Auckland-based Clive Bensemann yesterday briefed the SDHB’s Community and Public Health Advisory Committee on early progress with the review, which has had most of its steering group appointed and has identified a preferred supplier to carry out the work.
"A change of this size, if I understand the aspirations of this review, will be challenging in a number of ways, including shifting of relationships and prioritisation of spending . . . but I think there are great opportunities in this."
Dr Bensemann said the review would be a two-step process; interviewing interested parties and gathering data, and then devising a strategy to introduce improvements.
He was interested in considering a system which considered physical and mental health needs together, as the two often went hand in hand.
"There should also be a focus on safety, in the broadest sense of the word."
SDHB chief executive Chris Fleming said it was vital an outside, independent person such as Dr Bensemann be brought in to avoid any perception the review was an in-house piece of work by the board.
"I am quite open that there are many issues facing the service, the challenges of appropriate staffing, the challenges of facilities, and we do have a high level of concern raised by our community about our service, and we need to take that seriously," he said.
Mental health network leadership group independent chairman John McDonald said clinicians hoped the review would recommend a single, integrated mental health and addiction service.
Challenges the services faced included operating within a ring-fenced budget, issues around moving patients between services, equity of access for Maori, Pacific and rural people, and staff recruitment and retention, he said.
Mental health services general manager Louise Travers said safety for patients and staff needed to be improved, and that providers were struggling to meet an increase in demand following Covid-19, especially for youth mental health services.
WellSouth nursing director Wendy Findlay said general practice was an often unheralded part of the mental health system, and WellSouth had introduced several new positions in the past year to improve support for patients in distress.
