through public advertising in reversing people’s attitudes towards mental illness. I commend all of those famous New Zealanders who have allowed themselves to be used in the process of de-stigmatising mental illness and I congratulate them and the Mental Health Commission on that work.  
Finally I say two things. Firstly there was an announcement earlier this year of a funding boost of $21 million over the next 4 years for mental health primary care and this is critically important. It is really essential that there are more developments that support people’s mental health in primary health care settings. Secondly I pay tribute to another change to the Mental Health Commission and that is the appointment of a new commissioner Ray Watson who is here in the public gallery tonight. Mr Watson is a former chief executive of the Ngai Tahu Development Corporation and Lakeland Health. He has an extensive clinical and management background in mental health services and I wish him all the very best on behalf of the members here for his new role with the Mental Health Commission. Kia ora koutou.