In this edition:

• Update from Toni Gutschlag, Deputy Director-General
• School based mental health support to be co-designed in five new areas
• Expanding on-campus mental health support for tertiary students
• New $22.5 million forensic mental health unit opens
• New Pacific services across Auckland and Wellington
• Pacific organisations working to prevent suicide
• Digital tools to help mental wellbeing
• New Small Steps tools launched by Te Hiringa Hauora

Over the last two weeks I’ve had the great pleasure of being involved in events and announcements that show just how much is progressing around the country.

So many of the successful programmes we support rely on local communities shaping the programme to ensure it is right for them. The Mana Ake programme is a great example; initially launched in early 2018 as part of the Government’s plan to wrap support around children living in earthquake affected communities, it is now being expanded into five more DHB areas. But this is not about ‘lifting and shifting’ Canterbury's programme to other parts of the country. It's about sharing their learning and each DHB leading a co-design process to adapt Mana Ake into a programme that best suits their tamariki, whānau, schools, and communities.

Last week I was pleased to attend an event launching the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission. The Commission will help keep us on track by providing independent, system-level oversight of mental health and wellbeing in New Zealand, and I’d like to acknowledge the huge amount of mahi from so many people over the last two years to get the permanent Commission established. You can watch the full event on the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission website.

Ngā mihi,

Toni

School based mental health support to be co-designed in five new areas

Kapa Haka welcome from Homai School in Auckland

Last week at an event at Homai School in South Auckland, we announced that the Mana Ake programme that has been running in Canterbury and Kaikoura since 2018 is now being co-designed in five new DHB areas to tailor the programme for local communities.

Mana Ake is a school-based programme providing mental health and wellbeing support for children in years 1-8. Kaimahi (workers) support schools and whānau when children are experiencing issues that affect their wellbeing, including bullying, parental separation and grief and loss.

Supporting mental wellbeing in schools means children and young people have early access to support that provides the foundations of lifelong mental wellbeing. The programme has supported more than 7,000 children across Canterbury and Kaikōura since 2018, when it was put in place for earthquake-affected communities.

Health and Education teams will be working together in Northland, Lakes, Bay of Plenty, Counties Manukau and the West Coast to co-design the programme to suit the local tamariki, whānau and teaching community.

• Find out more about the Mana Ake programme

• Read more about the expansion of Mana Ake

Expanding on-campus mental health support for tertiary students

The Ministry of Health and Te Pūkenga have signed a $1.6 million agreement to boost mental health and addiction support for learners, with the first services expected to be in place by the end of July this year. 

This is part of the four-year, $25 million package to support tertiary students across Aotearoa that was announced last year.  There was $2 million available in the first year with the remaining funding in this package tagged for mental wellbeing support in Wānanga.  The funding amount increases to $5 million in year two and will involve programmes providing supports for universities. 

The additional services that will be available through Te Pūkenga campuses build on a number of new services already being delivered at tertiary institutions around the country through the Integrated Primary Mental Health and Addiction Programme, which is being rolled out as part of the Access and Choice programme.

Students at the University of Auckland, AUT, Waikato University and Victoria University can access these new services through the university health clinics. For learners aged 18-25 at Victoria University, Massey Wellington, Whitireia and WelTec, support is also available through the Piki programme.

“A key part of increasing access and choice for students is offering different options to support mental wellbeing,” said Toni Gutschlag, Deputy Director-General Mental Health and Addiction. 

“We are building a range of services and tools, so ultimately our young people will be able to access support that works for them whenever they need it, and wherever they are in New Zealand.”

Funding has recently been announced to support Youthline, which gives all young people access to phone, text and web chat support whenever they need it acknowledging that some young people prefer to access virtual or digital supports. 

New youth primary mental health and addiction programmes have also recently been announced in 10 DHB areas, with more to come over the next few months.

New $22.5 million forensic mental health unit opens

Waitematā DHB CEO Dr Dale Bramley, Prime Minister Rt Hon Jacinda Ardern, and Waitematā DHB Chief Advisor Tikanga, Dame Rangimārie Naida Glavish officially open E Tū Tanekaha

E Tū Tanekaha, a $22.5 million, 15-bed medium secure unit has been officially opened at the Waitematā District Health Board’s Mason Clinic in Point Chevalier.

The Mason Clinic serves a population of around 1.5 million people in the Northland, Waitematā, Auckland, and Counties Manukau District Health Board catchments. The site includes medium-secure, minimum secure and open units to facilitate recovery and community reintegration, with a focus on acute treatment and rehabilitation.

It is vital that people accessing forensic mental health services are provided safe, effective and appropriate care, and ensuring facilities are upgraded and fit for purpose is part of the regeneration of the site.

The new building replaces the previous Tanekaha building that had severe weather-tightness issues, and brings the total capacity at the Mason Clinic Regional Psychiatry service site to 124.

E Tū Tanekaha is the latest addition to the site which is flagged to undergo further redevelopment and expansion. Further redevelopment of the Mason Clinic is planned with a $60 million project approved by the Government in February 2020 to build additional inpatient and administrative buildings, activity and support spaces, and temporary secure building entry and internal roading extensions.

New Pacific services across Auckland and Wellington

Jo Chiplin, Group Manager Primary and Community Wellbeing, with Debbie Sorensen, CEO of Pasifika Futures, and Gerardine Clifford-Lidstone, Director of Pacific Health

Pacific people across Auckland and Wellington will have better access to mental health and addiction services with contracts worth $6.6 million rolling out.

The Ministry has run two separate procurement processes for Pacific primary mental health and addiction services – one for expanding existing services, and one for new services.

Pacific people are more likely to develop mental distress than the general population, but less likely to reach out for support. That’s why it’s important that there are culturally appropriate services available which will help support better mental health outcomes.

The six contracts announced this month are for new services across Auckland, Counties Manukau, Capital and Coast and the Hutt Valley. The focus is on providing for Pacific, by Pacific services that appreciate the diversity of Pacific communities.

The services announced are being delivered through:

• Fonua Ola (Counties Manukau DHB)
• Vaka Tautua (services in Auckland DHB and Capital and Coast DHB)
• Pasifika Futures via The Fono (Counties Manukau DHB)
• Pacific Health Services (Hutt Valley DHB)
• Naku Enei Tamariki Inc (Hutt Valley DHB).

Once up and running, the new services are expected to be able to support more than 3,000 people a year.

The new services are part of the programme of work to increase access to, and choice of, mental health and addiction services.

• Read more about the new Pacific services in Auckland and Wellington

Pacific organisations working to prevent suicide

Carla na Nagara, Director of the Suicide Prevention Office, with Tau Faaeteete, Zeal Education

Director of the Suicide Prevention Office, Carla na Nagara, recently visited recipients of the Pasifika Suicide Prevention Community Fund, administered by Le Va.

One of those visited, Zeal Education Trust, has a mission to make transformative spaces and experiences accessible to all rangatahi in Aotearoa, particularly young people experiencing distress or disconnection. Zeal does this through engaging young people in creative and innovative experiences.

Zeal’s Pasifika youth workers employ a strengths-based approach and the creative arts to build resilience, enhancing factors that protect against suicide and creating communities of belonging and support.

The funding is being used to develop and run suicide prevention mentoring groups in Auckland and Wellington. The groups run for 10 weeks each term, with approximately 10-30 Pasifika young people attending each group.

Chief Executive, Jesse Boyce, says the transformative work through Zeal's Lupe programme has exceeded expectations.

"Pacific young people on the programme feel seen and heard through our skills and mentoring sessions, many now seeing positive pathways for their futures...the impact for Pacific young people on the programme is incredible."

• Read more about the Le Va Pasifika Suicide Prevention Community Fund

Digital tools to help mental wellbeing

Clockwise, from top left: Erica Lloyd from Soul Machines, Tania Cargo from the University of Auckland, Rebecca McBeth from HiNZ News, Liz Berryman from chnnl, and Toni Gutschlag

E-mental health solutions play an important role in helping to provide access and choice in the mental health system. They offer alternative approaches and can provide early help that prevents problems and builds mental health resilience. 

Last week, Toni Gutschlag, Deputy Director-General Mental Health and Addiction, took part in a webinar discussing the opportunities of digital mental wellbeing tools.

It has always been clear that digital tools and technology have a role to play in supporting mental wellbeing, but COVID-19 really pushed that into the spotlight. Through the COVID-19 response, the Ministry funded a range of digital tools such as the Melon app, Just a Thought, Mentemia, Aroha chatbot and Youthline’s web chat function.

We are all familiar with digital technology now; it has become woven into the fabric of health service delivery and our collective approach to mental health and wellbeing.

The Ministry is now taking the next steps in ensuring that digital tools remain an option people can choose to access. We currently have a Registration of Interest process open on GETS for two digital solutions (one for adults and one for young people) that can help New Zealanders develop skills and knowledge to maintain their mental wellbeing during times of stress and distress.

The resources must be clinically safe, easy to use, and inclusive, particularly for Māori and Pacific users. Importantly, the digital tool needs to be designed with user input, including from those with lived experience of distress.

To find out more, check the Government Electronic Tenders Service links:

• Digital Mental Wellbeing Tool(s) for Adults (GETS ID: 24200490)

• Digital Mental Wellbeing Tool(s) for Young People (GETS ID: 24200519)

New Small Steps tools launched by Te Hiringa Hauora

Te Hiringa Hauora, the Health Promotion Agency has launched a new website, Small Steps, featuring engaging locally developed digital tools to help people improve their wellbeing.

Small Steps are a range of digital activities to support people to develop the skills they need to maintain or improve their mental health and wellbeing. The initial six tools focus on positive thinking and mindfulness to manage stress or anxiety and help for those who are feeling down. A further six tools will be added to the website in coming months.

A great benefit of the website is that it is zero-rated, meaning it can be used without data. This makes it accessible to more New Zealanders, wherever they are.

The website and tools are available in English and te reo Māori and have been developed based on clinical evidence and a te Ao Māori lens. The website and digital tools will be continually updated to meet user expectations, adapt to new technology, and build on the evidence of what works.

Small Steps can also be used by friends and whānau wanting to better support people they know who are struggling with their wellbeing, and by social and mental health services when working with their clients.

The Ministry of Health was pleased to fund Small Steps as part of the government’s commitment to expanding the range of digital wellbeing solutions available to New Zealanders.

• Have a look at the Small Steps website

Te Reo Māori word of the week

Mātau ā-wheako = Lived Experience

Find more at Te Reo Hāpai