❓ Question regarding the McGowan government's investment in youth mental health, specifically how the new East Metropolitan Youth Unit will support vulnerable young people. The Minister details the unit's model of care, related services, and ongoing investment in youth mental health services across WA.
AnsweredQoN 842Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
MENTAL HEALTH —
EAST METROPOLITAN YOUTH UNIT
842. Ms C.M. ROWE to the Minister for Mental Health:
I refer to the McGowan Labor
government's commitment to support young people who are grappling with
mental health issues through its significant investment in vital treatment
services. Can the minister update the house on how the new East Metropolitan
Youth Unit, which opened today, will ensure that vulnerable young people
dealing with an acute mental health issue get the treatment and support they
need?
EAST METROPOLITAN YOUTH UNIT
842. Ms C.M. ROWE to the Minister for Mental Health:
I refer to the McGowan Labor
government's commitment to support young people who are grappling with
mental health issues through its significant investment in vital treatment
services. Can the minister update the house on how the new East Metropolitan
Youth Unit, which opened today, will ensure that vulnerable young people
dealing with an acute mental health issue get the treatment and support they
need?
AnswerView source ↗
I
thank the member for Belmont for her question. I know that she holds great
concern for young people in her community. I think we have had workshops with
community leaders in the past on the issue of youth mental health. It is an
important one, because we know that 75 per cent of mental illness emerges before
the age of 25 years, so, from that perspective, addressing mental health issues
within the community when people are young is very important. Sadly, suicide is
the leading cause of death for all 15 to 25-year-olds. Between the ages of 15
and 25 is a period of major change in people's lives. It is a time when
a lot of mental health issues emerge, particularly around issues such as
personality disorders. In older adults, for instance, personality disorders
make up approximately a quarter of treatment in adult units. In young people,
it is at least a half. That is why we have to address mental health issues in
adolescent and young people in a different way from those in other sectors.
As members would be aware, we have
recently developed a 20-bed child and adolescent unit at Perth Children's
Hospital. By and large, we have been able to transition a whole bunch of beds
into that unit, which provides us with the opportunity in east metro to develop
the adolescent and young adults unit. This unit has been developed around 12 beds,
three of which will be secure beds, and is specifically there to address people
between the ages of 16 and 24. My kids are in their early twenties and they
know that transitioning from any adolescent health service into adult services
can be scary. This is a really important exercise. The clinicians at the East
Metropolitan Youth Unit have developed a model of care from the ground up. It
is an interdisciplinary unit based on good evidence about what we need to do to
support young people who are coming out of an acute mental health episode to
get the services they need so that ultimately they can transition back into
community mental health and their homes. This obviously builds on the other
youth services we have, including the 14-bed youth unit at Fiona Stanley
Hospital, the eight youth Hospital in the Home beds in Perth's northern
suburbs and, of course, the 20-bed mental health unit at Perth Children's
Hospital.
I am proud of the work that the
Mental Health Commission continues to do to produce mental health services for
young people in the community, including $1.9 million for the WA Country Health
Service for the provision of youth community treatment services in regional Western
Australia; the half a million dollars given to the South Metropolitan Health
Service for the youth community assessment and treatment team; and $1.6 million
to WA Country Health Service for specific service enhancements for infants,
children, adolescents and youth, as well as an expansion of telemental health.
Youth mental health will continue to be a growing problem in our community and
will continue to put a strain on our services. I am very proud of the number of
beds we have been able to bring into the system. We will continue to develop
those beds, particularly in the step-up, step-down facilities in which we can
intervene in patients' journeys much earlier. It is an important
addition to our services and I am very proud of the work that the East
Metropolitan Health Service has done within budget to bring this onstream and
the work of the Mental Health Commission in collaboration for this new service.
The SPEAKER : The member for
Roe.
Dr A.D. Buti : The birthday
boy!
The SPEAKER : Happy birthday,
member.
thank the member for Belmont for her question. I know that she holds great
concern for young people in her community. I think we have had workshops with
community leaders in the past on the issue of youth mental health. It is an
important one, because we know that 75 per cent of mental illness emerges before
the age of 25 years, so, from that perspective, addressing mental health issues
within the community when people are young is very important. Sadly, suicide is
the leading cause of death for all 15 to 25-year-olds. Between the ages of 15
and 25 is a period of major change in people's lives. It is a time when
a lot of mental health issues emerge, particularly around issues such as
personality disorders. In older adults, for instance, personality disorders
make up approximately a quarter of treatment in adult units. In young people,
it is at least a half. That is why we have to address mental health issues in
adolescent and young people in a different way from those in other sectors.
As members would be aware, we have
recently developed a 20-bed child and adolescent unit at Perth Children's
Hospital. By and large, we have been able to transition a whole bunch of beds
into that unit, which provides us with the opportunity in east metro to develop
the adolescent and young adults unit. This unit has been developed around 12 beds,
three of which will be secure beds, and is specifically there to address people
between the ages of 16 and 24. My kids are in their early twenties and they
know that transitioning from any adolescent health service into adult services
can be scary. This is a really important exercise. The clinicians at the East
Metropolitan Youth Unit have developed a model of care from the ground up. It
is an interdisciplinary unit based on good evidence about what we need to do to
support young people who are coming out of an acute mental health episode to
get the services they need so that ultimately they can transition back into
community mental health and their homes. This obviously builds on the other
youth services we have, including the 14-bed youth unit at Fiona Stanley
Hospital, the eight youth Hospital in the Home beds in Perth's northern
suburbs and, of course, the 20-bed mental health unit at Perth Children's
Hospital.
I am proud of the work that the
Mental Health Commission continues to do to produce mental health services for
young people in the community, including $1.9 million for the WA Country Health
Service for the provision of youth community treatment services in regional Western
Australia; the half a million dollars given to the South Metropolitan Health
Service for the youth community assessment and treatment team; and $1.6 million
to WA Country Health Service for specific service enhancements for infants,
children, adolescents and youth, as well as an expansion of telemental health.
Youth mental health will continue to be a growing problem in our community and
will continue to put a strain on our services. I am very proud of the number of
beds we have been able to bring into the system. We will continue to develop
those beds, particularly in the step-up, step-down facilities in which we can
intervene in patients' journeys much earlier. It is an important
addition to our services and I am very proud of the work that the East
Metropolitan Health Service has done within budget to bring this onstream and
the work of the Mental Health Commission in collaboration for this new service.
The SPEAKER : The member for
Roe.
Dr A.D. Buti : The birthday
boy!
The SPEAKER : Happy birthday,
member.
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